HENRY DORTON

HENRY DORTON
Son of Anne Dorton
b: March 10, 1748/49 Bladensburg, Prince Georges County, Maryland
d: June 11, 1836 Recorded in Monongalia County, (West) Virginia
Burial: near the old furnace, Clinton Furnace, Virginia
(See Dalton Cemetery)
married m: June 4, 1781 Maryland
ELEANOR RUSSELL

A collection of information, facts, and write-ups
from various sources
about
Henry Dorton

HENRY DORTON'S BIRTH and EARLY YEARS

born March 8 1748 (old calendar) or March 10, 1750 (new calendar)
near Bladensburg, Prince Georges County, Maryland

His mother, Anne Dorton, was an indentured servant to a sea captain in Prince Georges County, Maryland. Anne was providing services to the Captain's wife, Jane Martin, Inn Keeper(s?).

Based on information (next column) on p. 207 of "The complete book of Emigrants in Bondage 1614-1775" Anne Dorton had to have been pregnant before her arrival in Virginia because:

1) Anne was sentenced (when was she sentenced? and for what crime?) from Devon to be transported March 1750 to Virginia
2) Henry had already been born by March 27, 1750.

If Anne was transported even on the exact day of March 1st, 1750, the trip taking typically seven weeks, it would make it pretty improbable for her to have been in America by March 27, 1750 when a grand jury was held to present the fact that she had a base born child by information of Jane Martin. Unless she arrived on that day, March 27, or pretty close to that day, and Jane Martin finding her having Henry, the baby with her, informed the grand jury almost immediately that Anne Dorton had a child on the 8th/10th of March - in this scenario, making Henry probably born shipboard, or possibly before the 8th/10th of March.

a) Whether Henry was born shortly before she left the shores of England, or
b) Whether Henry was born on the ship or
c) Whether Henry was born almost immediately after Anne arrived, is left to speculation so far, unless seeing the record #83-2933  Prince Georges County Court Record LL p 128 Ann Dorton Mar Court 1750 will clear up this speculation.

There have been no clues as to the father of Henry. Based on the above time-line, we might speculate further that Jane Martin's husband was not the father of Henry, unless one might consider that the Anne Dorton sentenced to be transported to Virginia in 1750 is not the same Anne Dorton, Henry Dorton's mother.

"The complete book of Emigrants in Bondage-1614-1775 by Peter Wilson Coldham pg
207: Dolton, Ann sentenced to be transported Mar 1750 to Va from Devon.
March Court , Prince Georges County, held on the 4 th Tuesday and twenty seventh day
of March 1750 "March Court 1750, We the grand jurors for the body of Prince Georges County
do present Ann Dorton for having a base born child by information of Jane Martin"

MARYLAND LAW - 1715, ch. 44, §. 27.:
MULATTOES. 1. Mulatto Children, begotten by any Negro, or other Slave, or by any Free Negro, upon any WhiteWoman; or by any White Man upon any Free NegroWoman, shall be Servants till the Age of Thirty-one.

Henry Dorton was taken from his mother, Anne. There are other speculations, some not based on legal reasons, as to why Henry was taken from his mother, Anne.

Samuel Pruit, Sr. died in 1761. Henry was willed to Sam Pruit, Jr.
Sam Pruit, Jr. was to take possession of Henry after the death of Samuel Pruit, Sr.'s wife, Elizabeth Pruit.

After Elizabeth Pruit's death, about 1770, Henry (age 20) was released from his indenture.
Was this release made automatically by Elizabeth's death and the fact that she had no inheritors; i.e. did Sam Pruit, Jr. die before his mother, Elizabeth, so as to free Henry from indenture from Sam Pruit, Jr.? Is there a document releasing Henry Dorton from indenture?

Henry went to Redstone Settlement near Brownsville, Fayette County, Pennsylvania.

HENRY DORTON
Resided (Documented)

[Henry's son, Levi, was listed on the same page]

1811 Virginia Tax Records Monongalia County (W)VA
the following are specified as "of color."

John Parsons (and Elizabeth Hill are the parents of Mary Jane Parsons. Mary Jane m. John Dorton, son of Henry Dorton.)

Henry Dorton - progenitor of Dorton/Dolton/Dalton family
Levi Dorton [Henry's son]
John Dorton [Henry's son]

Joseph Hill - spouse of Sarah Goings b. 1793. Sarah Goings is the sister of Sophia - Sophia married 1816 Warner Pritchard. Warner married 2nd to Henry Dalton's daughter, Ruth.

James Hill, Sr. - father of James Hill, Jr. below
James Hill, Jr. - b. 1785 is the spouse of Henry Dorton's daughter, Anne "Nancy" Dalton m. Mar 10, 1811.
William Hill - b. 1787 is the brother of James Hill, Jr.. William m. Polly Dolton December 2, 1810. Polly is the daughter of Heny Dorton.

Listed on the same Census page as Heads of Households are:
All Listed under"Free Colored Persons"

Elizabeth Dorton Female Free Colored Person 1 age 14-26 - Henry Dorton's daughter

Levi Dorton 1 person engaged in agriculture 3010 4010  0 - Henry Dorton's son

John Dorton 1 person engaged in agriculture  0100 1010 0 - Henry Dorton's son

Nimrod Dorton 1 engaged in agriculture 0100 0000 0 -Henry Dorton's son

Jason Goens engaged in Manufactures 0010   01?1  0 - Father of Sophia Goens, 2nd wife of Warner Pritchard (Warren Prickett below)

Joel Goens engaged in Manufactures 2100 2100 0 - Son of Jason Goens, brother of Sophia Goens

Warren (Warner) Prickett 3110  1210 0 - Husband of Ruth Dalton whose father is John Dorton and her grandfather is Henry Dorton.

American Revolution

Maryland

Pennsylvania

West Virginia

HENRY DORTON'S YEARS
DURING THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
to
1790 (aged 40)

Information about Fort Laurens, one area where Henry served in the American Revolution.
http://www.friendsoffortlaurens.org/index.html
http://www.friendsoffortlaurens.org/about.html

Henry's name is on this page of soldiers that participated at Fort Laurens.
http://www.friendsoffortlaurens.org/soldiers.html

Henry's declaration for pension information has not been linked by them as of February 8, 2003,
but they did mail me 1-21-03 a copy of what they have on file.
Click here to see their letter and copy of declaration which is worded a little differently than what I have below.
Henry Dorton - Fort Laurens military service

HENRY DORTON
Pension Deposition Information below
Version on file at Friends of Fort Laurens Foundation
Hand-Written version, plus more information, provided to me by Joy Riggleman

Pension Application S. 5362, November 21, 1832

Pension Application Granted 1834. Retroative to 1831.

"That he cannot recollect the month but from some circumstances brought to his recollection he believes it was during the month if July in 1778 he was again drafted for a six months tour at Redstone in Captain Foards company and immediately marched to Fort Pitt where Captain Gibson commanded the regiment and General Hand the troops.That soon General McIntosh arrived at Fort Pitt the troops descended the Ohio to near the mouth of Big Beaver Creek to which we built a fort.That some time after the troops were ordered all but a few left at Fort McIntosh to the Tuscarawa a branch of the Muskingen where we built Fort Larwence and from Fort Lawrence we were marched back to Fort McIntosh,and thence to Pittsburg he was discharged a week before Christmas by a written discharge signed by Capt Foard which he has lost.That from the western country he removed back to the place of his birth and in the month ofMay 1781 he was again drafted near Bladensburg in Maryland in Capt Cross's company of militia .That in June we marched to Annapolis where we were revived and remained a week. That we had seventy five men in our company,marched to Falmouth --other troops were marching the same direction but taking different roads on account of provisions from Falmouth. We continued our march through Virginia to a place called Savannah below Yorktown and was there stationed with five other companies under General Smallwood to keep the enemy from retreating from Yorktown that after the surrender of Lord Cornwallis we were all discharged that he served upwards of five months and recieved a written discharge from Captain Cross which he has long since lost.

That at present he knows of no person by whom he can prove his service,that he was born the year of 1748 near Bladensburg Maryland and resided in Prince Georges Co Maryland about nine years after the Revolution ,that he then removed to this county where he has ever since resided.That he doesnt know where the record of his age was,but he recalled Captain David Scott,a regular officer of the 13th Continental Virginia Regiment stationed at Fort Pitt as well as Lt Dent of the same regiment that he has known for many years Reverend Joseph Shackelford,Thomas Haymond Esq.Matthew Gay,and Colonel Samuel Hanney residents of Monongalia County and that he believed they could attest to his characterand veracity as well as his service. (Rev War Pension # S5362)

Henry Dorton referenced in
Historical Registry of Virginians in the Revolution, Soldiers, Sailors and Marines, 1775-1783.
Ed. by John H. Gwathmey, Richmond, VA 1938 (13,872 p.):232

HENRY DORTON
MONONGALIA COUNTY
PRIVATE
VIRGINIA CONT'L
$40.00 ANNUAL ALLOWANCE
$120.00 AMOUNT RECEIVED
MAY 10, 1833 PENSION STARTED
AGE 86

Rumour has it that a placque was placed in memorial of
Henry Dorton at Peace Cross, Prince Georges, Maryland
Click here for my search for it.

Marriage Record
Henry Dolton and Eleanor Russell

HENRY DORTON
Death Date

Date of Death - final pension payment issued to his wife, Eleanor, death date is recorded as
11 June 1836.

A request reply for information at the Archives by Hon. Byrns
for Dorton men who served in the Revolutionary War
These may be known relatives or just a random search for Dorton/Dalton names.
Request Reply Letter for information on Dorton men in Revolutionary War

* the trip taking typically seven weeks

"Passage To America, 1750,"
EyeWitness - history through the eyes of those who lived it,
www.ibiscom.com (2000)

References:
   Mittelberger, Gottleb, Gottleb Mittelberger's Journey to Pennsylvania in the Year 1750 and Return to Germany in the year 1754 (published by the German Society of Pennsylvania 1898)

A few excerpts chosen by me:

Misery was the most common description of a journey that typically lasted seven weeks. (He is writing regarding Philadelphia.)

The passage to America was treacherous by any standard. Many of the immigrants were too poor to pay for the journey and therefore indentured themselves to wealthier colonialists - selling their services for a period of years in return for the price of the passage.

No one can have an idea of the sufferings which women in confinement have to bear with their innocent children on board these ships. Few of this class escape with their lives; many a mother is cast into the water with her child as soon as she is dead. One day, just as we had a heavy gale, a woman in our ship, who was to give birth and could not give birth under the circumstances, was pushed through a loophole (porthole) in the ship and dropped into the sea, because she was far in the rear of the ship and could not be brought forward.

Children from one to seven years rarely survive the voyage; and many a time parents are compelled to see their children miserably suffer and die from hunger, thirst, and sickness, and then to see them cast into the water. I witnessed such misery in no less than thirty-two children in our ship, all of whom were thrown into the sea. The parents grieve all the more since their children find no resting place in the earth, but are devoured by the monsters of the sea. It is a notable fact that children who have not yet had the measles or smallpox generally get them on board the ship, and mostly die of them.

January 11, 2004