Begin forwarded message: > From: "Gail Steckel, NET" <[email protected]> > Date: Fri Dec 27, 2002 10:52:07 PM US/Eastern > To: [email protected] > Subject: Re: [PaOldC] Battle of Brandywine > > P.s. The Brandywine Battlefield has been preserved and is a lovely > place to > visit! Anyone who treks to Chester Co. should take an afternoon to > stroll > the Battlefield and visit the headquarters there - a lovely old stone > house. > The Battlefield is a great place for an afternoon picnic. > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Sandra Ferguson" <[email protected]> > To: <[email protected]> > Sent: Friday, December 27, 2002 9:13 PM > Subject: [PaOldC] Battle of Brandywine > > >> These recollections are by Phebe Mendanhall Thomas, who was born in >> 1770 > and >> died in 1875, at 104 years, 6 MOs and 12 days...pretty amazing in >> itself! >> "My first recollections of the War were of the Battle of >> Brandywine. > We >> heard the guns all day and Mother would say whenever we heard a great > volley >> of noise, "Dear me, what are they doing?": But they let us know what >> they >> had been doing in the evening. Father said it was a great battle >> near, he >> could only judge where, by the directions of the sound. >> In the evening a great company of American soldiers came. Father >> told >> us to shut up the front of the house and come back to the kitchen. >> They >> came flocking into the yard, and sat down on the cider press, trough >> and >> benches, and every place thy could find. They seemed so tired. Father > said >> "bring bread and cheese and cut for them." They were so hungry. >> Margaret. Stephen's wife, came running in with her 2 children. > Stephen >> was away off at the other end of the place and knew nothing of it. As >> it >> happened both houses, ours and Stephen's, had baked that day, and we >> cut > up >> all the bread and cheese we had. I know, I got no supper and they had >> to >> bake brean on the iron. >> Then after a bit a Captain came on his horse. He was wounded and >> had >> his servant and a Doctor. He wanted to stay all night. Father didn't > want >> him to stay, for he told him he expected the English would be along in >> the >> morning, and would tear us all to pieces, but they didn't mind that. >> They > >> took oll hie horse, brought him in and they staid. The girls brought >> hima >> bed, and he laid there in the common house and the Doctor staid with >> him. >> the servant slept in the barn. They all got their suppers too. >> Next morning the wounded man was too bad to get on his horse. They > got >> the horse there, and the girls helped to life him, but he coudn't get >> on. >> Father didn't want him there when the English came. As the wounded man > was >> laying there, Adam came running in and said "The Red-Coats are coming? > The >> Red-Coats are coming?" The poor sick man raised up and called for >> mercy. >> The Doctor hid under the porch, but is was only one of the neighbors >> that >> had a reddish-brown coat. >> Mother and Father sat up all the night and about daybreak Father >> went >> out to the barn to see if the servant was still there. He found him > snoring >> away. He touched him with his foot and said "What, out here still?" >> The >> man jumped up and rubbed his eyes, and then put off for the Black >> Horse, >> where the soldiers had gone the night before )note; the Black Horse >> was a >> tavern located at Edgmong Great Road from Chester). >> Finding that the Captain couldn't ride (he had a bullet in his >> thigh), >> Father geared up a great black horse we had, a noble fellow, to the >> carriage, and they took him to the Black Horse. Oh! How clad I was to > see >> father come home. He had just put the horse away, when the English >> came, >> sure enough, but they didn't come to the house. >> We were so afraid while Father was away, but he wasn't gone >> long. I >> remember when I say him coming I couldn't think what made the gears all >> white, but it was the foam. It was 10 miles to the Black Horse, and >> back >> and he driven very fast. Well, as I said, he just got the horse put >> away, >> when we saw the Red-Coats coming. One big officer came to ask if there > was >> any way of avoiding bit hill. They had the poorest little horses to >> pull >> their big guns, they couldn't pull them up the big hill by the barn. > Father >> went to show them that they shouldn't go on the grain. He went out >> there >> without his had, and he told the officer he wanted to go to the house >> to > get >> his had, and besides he'd left no one at the house, but women and > children, >> and that he'd heard their men sometimes behaved very badly. The >> officer >> turned to a man behind him and said "Go guard the gentleman's house." >> The >> man came galloping up, and that frightened us, for we thought they were > all >> coming, and Father was away. However,he galloped up to the gate, and > there >> he stopped. >> While he was there,a woman came with a can, and tried to get in at >> the >> gate. He refused to let her come in, but she was a right soldier, and > would >> push in. so he struck her a right blow with his sword. Mother ran out >> and >> said "don't hurt her, maybe she wants something." sure enough she >> wanted >> milk, so Lizzie took some out and filled her can. We couldn't tell >> what > the >> man could mean sitting there on his horse, saying nothing. However, >> after > a >> bit Father came, and then he rode away. >> We heard the guns the day of the battle of Germantown. Father was > sure >> there must be a battle somewhere and he thought maybe after night he >> could >> see the light, so he went up to the garret window, our house was very > high, >> but he couldn't see anything. Mother went with him, and then I didn't > want >> to be left behind, so I followed. Oh? I was afraid. I was only 7 >> years > old >> then. >> The Americans took 2 of Stephen's horses, to do some hauling at > Chester, >> and wanted him to go along to drive them, but he wouldn't go. I >> remember >> Mother and B'tha would often say "I wonder how Godfrey's getting >> along?" > He >> was gone a good many days, it might be 2 weeks, when I saw him away at >> the >> meadow, across the mill, I cried out, "There comes Godfrey!" They said > "No, >> it can't be him, because he hasn't got the horses." I knew him. So >> they >> all ran out into the yard to see him, and when he came he was so sad. >> He >> had done the hauling for the Americans, and was coming home when the > English >> met a mile or so from home, down by the church, and took the horses >> from >> him. Oh? How he did swear, and called them all the bad names...He >> could > do >> that, for he was a big rough fellow. After the War when they were > settling >> up, the English offered to pay Stephen for them, but he wouldn't take >> the >> money, so it went into the Treasury to school poor Children. >> They took Father's find horse for a fine. They had heavy fines >> laid > on >> everybody to support the War. Friends wouldn't pay these fines, so >> they >> took what they wanted, and they took the finest horse. They wouldn't >> take >> the old mare. >> I remember B'tha getting on the black horse to ride over to Thomas >> Speakman's and as she was most to the Cross Roads she saw some soldiers >> coming. She didn't know whether they were American or English, but she >> turned in a great hurry and came home full tilt. >> I remember I was out on the horse block, and saw her coming. I >> told >> Mother. "There comes B'tha" "Why, no? she said, "She's not coming back >> already. But she ran out, ann sure enough there she was. Mother said > "Why >> Bthy, what's thee doing back so soon?" and she said "I met some >> soldiers >> coming and I was afraid they'd take my horse." So, she'd missed her > visit. >> In the time of the War and afterward the Collectors use to come to >> get >> the tax. Friends wouldn't pay, so they took cows, and anything they >> pleased. I remember 2 came there one day. Father was away. Mother >> and > the >> girls were away behind the house washing, and there was no one there >> but > me. >> they took down the big candlestick first. They would always take that > down, >> but never carried it away with them. Then they went to the closet >> under > the >> steps. Father had told Mother and us, if the Collectors came while he >> was >> away, not to let them take anything that was John Gest's; he was a boy > that >> Father was Guardian for, and he had the best of his goods at out house. >> Well, they went to the closet. I was sitting in the big arm chair. >> John >> Gess' pewter was away back in the closet. I called to them "Don't take > John >> Gess' pewter!" They shut the door in a hurry and went to the cupboard > with >> the glass doors where the china, silver spoons and glass were kept, and > took >> our big silver spoons. I remember one of them putting a spoon to his >> lips >> and saying, "You could get a good mouthful with this." >> They would take beds, looking-glasses, bureaus and anything at >> all. I >> remember one night, Adam and B'thy and I were coming home from school, >> and >> we met 2 men, one carrying a big looking glass under his arm. Adam >> called >> out to them, "That's our big looking-glass!" Billy said, "Hush, hush!" >> "No, I won't hush. It is our big looking glass." The men laughted. >> However, we ran home, and there sure enough was out big looking glass > gone. >> All that winter, after the Battle of Brandywine, the Americans had >> what >> they called Light Horsemen riding about. They always carried a sword. > They >> would sometimes come to our house to get lodging. They would come and >> get >> Good food and a night's sleep, and their horse fed. One night, one of > them >> came, Father took the candle to light him to bed, and asked which room >> he >> should take him to, but he mis-gook the room. Lizzie had made up a >> good > bed >> for him, but Father took him into a room where there was nothing but a > rug >> on the bed. He went off without his breakfast. They wondered about >> that, >> for they'd always staid for breakfast. But, after a while, Lizzie >> went it >> make her bed and came down laughing, and said "No wonder he went >> without > his >> breakfast, for he made his bed first." they laughed at her about it, >> but >> when they found the mistake that had been made they supposed that he >> was >> offended about his bed....But Father said, "Well, anyhow, a good >> feather >> bed, and a rug is better than sleeping in camp." >> Father didn't farm the place, Stephen farmed it for him, but Father > had >> to pay the fines, as he owned it. We had 2 cows af first, but they >> took >> them. Then he bought more, once or twice, by they took them, too, so >> at >> last he borrowed old Tommy Messer ( supposed to be Mercer). they >> didn't >> take her. They didn't come into the houses while they could get >> anything >> out of doors, but after they had taken the big horse and the cows, they >> wouldn't take the old mare, and came into the house and took besides >> the >> looking glass and spoons, a big feather bed. I remember them pulling >> off >> the clothes, taking a sheet and tying the bed up in it. They always > looked >> at the big brass candlestick Grandfather bro't from England with him >> but >> they never took it. Adam took it at the appraisement after Father's > death. >> He took it to town with him and I don't know what became of it. >> Several years after all this, I saw Washington. I was living at >> Darby >> then, with my brother in law John Humphrey. Washington was on his way >> to >> Phila. to take his seat as President. They'd built him a house >> there. I >> could see him as plainly, even his features. He was a bulky man, had a > long >> nose and a short upper lip. I afterward saw a sign at a tavern on the > West >> Chester road, with his picture painted on it, and I knew it as soon >> as I > saw >> it from its likeness to him. >> It was on first day afternoon we saw a company of Light Horseman >> going >> thru Darby on their way to meet him. I was at Hannah Sharpless', she > spoke >> to me at meeting and asked me to come over there that afternoon. We >> were >> all sitting there in the little room. close by the pavement, and we >> heard > a >> great tramping out in the road, and there came a great company of men >> with >> their horses prancing. It seemed as tho they couldn't make them prance >> enough. They stopped at the tavern there, and told where they were >> going > to >> meet Washington - that he was coming next morning. It flew all over >> town > at >> once. I believe it was at Hook they were to meet him. And the next > morning >> he did come. >> The girl and I were in the wash-house, washing, and John Humphrey >> came >> in and said "Now girls if you want to see Washington, he's coming". >> Well, >> we got a good sight of him as he went thru Darby." >> >> >> >> >> ==== PA-OLD-CHESTER Mailing List ==== >> please visit our webpage, full of area photos and helpful URLs >> http://www.angelfire.com/wv2/oldchestercounty/ >> >> ============================== >> To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy >> records, > go to: >> http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 >> > > > > ==== PA-OLD-CHESTER Mailing List ==== > please visit our webpage, full of area photos and helpful URLs > http://www.angelfire.com/wv2/oldchestercounty > > ============================== > To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy > records, go to: > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 >