| 4. | Annable Lt. Edward was born on 22 Jun 1753 in Barnstable, Barnstable County, MA (son of Annable IV Samuel and Dimock Desire); died on 10 Jun 1836 in Marcellus, Onondaga County, NY; was buried on 10 Jun 1836 in Old Marcellus Cemetery, Marcellus, Onondaga County, NY. Notes:
Was a lieutenant in the Revolutionary War and who had a remarkable military career.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Lieutenant Edward Annable
1753-1836
Revolutionary War Campaigner
On March 11, 1948, Mr. F. R. Blair of General Motors Overseas Operations, New York, wrote about Lieut. Edward Annable, his Revolutionary ancestor, and loaned the following letter, circa 1887, to Anthony Anable (9th generation) to be copied. This letter was written by Fernando C. Annable, son of Lieut. Annable, to Desire Fuller Ormsby, his niece. She was the grandmother of Mr. Blair.
----------------------
Letter from Fernando C. Annable to his niece, Desire Fuller Ormsby, circa 1887:
"Respected Niece-
Go back in your imaginaion to colonial days-so far that the mist of time makes many things obscure and tradition may magnify the facts--there lived two girls, Dolly Dimick and her sister, Desire Dimick, belles of Boston. Dolly married John Ellis, Jr., and Desire married Samuel Annable, Jr. They moved to Ashfield (New York) and were farmers. This John Ellis, Jr. and Dolly Dimick had a son Dimick Ellis, who married his cousin, Polly Annable, the daughter of Samuel Annable, Jr., both of whom died in Sempronius (New York),and the first funeral I remember of going to was hers. She was over ninety when she died and now I am eighty-two. (This will give you some idea of time.)
"This Dimick Ellis and Polly Annable had a son, who is now living in Brooklyn (New York) and has become wealthy in the oil trade. He has written many pamphlets on the new dispensation of Swedenborg (as he calls it ) and last summer went to Europe, and lectured in one of their institutions. He has sent me a number of his books. He is Puritan, purified by Swendenborg. I never saw him but think he is older than I am by a few years. You can easily find him, and he will be delighted to see you.
"Your Grandfather, Edward Annable (my father) was eighteen years old when the battle of Lexington was fought and, as soon as he heard the news, he went down to Boston (about 70 miles) and enlisted for a short time, and was at the battle of Bunker Hill. He had some powder and three bullets and one of them was a pewter one. (This I heard him say often.) His father was a Tory, and, when he heard that Edward had enlisted, he hoped he would never come back. (This last item my mother told me.)
"Now I will relate what I have heard him relate of the Stony Point attack and surrender. When the men for that attack were called for, the regiment to which he belonged was paraded in a straight line and it was announced by an officer (I think Anthony Wayne, but am not sure) that a certain expedition was required and of so dangerous a nature that it would be no disgrace to any soldier should he decline it, but all who desired to be detailed might shoulder arms. All arms were shouldered. Then an officer passed along the line and touched every other man, saying to him, "Advance". This new line was told again that the expedition was a dangerous one, and it should be no disgrace to decline, but no one would decline, and no one thought of Stony Point.
"Out of these men so detailed, a forlorn hope (as father called it) were drawn by ballot to carry axes to cut away the abates. There was a Virginian who was not drawn on the forlorn hope, who told a soldier who was drawn, that his father, who was a planter in Virginia would honor any draft he might draw on him which he would give him, to have his chance in the forlorn hope. This was refused and the Virginian haughtily turned round and said, "I have ever been unfortunate from birth. I have reason to curse my wayward stars. I came within one of dying on the field of honor." Father told me this story more than once when I was a small boy, and it made such an impression on me, to think that a man wanted to die in battle, that I have remembered it until now.
"Father was on guard in camp and could distinctly hear the cannon, but did not know where it was. After the expedition had gone out, which everybody knew but did not know what for, Washington was seen walking forward and back in very measured steps. When the cannon was heard he stopped, stood motionless until it ended, and then walked rapidly to his quarters and was not seen again that night. The next morning a messenger brought the news of the surrender. It was then that father's company, or a detail from the regiment (I don't know which), was ordered to Stony Point to relieve Wayne and his men. When he went in to the fort, the clotted blood was to be seen on the ground and looked like butchering hogs (as he expressed it to me).
"Father first enlisted for a short period and subsequently for the duration of the war. He never took a furlough, but continued in the service till the close of the war. I do not know at what time he became a lieutenant, but the only captain I ever heard him speak of was Captain Wigglesworth, a Prussian officer, highly educated, who brought many books with him and came over with Lafayette. He had served under Frederick, the Great. He was a very courteous gentleman, well beloved in camp, but a tyrant on parade. From him I think father obtained his education, which was considerable, especially in writing and Roman history.
"Father was one of the detailed guard that conducted (Major) Andre to the gallows, and who stood close by. He distincly heard his last words. I will tell you the story as he told it to me.
"He was a slim man and had a long neck, and, after taking off his neck handkerchief, he took out three pins from his collar and wove them into his coat sleeve very nicely. His hand trembled while doing it. He was blindfolded and his arms were very loosely tied behind him. Then Colonel Schamel said to him, "if he had anything to say, he could say it now" Then, with some little effort, he raised the handkerchief from his eyes and said, "Gentlemen, I wish you to bear me witness that I meet my fate like a brave man." Then turning towards Colonel Schamel said, "Gentlemen, you may proceed". (These last words were not in the proof sheets you saw and I have called the writer's attention to it).
"Father was in the battle of Saratoga, but I never heard him say much about it, that I remember, more than that there was firing going on at different times for three days. He was in the battle of Brandywine, but I do not remember that he said much about that, but often spoke of it and of Lafayette who he thought was a brilliant young man and did well that day. He was not at Yorktown when Cornwallis surrendered, but was left under (General) Putnam with the New England troops to watch New York City, which that general always wanted to attack and was always importuning Washington to do, and was discontented because he was denied the privilege of doing so.
"The battle of Monmouth is a long story as he told it to me. I have never written it before, nor have I told it to my children, but this is what he said about it. It was the hottest day he ever saw, and his regiment went into that battle in their shirt sleeves. They piled their coats on the ground and a guard was placed over them. He was in Lee's division who made the first and abortive attack, for which Lee was censured so severely by Washington. His division again marched forward to the front and received the enemy's fire until they retreated. Following up their retreat was terrible suffering. The enemy filled up the wells behind them. There were no streams nor water to be had and men fell out of the ranks exhausted. On this retreat they found (I think) seven dead Hessions in the shade of an apple tree, who wore their uniforms buttoned up, as on parade, who were not wounded, but had died of heat.
"Father said he saw much of Washington that day, galloping his horse about the field, stopping for a few moments in one place and going to another for a few seconds. At one time he stopped, then he galloped off to some other place. I have heard him say that some soldiers died of drinking water, but nothing about Washington's care for them, but probably other officers took care of their soldiers, who knew the danger. I remember that it was thought the heat and fatigue of that day caused his fever sore, and it may be true, but I now think it was probably due to another cause, and I will give you my reason.
"Washington wanted to remove the army sixty miles distant. (I do not remember when nor where.) There was no enemy on the route, and the men were told they might break ranks and go as they pleased. A strife got up to see who would go the farthest, and father was one of the few who went through the first day. He carried his musket, cartridge box with twelve rounds of powder and balls, his canteen, three day's provisions, and all the clothes he wore for one year. Twice he performed a similar feat. My mother said he had for years varicose veins, or bunches, as she called them, in the veins many years before they broke out into a sore-but this is beside the question.
"All these stories were told to me while a small boy, often to keep me at work. He taught me the letter which Andre wrote to Washington to change the mode of his death, which I can repeat yet, and when I was old enought to read them in history I was greatly surprised to find them printed, for I really supposed that father and I were the only persons that knew it.
"Now I have written you a great deal of history that will do you no good if you take the trouble to read it, and it will do you but little hurt if you never tell of it, and I promise never to do it again.
Yours Sincerely,
(signed) F. C. Annable
In the Federal Census of 1790 for Ashfield, Essex County, MA, Lt. Edward and perhaps his father, Samuel are shown living next door to each other. Edward is shown having 1 male16 years and older, including head of household and 5 females in his household.
Samuel has four males 16 years and older, and three females living in his household, also in Ashfield,
Essex County, MA.
Edward Annable, (1753-1836), served as ensign in the Thirteenth Mass. regiment and was promoted lieutenant, 1780. He served to the close of the war in the Continental Line. He was born in Barnstable, Mass. The National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution Volume 18 page 25
Lt. Edward was buried on 10 June, 1836 so he probably died two days before. These dates are from the cemetery records of Marcellus, NY. On his tombstone it says he was a Guard at the execution of Major Andre in the Rev. War.
Lt. married Smith Jemima on 24 Nov 1782. Jemima was born in 1761; died in Marcellus, Onondaga County, NY; was buried in Old Village Cemetery, Marcellus, Onondaga County, NY. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]
|
Search | Advanced Search | Search Families | Search Site