The following information was assembled from numerous sources and cannot be used directly as proof of Qualifying Service or Lineage.
It is considered a research aid and is intended to assist in locating sources that can be used as proof.
Thomas Ely, Sr. was born March 1725 at Isle of Ely, England, a son of Thomas Ely (1712-1742) and Elizabeth Clowes (1710-1782). He immigrated to America about 1740. While en route, he met Jane Elizabeth Smith (about 1730-1798), a daughter of John Smith (1710-1802). He first settled at Pennsylvania and married Jane in 1750. Thomas and Jane had the following children: Thomas, Jr., William, John, Isaac, Rachel, Jane, David, Robert, Joseph, George, Sarah M. and Margaret. Their first two children were born at Pennsylvania and then they moved to Stafford County, Virginia. Thomas was a soldier in the French and Indian War under Colonel William Byrd in the Virginia Regiment, receiving a Land Office Warrant for 50 acres of land for his service. He purchased 100 acres of land at Bedford County on the South Fork of Beaver Creek, 23 November 1772. Thomas first enlisted during the Revolutionary War, 10 March 1777. He served in the companies of Captains Henry Terrell, Samuel Colston and William Fowler under Colonel Josiah Parker in the Fifth Virginia Regiment. In 1780, at the Battle of Waxhaws, he was wounded and then bayoneted. When he had recovered enough to travel, he returned to Bedford County, Virginia. Two years after his return, he died of complications of the bayonet wound. Three of his sons, Thomas Jr., William and John, served in the Revolutionary War. After his death, Jane and the family left Bedford County to settle at Montgomery County and eventually removed to Lee County. Jane is thought to be buried at the Ely Family Cemetery near the grave of her son, John.
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