The Quaker and the Cavalaryman: Two Different Josiah Jacksons

There is a Josiah Jackson (SAR Patriot #: P-223752 / DAR #: A061188) listed in your publicly available Revolutionary War Patriot database. He is listed as serving with Virginia troops as a Private cavalryman during the Revolutionary War. His date of birth is given as 05 March 1732. His spounse is identified as Ruth Steer. Their children are Samuel, Abel and Isaac.

Research uncovers a Josiah Jackson in several Quaker documents. A volume titled "Births and Deaths of the Nottingham Monthly Meeting From 1691 to 1883" has an entry that reads:

Josiah Jackson son of Samuel & Ann his wife was born the fifth of the third month: 1732.

Misinterpreting this date of birth as 5 March is a common error. By our modern calendar March is the third month of the year. However, until the Gregorian Calendar was adopted in the English speaking world in 1752, the first month of the year was March which means that prior to 1752, the third month was May. The Quaker Josiah Jackson was born on 5 May 1732.

The records of the Exeter Monthly Meeting of Berks county, Pennsylvania indicate that Josiah Jackson, born 3.5.1732 married Ruth Steer at Joseph Steer's home on 3.22.1764. This document indicates that his parents were Samuel Jackson and Ann Johnson.

So it clearly appears that the patriot Josiah Jackson P-223752 who served in the Virginia troops as as cavalryman at the rank of private is identical to the Quaker Josiah Jackson who was born in Pennsylvania. They have the same spouse and ostensibly, if you unfamiliar with the Julian calendar, the same date of birth.

But there are more Quaker documents available to us that indicate that the patriot Josiah Jackson who served as a cavalryman was not the same person as the Quaker Josiah Jackson who from Pennsylvania who married Ruth Steer. This Quaker Josiah Jackson did settled in Virginia but this Quaker Josiah Jackson most certainly did not perform that service with Virginia troops as a cavalryman at the rank of private. Your database is mistaken.

There were several different men with the name 'Josiah Jackson' living in Virginia at the time of the Revolution. The Josiah Jackson who was the son of Samuel Jackson and Ann Johnson, born on 5 May 1732 in Chester County, Pennsylvania and who married Ruth Steer on 22 March 1764 was an Overseer amongst the Quakers at Hopewell Monthly Meeting in Frederick County Virginia and appears, by the records of that meeting, to have faithfully adhered to the Quaker commitment to nonviolence and pacifism.

Reading the Minutes of the Hopewell Monthly Business Meetings provides insight into the activies of both Josiah Jackson during the period of the Revolution and to the attitude of the meeting towards a member who trained with the militia, towards two who paid for substitutes to take their places in the militia and towards one who actualy enlisted in the militia. They were disowned.

Josiah Jackson was a leading member of the Hopewell Monthly Meeting where he served two sessions as an overseer, i.e., mentor, to his local Quaker meeting. He was active in the monthly monthly meeting's business affairs throughout the war. His name appears in the minutes of the meeting on a fairly regular basis referencing the sorts of tasks commonly performed by Quaker leaders.

These tasks include investigating and reporting back to the meeting accusations that a member has been drinking to excess, or frequently absent from Sunday meetings, had committed adultery, has been argumentative or fighting, or married outside of the Quaker meeting. The minutes include assignments to work with groups establishing new new Quaker meetings in the area. Besides these tasks Jackson's signature appears from time to time throughout the war as a witness to marriages conducted in his Quaker meetings.

While it is conceivable that he may have participated in someway to support the revolutionary effort he certainly would have been disowned if he had supported or participated in the militia.

Here is a list of his activities with the Hopewell Monthly Meeting with dates, page references to the minutes (and image references to the micro-film), and a short description of each task assigned to him. This list demonstrates his dedication to the Quaker meeting throughout the war. These tasks left little time for him to participate in the militia even if he had joined it but more importantly there is no indication that the meeting showed any concern that Josiah Jackson ever violated the Quaker precepts against violence and fighting.

Josiah Jackson Mentioned in Records of Hopewell Monthly Meeting
During the Years of the American Revolution

Minutes 1759-1776   Page       Image
June 1774 Josiah Jackson released from his term as overseer.309319
Aug 1775Josiah Jackson appointed to inform member of testimony against him
for marraige performed by a hired minister.		335345
Marriages 1758
April 1776Josiah Jackson and his wife Ruth Jackson witnessed the marriage of Joseph Steer and Grace Lupton. Both Josiah Jackson and Ruth Jackson signed the marriage certificate. 43 51
Minutes 1777-1791
Feb 1777Josiah Jackson appointed overseer of Center Preparative Meeting3 9
Marriages 1758
March 1778Josiah Jackson and his wife Ruth Jackson witnessed the marriage of Joseph Wood and Rachel Lupton. Both Josiah and Ruth signed the marriage certificate.        5971
Minutes 1777-1791
June 1778 Josiah Jackson appointed to attend Quarterly Meeting 4956
July 1778 Josiah Jackson and Enos Ellis appointed to visit
Samuel Chew who requests membership in the Friends and report their sense of him 		50 57
July 1778 Josiah Jackson appointed to the Committee of Suffering 50 57
July 1778 Josiah Jackson appointed to committee to consider the case of banished friends –i.e., Philadelphia Quakers who were deported to Virginia under suspicion of loyalty
to Britain and report "in writing of the life and conduct whilst amongst us."		 5158
Jan 1779Josiah Jackson appointed to take in subsriptions for John Churchman’s Journals 64 71
Jan 1779 Josiah Jackson appointed to a committee to approve building a schoolhouse
on the meeting house lot of Hopewell Particular Meeting		66 73
Marriages 1758
April 1779Josiah Jackson and his wife Ruth Jackson witnessed the marriage of Isaac Steer
and Phebe Hollingsworth. Both Josiah and Ruth Jackson signed the marriage certificate. 		7684
Minutes 1777-1791
May 1779 Josiah Jackson and Jonathan Parkins appointed to interview James Moore
who requests membership in Friends		7883
June 1779Josiah Jackson appointed to attend Quarterly Meeting 8087
Nov 1779Josiah Jackson appointed to a committee to consider the request from Crooked Run Preparative Meeting to have a monthly meeting situated at their location. 96103
Feb 1780Josiah Jackson appointed to read the Testimony against Benjamin Shreeve to him.
Shreeve had hired a substitute to serve in the militia in his place.		105112
May 1780Josiah Jackson released from serving as overseer at Center Preparative Meeting120127
July 1780Some sort of problem arose with one of the meetings within the jurisdiction of the Hopewell Monthly Meeting. Josiah Jackson was appointed to a fact finding committee. 127134
Nov 1780Josiah Jackson appointed to a committee to choose a new clerk for the coming year. 140 147
May 1781Josiah Jackson appointed to committee to enquire into the service of Anthony Lee, Jacob McKay, and James Steer as elders.161 168
Nov 1781Josiah Jackson appointed to a committee to consider the division of meetings creating a new monthly meeting.178185
May 1782Josiah Jackson appointed to committee to meet with a woman confessing to adultery to determine the sincerety of her condemnation of her actions.197204
Aug 1782Josiah Jackson appointed to a committee to compose a testimony against a woman who used a hired minister to accomplish her marriage.209216
Sept 1782Josiah Jackson appointed to read Ruth Fenton's acknowledgment a the next Back Creek meeting 211218
 Josiah Jackson appointed to enquire into clearness of Jonathan Pickering and Phebe Barrett who are proposing marriage to each other212221
Oct 1782Josiah Jackson appointed to committee to read testimony against James Conard to him.214221
 Josiah Jackson appointed to attend marriage of Jonathan Pickering and Phebe Barrett to see the it is orderly accomplished.216223
Marriages 1758
Oct 1782Josiah Jackson witnessed the marriage of Jonathan Pickering and Phebe Barrett and he signed the marriage certificate.8492
Dec 1782Josiah Jackson and his wife Ruth Jackson signed the marriage certificate of Ellis Ellis and Mary Pickering.8795
Jan 1783Josiah Jackson signed the marriage certificate of Jonathan Wright and Hannah Ridgway. 8896
Minutes 1777-1791
Jan 1783Josiah Jackson appointed to committee "to endeavour[sic] for the release from bondage those negroes which so remain ... and eneavour to promote their school learning...."226233
Feb 1783Josiah Jackson appointed to meet with Jonathan Pickering and his wife Phebe to read to them a testimony of condemnation for their misconduct. 232239
July 1783Josiah Jackson appointed to meet with Daniel Broch who accomplished his marriage by the assitance of a hired minister.238245
 Josiah Jackson appointed to assist women Friends in treating with Rachel Broch who accomplished her marriage by the assistance of a hireling teacher.239246
 Josiah Jackson appointed to inform Stephen McBride they desire him to attend the next monthly meeting. 244251
 Josiah Jackson appointed to committee to meet with Crooked Run meeting to settle matters about donations, poor expense, books and other matters.248 255
Sept 1783Josiah Jackson appointed to read Thomas Pugh's paper condemning his misconduct at first day meeting at Back–Creek.253260
 Message from women's meeting indicates that Ruth Jackson is the clerk of the meeting.254261
April 1784Josiah Jackson appointed to enquire into request for a certificate for Joseph Fisher and his family and if no obstruction to provide one. 276287
 Josiah Jackson and others appointed to committee to talk to Jesse Faulkner about the charge of strinking a man and calling him a unbecoming name.277288
 Josiah Jackson appointed to committee to choose a clerk for the coming year.277288
May 1784Josiah Jackson and others produced the certificate to be given to Joseph Fisher and his family. Josiah Jackson and others who treated with Jesse Faulkner did so and the case is carried over until the next month. 280291
June 1784Josiah Jackson and others appointed to treat with Charles Ganse and report to next meeting.Case of Jesse Faulkner continued. 282293
July 1784Josiah Jackson appointed to inform Charles Ganse of his disownment and right of appeal.
Josiah Jackson appointed to assist women in the case of Mary Dieth. 		288299
Aug 1784Josiah Jackson and others appointed to treat with Jesse Faulkner reported the service was performed.
Josiah Jackson and David Lupton assigned to talk to John Barry about his marriage of a non-Quaker by using a hired minister. 		288299
Sept 1784Josiah Jackson and others who treated with John Barry produced a testimony against him. 296307






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