We laid wreaths at Willamette National Cemetery Dec 17 for Wreaths Across America

Willamette National Cemetery after the wreaths were laid.

Color Guard firing a musket volley in salute.
Fred Heiserman, Grier Ingebretsen,
Michael Tieman and Mark Robertson

Michael Tieman laying a wreath to remember
the MIA's from the Korean War.

The Lewis & Clark Color Guard of the Sons of the American Revolution laid wreaths on the veterans graves at Willamette National Cemetery. The ceremonies began in the cold and snow at 1pm on Saturday, Dec. 17 thanks to the Civil Air Patrol and representatives from all of the branches of the military. At 2:30pm our Color Guard fired a musket volley in salute. Volunteers then laid the wreaths purchased through the Wreaths Across America program on the graves of the veterans at Willamette. This year, the chapter's first year in the WAA program we sold 160 wreaths and we laid 53 of the wreaths on specific graves. This year, the cemetery laid over 900 wreaths, more than doubled from last year. 

REMEMBER our fallen U.S. veterans. HONOR those who serve.TEACH our children the value of freedom.

Join us at the Veterans Day Parade in the Hollywood District of Portland starting at 9:30 am.

Starts at 40th and Sandy Boulevard and travels down Sandy Ends at Sandy & 48th in front of Ross Hollywood Chapel. 

Our SAR booth will also be there where you can sponsor a wreath for the Wreath Across America program. For $15 you can buy a wreath for a veteran’s grave at Willamette National Cemetery on Dec 17. 

REMEMBER the Fallen. . . HONOR those who Serve. . . TEACH our children the value of Freedom.

National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution Proclamation 17 December 2016

   Morrill Worcester was a 12-year-old paperboy for the Bangor Daily News when he won a trip to Washington, D.C. His first trip was to Arlington National Cemetery and it made an impression on him that he would never forget. In 1992, the Worcester Wreath Company, which he owns, found themselves with a surplus of wreaths nearing the end of the holiday season. He remembered his experience at Arlington.  
    With that experience, he had an opportunity to honor our country’s veterans. With the help of Maine Senator Olympia Snowe, arrangements were made for him to place the wreaths in an older section of the cemetery that had been receiving fewer visitors with each passing year. Throughout his life and successful career, his good fortune was due, in large part, to the values of this nation and the veterans who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. Thus began the legacy of placing wreaths at the graves of our veterans.

    As we pause in the midst of this holiday season and reflect, please take a moment to think back on things that are important in our lives today. We must reflect on our families and friends, and our country. We must continue to honor our current military veterans and those veterans who have already served. We must continue to thank our veterans for their service that allows us to enjoy the freedoms we have today.

    The National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution are descendants of our first veterans, who fought for our War for American Independence from Britain. We celebrate and honor those brave men and women, who have given the upmost measure of devotion and sacrifice so that we can live free. We have had many foreign threats to our country and we have always called on our military to protect us. They have always responded no matter where the threats were from.

    At National Cemeteries across this great this country, Wreaths across America ceremonies are just a small token to say thank you to those brave men and women, and to remember those who gave their lives to preserve our freedoms and liberties. When you place a wreath for a relative or a friend, remember those other veterans who are buried in our cemeteries across this country who no longer have anyone to visit their graves or who remembers them.

    The National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution proudly participates in this program by honoring our veterans who have passed away. We say thank you to all of our veterans and to those participating in the program today. May God continue to bless America.

J. Michael Tomme, Sr.

President General, 2016-2017

History of Patriot: Private Moses Parkhurst

SAR Compatriot: Michael Tieman
Patriot: Private Moses Parkhurst

6^th Massachusetts Regiment of the Massachusetts Line 1779-1783 age 16 yrs.; stature, 5 ft.4 in.; complexion, light; engaged for town of Mendon; marched July 21, 1779

   
    When I started to trace my ancestors from the 1700's, I found several had fought in the Revolutionary War, actually five ancestors - three in my direct line and two cousins. 
    In my journey through this time I kept running across the Sons of the American Revolution Society, a society based on direct line ancestors who fought in the Revolutionary War.
    As I researched the SAR, I found that my beliefs aligned with theirs and it seemed like a good organization and even though I am not a joiner, I filled out their application.
    Yes, I am now a proud member of the Sons of the American Revolution and my Patriot ancestor which I researched is Moses Parkhurst my 4th great-grandfather on my mother's side.
    The following is his story, which is not a very happy one, but he and his family were survivors.  

    Moses PARKHURST was born in Mendon now Milford, Massachusetts in 1762, the son of Samuel PARKHURST and Kezia BEMIS.
    Nothing is known at the moment about Moses’ childhood, or what his father did. Was his father, Samuel, a landowner, farmer, shopkeeper, laborer or did he have a craft like a carpenter, or professional occupation like a lawyer?
    In 1779 at age16 Moses enlisted to fight in the American Revolutionary War. He originally enlisted in the 6th Massachusetts Regiment, the Massachusetts Line, commanded by Col. Nixon for nine months. Moses re-enlisted before the end of the term in the same regiment, in the company commanded by Capt. John Holden.
    The 6th Massachusetts Regiment also known as the 4th Continental Regiment was raised on April 23, 1775 under Colonel John Nixon outside of Boston, Massachusetts. The regiment was part of the Massachusetts Line and would see action at the Battle of Bunker Hill, New York Campaign, Battle of Trenton, Battle of Princeton and the Battle of Saratoga. The regiment was furloughed June 12, 1783 at West Point, New York and disbanded on November 3, 1783
    The size of the Massachusetts Line varied from as many as 27 active regiments (at the outset of the war) to four (at its end). For most of the war after the Siege of Boston (April 1775 to March 1776) almost all of these units were deployed outside Massachusetts, serving as far north as Quebec City, as far west as present-day central Upstate New York, and as far south as Yorktown, Virginia. Massachusetts line troops were involved in most of the war's major battles north of Chesapeake Bay, and were present at the decisive Siege of Yorktown in 1781.
    The line's history began in the immediate aftermath of the Battles of Lexington and Concord in April 1775, after which the Massachusetts Provincial Congress raised 27 regiments as a provincial army. These units, which were mostly organized by mid-May, were adopted into the first establishment of the Continental Army in June 1775.
    The Massachusetts Line fought and lived in the Hudson River Valley during Mosses’ stay. They were camped and patrolled in Westchester County, Constitution Island, Continental Village, Peekskill, Pines Bridge and Yorktown.
    I do not have any letters by Moses and I don’t even know if he could write, but there are many journals of men who fought in this area at the same time as Moses, and it was not pretty. Journal entries from 1779-1783 tell of the soldiers being promised new uniforms, daily rations of hot food and water and spirits, ammunition and powder, blankets, beds, tents and in the winter warm cabins. In return, they were fighting and dying for their country.
    In reality, they had to stitch together some form of mismatched clothing from what they could find, many did not have shoes, they went days without any food or water unless they could steal some, and when they got rations it would be cold - dried salt cod and hard bread plus some water. At night they slept on the cold ground lacking not only tents, but also in most cases blankets. The winters they had to build their own cabins and scrounge for something to burn to keep warm but the problems of food were worse. Constantly cold, wet, starving and thirsty then we add the daily patrols and guard duty they had to walk, and oh yes the long marches to engage the enemy and then the trek back to camp. This is true dedication to a cause.
    Moses was furloughed in in Dec 1782 and honorably discharged in July 1783 at New Windsor, New York. He received his written discharge papers signed by General Washington. His military record does not show any battles he was in, but he was awarded the badge of merit for three years faithful service and it showed he was paid every 12 months for those three years.
    On 11^th of October 1787 Moses married Catherine HUCKER, in Franklin, Massachusetts and they had seven children; Horace 1788-1833, Nellie 1790-1859, Susanhah 1796-1878, Jotham 1798-1860, Sophia 1800-?, William 1812-?, and Moses Henry (my direct line ancestor) born in Killingly Connecticut in 1820 and died in Keokuk, Iowa in 1881. I do not have any information on Moses’ wife except that she died in 1830, but she is not named in his will, only the names of the executers are named and the judge.
    This is where the paper trail gets a bit confused.
    According to the new Federal government anyone who fought in the Revolutionary War was granted Bounty Land of 100 acres, in a spot designated by Congress.
    A 4,000 square mile tract was located in the Northwest Territory and was set aside for these land warrants. This area came to be known as the U.S. Military District of Ohio. Originally the lands in this district were to be distributed by January 1, 1800. By the end of 1802 about 14,000 warrants had been issued. However, additional time was needed to locate warrants and to grant warrants to soldiers with late applications or uncompleted claims. Congress passed the act of 1803, which was later amended by the act of 1806, to extend the time limit.
    The first pension law in 1776 granted half-pay for life to soldiers disabled in the service and unable to earn a living. The first pension law based on service was passed in 1818, but it was later amended to make eligible only those soldiers unable to earn a living. Fires in 1800 destroyed the earliest Revolutionary War pension application records.
    I have papers filed by Moses for his pension in 1818 (30 pages) showing the deed for his Bounty Land 100 acres dated 3 Mar 1803. There is also a deed of sale for that same Bounty Land filed in the state of Massachusetts 6^th Jan 1797 by Moses for $20 (farmland sold for around $2/acre at that time) to a Samuel Ide and signed by J. Fisher Justice of the Peace. In 1806 another document was filed by Fisher to take away that same Bounty Land from Moses by the courts in Connecticut. When and who owned the land and when it was sold is up for debate I suppose, somewhere there is some more paperwork hopefully clearing this all up.
    Anyhow, in 1818 Moses filed for his pension of $8/mo. and got it. In 1820, the federal gov't. changed the pension rules again and only those who fought in the Revolutionary War and could not work were entitled to the pension.
    Moses refiled for his pension in 1820,  “The applicant is not in good health being constantly affected with jaundice & ______ complaint which renders him unfit for labour, his occupation a common laborer.”, and he listed his estate item by item showing he was poor and worth only $21.11 (1 cow worth 15.00 Dolls., 1 goat worth 3.00 Dolls., 3 chairs worth 50 cts, 1 pot 50 cts, 1 dish kettle 30 cts, 1 small skillet 12 cts. 4 cups & saucers 10 cts, 1 broken tea kettle 25cts, 1 hoe 17 cts, 1 pail 10 cts, old casks 17 cts). Moses needed the pension so his family, wife and two sons William aged 8 years and Moses Jr. 4 mos. could live.
    At that time, a common laborer when he could work could make $.68/day or $20.40/mo., a carpenter $1/day or $30/mo. and a mason $1.22/day or $36.60/mo.
    In the 1820’s the Industrial Revolution kicks in and drives prices and wages down. From 1820-1830 the prices of goods and wages dropped by 50%.  
    Nothing more is known of Moses and his family until his will was probated 12 Feb 1827 in Connecticut, date also on his pension stop date papers, and his estate was now worth $4.12 in goods and $42.35 in pension cash.

Multnomah Days Parade ... We Were There!

 August 20, 2016 - 102 degrees, the hottest day of the year and here we are leading the Multnomah Days parade in Multnomah Village.

The parade was from 10-11ish and we set up our booth at 6:30 and manned it until 1:30.  Good event and we met a lot of wonderful people. Thanks to the Portland Police Swat team for passing out free ice cream bars. Those plus lots of water helped us make it through the event.

 A special thanks to those Compatriots who showed up and helped in the hot weather.

Color Guard: Compatriots Mark Robertson, Fred Heiserman, Grier Ingebretsen, Michael Tieman and Dave Kingsella. The three who manned the booth: Eugene Melvin, Cleve Parker (also our photographer, thanks), and and a special thanks to DAR Val Heiserman (Fred's wife).