REVOLUTIONARY WAR SOLDIERS BURIED HERE BY WILEY WARD [Editor's note: Readers will notice several variations of some spellings in this column (i.e. Dannelley, Donnelley, Danley). These spellings are accurate and reflect mutiple spellings used in historical records.] The Three Notch Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution placed a plaque in the Covington County Court House honoring four Revolutionary War soldiers who were buried in the county. Those listed are William Carter, Jeremiah Dixon, John Liles and Samuel Williams. Two other names should be added to this list. One of these is Joseph Bozeman, who was born in North Carolina and died in what now is Covington County in September, 1821. As documented in "Sketches of the Bozeman Family", by Rev. Joseph Bozeman, Joseph Bozeman's death.. was caused by the falling of a tree on him, which some men were cutting down for timber. "He lived two days after he received the fatal injury. His grave is two miles, a little east of south from Montezuma, on a pine ridge under a pretty hickory, near the falls of the Conecuh River." Another Revolutionary Soldier buried in Covington County is James G. Dannelley, Sr. who is the ancestor of the large Danley family in Covington and Coffee counties. James Dannelley was born in South Carolina in 1750 and he is reported to have served as a private in Captain McKoy's company of the South Carolina militia under General Greene during the Revolutionary War. Soon after the War, James Dannelley married, and he was listed as a head of a household in the 1790 U.S. Census of Beauford District., SC. He had no children at that time, but he owned six slaves. James Dannelley was also listed in the 1800 and 1810 censuses of Beauford County, SC as a head of a household. In 1800 he had three sons and two daughters under the age of 10 and in 1810, he owned 12 slaves. James Dannelley's wife, Elizabeth, who was born around 1770, died in 1817 while they were living in Beauford County. Soon fter his wife's death, James moved his family to the Alabama Territory and in 1818, he paid taxes in Conecuh County. James Dannelley was not listed as a head of a household in the 1820 census of Conecuh County, but his two older sons, John and James G., Jr. and his son-in-law, Peter Steele, who had married Eliza Dannelley around 1815, were all listed as heads of a household in Conecuh County. Based on the census data, it appears that James G. Dannelley, Sr. and his youngest son, William H. were then living with John Dannelley. On November 6, 1826 James G. Donnelley and Peter H. Steele signed a petition as residents of Walton County, FL. James Dannelley's youngest son, William H. married Celia Bryan, the daughter of Jesse Bryan in 1826, and at that time, were probably living in Walton County, because Jesse Bryan also signed the above petition. William H. Dannelley did not sign the petition, but he was not 21 years old at that time. At that time, James G. Dannelley Sr. was living with his son, William H. Dannelley in the Rose Hill Community. By 1830, all the Dannelley's and Peter Steele had moved to Covington County. John, James G. Jr., William H. and Peter Steele were all listed as heads of households in the 1830 census of Covington County. James G. Dannelley, Sr. died February 26, 1833. At the time of his death, all of his sons and daughter were living in Covington County, and it is believed that he died at the home of his son, William H. Dannelley, who was then living near the present Vessey Chapel and Cemetery in the extreme southeast corner of Covington County. It is not known where he was buried. In 1839 or 1840, John Dannelley moved his family to Arkansas and in 1849 or 1850, he moved to Texas. John Dannelley probably married twice and reared a large family of as many as 20 children. He was living in Polk County, Texas in 1860 with nine of his younger children. As previously mentioned, Peter Steele married James known daughter, Eliza, around 1815, probably while they were in Beauford County, SC. Eliza was born in the late 1790's and was less than 20 years old when she married. Peter H. Steele moved with the Dannelley's to the Alabama Territory around 1818 and on November 20, 1818 he was appointed Circuit Court Clerk of Conecuh County. In the 1820 census of Conecuh County, he wa shown with a wife, two sons and one daughter. Peter Steele moved his family to the Almirante or Yellow River community of Walton County, Fla in the early 1820's and to Covington County in the late 1820's. He was elected Circuit Court Clerk of Covington County in August 1834, and served for one year. He apparently moved back to Walton County around 1836 and died there in the late 1830's. Peter H. Steele and Eliza Dannelley Steel reared as many as eight sons and three daughters. Those known are Sarah E. bc1818 m Wright A. Stokes; Henry bc1819; Peter bc1821Joseph bv 1822; William C. bc 1824; Jason b 1828; Alexander bc 1832; Julius bc 1836 and Caroline b 1837. Wright A. and Sara E. (Steele) Stokes reared a large family in Covington County.. Most of their other children married and reared families in Walton County, Fla. In the mid 1840's, Eliza Steele married Josiah H. Stokes, the younger brother of Wright A. Stokes. Eliza was over 40 years old and at least 20 years older than her second husband and it is not believed that they reared any children. In the early 1850's Josiah H. Stokes and his wife moved to Covington County and in 1856, he purchased 40 acres of land in the town of Andalusia. On February 1856, while living in Andalusia, Eliza Stokes filed a claim to obtain to obtain a Revolutionary War Pension for her deceased father, James Dannelley. In this claim, Eliza Stokes stated when and where her father was born, lived and died, and she said that she had only three brothers living. One of them lived in Texas (John) and the other two (James G. Jr. and William H.) were in Covington County. A pension was not granted n this claim because not enough information was given, but the claim was not rejected. It is not known what happened to Eliza Stokes after this claim was filed, but by 1860 her husband, Josiah H. Stokes, had moved to Texas, where he remarried and reared a family. James G. Dannelley, Jr. was born around 1799 and he married around 1820, probably in Conecuh County. He moved to Covington County before 1830 and settled in the Rose Hill Community. He moved to Coffee County n the 1840's and he probably died there in the late 1850's. James G. Dannelley Jr. reared a large family of nine daughters and four sons, but only the following names are known: Harriet M. bc 1825 m. John Holley; Martha bc 1835; Susan bc 1836; Oliver Perry bc 1837 m. Martha Holley; James bc 1840; Adaline bc 1841; Amanda b 1842; Elizabeth bc 1846 and George bc 1851. Many of James G. Dannelley Jr.'s children still live in South Alabama. William H. Dannelley was born in 1806; he married Celia Bryan, the daughter of Jesse Bryan, in 1826 while they were living in Walton County, FL. Celia Bryan was born in 1808. Soon after their marriage, William H. Dannelley moved with his father and father-in-law to the Rose Hill Communityof Covington County and settle near the banks of the Conecuh River. He lived here until the late 1850's; he then moved to Coffee County. William H. Dannelley died in 1874 and his wife, Celia, died in 1889. William H. and Celia Dannelley reared the following children: William H. Jr. born in Alabma in 1827; m2 Mary Ann Rogers; James H. b 1819 m. Mrs. Nancy Wages; Jesse H. b 1830 d. 1857; John G. b1832 d. 1856; Hardy E. b 1834 m. Ida Adams; Elizabeth M. b 1836 m. John R. Cauley; Andrew J. b. 1838; Celia A. b 1840 m. Jesse B. Sasser; George W. b. 1842 d. 1844; Sarah Manervy b. 1846; and Ava Matilda b. 1849 d. 1856. Many descendats of William and Celia Dannelley still live in South Alabama and West Florida. William H. Dannelley recorded the births and death dates of his father, himself, his wife and all their children in his Bible from which much of the above data were taken. All of James G. Dannelley Sr.'s children could read and write and they all spelled their name Dannelley, but the name has now been shortened to Danley, and all of their known descendants use this shortened form. The location of the grave site for James G. Dannelley, Sr. , like that of all the other Revolutionary War Soldiers buried in Covington County, is unknown, but it is probably located near the Vessey Chapel and Cemetery. Transcribed by Betty Chase directly from a copy of the original newspaper article by Wiley Ward. The name of his column was "Looking Back".