State
of Tennessee} SS On this 13th day of August 1832 Presonally appeared in openKnox
County}
Court before me Samuel Powell one of the Circuit Judges of law and equity in
and for the state of Tennessee and for the first Judicial Circuit in the
Circuit Court now sitting Robert Johnston a resident of the County and State
aforesaid in the said County and state aged Seventy three years who being first
duly sworn according to law doth on his oath make the following declaration in
order to obtain the benefit of the act of Congress passd June 7th 1832
That he entered the service of the united states under the following named
officers and served as herein stated He lived in Bedford County Virginia
at which place he volunteerd on the 21st day of September 1780 under Capt Jacob Early in Col Linchs [sic: Charles
Lynch’s] Regiment of volunteers & Riflemen Marched to Petersburgh
[sic: Petersburg] Va., had our head quarters about two miles from
Petersburgh was in no battle lay there till we were discharged
which discharge bears date december 21st 1780 signed by W Leftwich Liut Col and accompanies this declaration
Sirved at the above tower three months when we arrived at Petersburgh we joined
Gen’l [Robert] Lawson and went under the command of the regular officersAgain
while living at the same place in the Spring of 1781 voluntered under Capt
Bowen Price in Col Linches Regiment of Rifle men marched to North Carolina to
Gilford [sic: Guilford Courthouse] and on Haw River after Cornwallaces [sic:
Cornwallis’s] men we joined Col [William] Washington who commanded a troop of
horse and a number of infantry we was then under his command he
Johnston was in the battle at Gilford [15 March 1781] Genl [Nathanael]
Green was commander in chief we were defeated we then pursued
Cornwallace across deep River and lay in the neighbourhood of the fall of that
River [at Ramsey’s Mill above the confluence with Haw River] till it was
understood that Cornwallace went on board of his vessels at Cross Creek
[present Fayetteville] he was there honouraby but verbally
discharged Served three months Prooves that he was in the battle of
Gilford by James Crews He served in the whole six months He has his
discharge as to the first tour above written and can proove his actual service
in the battle of Gilford by James Crews he has no other documentary
evidence nor he knows of no other person whose testimony he can procure who can
testify to his actual service He hereby relinquishes his every claim
whatever to a pension or annuity except the present and declares that his name
is not on the pension roll of the agency of any stateThere
is no clergyman living amediately in his neighbourhood nor he knows of none by
whom he can proove the report[?] of his actual serviceSworn
to and subscribed the day and year
aforesaid [signed] Robert
JohnsonNOTE:
A typed summary adds that Robert Johnson was born in Albemarle County VA on 7
April 1759 and moved from Bedford County VA to Knox County TN in 1787.