“My patriot, Johann Baugher, arrived in the colony of Pennsylvania in 1752. He was an ordained minister, from what is now the state of Saarland in Germany, and served as pastor of the first Lutheran congregation established west of the Susquehanna River. Too old to take up arms in the American Revolution, he supported its fighters by paying supply taxes.” Lynchburg Chapter member K.L.
“My DAR ancestor, Joseph Marion Rice, was a member of the Henry County, Virginia, militia and marched under the command of Captain John Fontaine to join General Greene at the Battle of Guilford Court House. He also paid supply taxes to support the war effort. After the Revolution, Rice settled in Buncombe County, North Carolina. I joined the DAR because I value our country’s rich heritage, and I am immensely proud to be descended from an individual who fought to obtain our country’s independence.” Lynchburg Chapter member M.S.
Current members of the Lynchburg Chapter count among their patriot ancestors more than 75 individuals from 11 of the 13 original states: Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont, and Virginia.
These ancestors fought for the cause of American independence as foot soldiers, sailors, and officers, served as public servants in civil offices, or supported the Revolution by providing crucial supplies or funds.
The Lynchburg Chapter’s first regent, Roberta Lee Morgan Strother, descended from a man named William Jones, who served as a captain in the Bedford County, Virginia, militia. Jones perished in 1781 at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, in South Carolina, where American troops under Major General Nathanael Greene clashed with British forces commanded by General Cornwallis.
The chapter’s immediate past regent, the late Sybil Swett Frey, counted as an ancestor John Swett, who enlisted in 1781 at the age of 16. He joined the 1st Regiment of the Lincoln County, Massachusetts (now Maine), militia under Col. Samuel McCobb. Private Swett’s company was charged with defense of the rugged seacoast in the vicinity of Boothbay Harbor.
Map by John Wallis, The United States of America, laid down from the best authorities, agreeable to the Peace of 1783. Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division.