Another Bit of Family History--From the Revolutionary War

My grandmother, Rhoda Hamilton Mackey, was descended on her mother's side from the Ownbeys. The line the following article is about goes:

Rhoda Rachel Hamilton (1886-1974)
Nancy (Ownbey) Hamilton (wife of Joel Mackey Hamilton) (1861-1906)
James C. Ownbey (1828-1906)
Madison Ownbey (1801-1868)
James Ownbey (1761-1850)
John Ownbey (1735-1824)

The article is about the Revolutionary War service of James Ownbey. It is interesting to see how that hodgepodge army was put together with very short term enlistments. James Ownbey served six enlistments, some of them as a replacement for someone else. My understanding is that this was a fairly commonplace event--if you didn't want to serve and could afford it, you could pay someone to go in your place. He was 17 when he first went as a substitute for another man, and he was in and out of service for the next five years.

 

Gravestone donated by the DAR as described in the article.

It is amazing, the things that can be found on the Internet!