Ancestral Paths to the American Revolutionary War (Part 1)

I have known people over the years who were Daughters or Sons of the American Revolution. I understood that they could trace their ancestry to someone who fought for the freedom of this brand new nation and that was a very special honor. As I have been exploring military records the last several weeks, I have been able to confirm an ancestral path to the Revolutionary War through both paternal and maternal lines. Here is the paternal lineage beginning with my great-grandmother:

Floy Bates Aderman (Jan. 21, 1889 – Nov 1, 1960), who was the

daughter of Robert Josiah Bates (June 28, 1853 – May 18, 1926), who was the

son of Elizabeth Ann “Betsy” Blue (Oct 3, 1834 – June 23, 1874), who was the

daughter of Martha Blue (Jan 22, 1811 – Feb 11, 1868) and Robert Blue, Jr. (1811 – April 1884).

Martha Blue was the daughter of John Blue (Sept 9, 1777 – Oct 20, 1841);

Robert Blue, Jr. was the son of Robert Blue (1784 – 1840).

John and Robert were brothers and the sons of John S. Blue (May 27, 1750 – July 13, 1833).

John S. Blue entered the Continental Army on August 2, 1777 in Elizabeth Town, Lancaster County, PA. He fought in the Battle of Brandywine on September 11, 1777 (with Gen. George Washington as his highest ranking officer) where he was wounded in the head by a sword. He was captured that day and was a prisoner of war until June 14, 1778. He was then discharged two days later. Fold 3 has his Revolutionary War Pension information online; following is the most legible letter, typed in 1929 to a family genealogist confirming his experience:

(A letter in John Blue’s Pension File describing his service in the military.)

As an aside, after the war, one of John Blue’s friends from Pennsylvania applied for a war pension and needed witnesses to vouch for his character and identity. Among the signatures was John Blue.

John moved from Pennsylvania to Kentucky some years after the war, then to Ohio. His last move was to Indiana and that is where he is buried. (See Blue Family Genealogy, 1.1.3.2 for details. Please note: this is not Captain John Blue, 1.1.1.1)