|
Summary:
A soldier requests that part of his pay be given to another soldier. With money in short supply, Revolutionary War soldiers often resorted to improvised systems of I.O.U.s. Ebenezer Phillips, to whom Joseph Anthony directs payment, was one of Captain Drury’s Minutemen who answered the Lexington alarm. He and Joseph Anthony were veterans of Bunker Hill. [Captain Luke Drury’s Company]. Manuscript Document Signed by Joseph Anthony. Dorchester, December 29, 1774. 1 p. Inventory# 20781.17 $ 250 Framed: $650 Partial Transcript:
“Please to pay to Ebenezer Phillips Seven Dollars out of my Wages and this order shall be a Discharge for the Same…” Historical Background:
Captain Luke Drury of Grafton had commanded a company of Minutemen since 1773. When word of the Lexington alarm arrived, Drury and his men began the 40-mile march to Cambridge. They arrived the following morning to join a massive army of volunteers from across Massachusetts. Drury’s company was soon incorporated into a Continental regiment and stationed on the lines at Dorchester. Many of his men reenlisted when their term of service expired on January 1, 1776. Most likely this document’s signer also took part in the overnight seizure of Dorchester Heights on March 4, 1776 – that daring action forced the British to evacuate Boston before the month was out. Luke Drury (1734-1811) of Grafton, Massachusetts joined the militia in 1757 during the French and Indian Wars. As captain of a company of Minutemen, he responded to the Lexington Alarm, and later joined Colonel Jonathan Ward's regiment to fight at Bunker Hill. Drury and his men served in different areas during the war, from West Point to Grafton, where his company guided military stores. He also supported the Continentals financially, at one point giving £50 fifty pounds to enlist soldiers in Grafton. In 1786-1787, Drury became deeply involved in Shays' Rebellion, a tax revolt led by farmers in western Massachusetts. The uprising was quashed, and Drury imprisoned as “a person dangerous to the state.” He was eventually released on good behavior. Drury remained active in state and local politics, serving terms as a constable, deputy sheriff, tax collector, assessor, selectman, and state legislator.
|
