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.
Author: James G. Carn
Pvt. Levi Preston was born in Rockingham, Windham, County, VT, June 13, 1760 (according to his tombstone inscription, but his pension application would indicate he was born in 1762 entering the service in 1775 at the age of 12 or 13. However, the application also says he was 68 years old in 1832 making his year of birth 1763/1764 and the application also states he was 12 years old when he enlisted) and died January 1, 1849, on Porter Road in Troy Township, Bradford County, PA. He appears to be the son of Revolutionary War Lt. Colburn Preston. He married Martha Matson, daughter of Isaac and Martha (Hendee) Matson, May 3, 1790, in Pittsford, VT, and they had children: Colburn, Ebenezer, Martha, William, Sylvenus, Levi, Chester, Anice, and Lucinda. He enlisted at Rockingham, Vermont, at the request of Col. Fuller in April 1775, and served in the Regiment of the Vermont Line under Col. Ethan Allen and Lt. Colonel Benedict Arnold and Captain Wood as a “Green Mountain Boy.” He joined the regiment of Col. Allen the last of April at Ticonderoga where he was present at the taking of the fort and recalled Col. Allen calling on the commandant of the fort to “Surrender in the name of the Great Jehovah and the continental congress.” He was afterwards sent to Fort George and Fort William Henry serving nine months. He re-enlisted in 1777 and served three months under Col. Porter and Captain Green under General Stark's command at the Battle of Bennington and was at Stillwater. It does not appear he fought in the Battle of Stillwater, but remained there until the surrender of Burgoyne and was then discharged. He was granted a pension of $40 per annum commencing March 4, 1831. Levi Preston is buried in a grave marked with a military headstone in the Hunt Cemetery, Porter Road, Troy Twp., Bradford County, PA. However, there is also another headstone with his name and dates of birth and death in the same cemetery 70 yards or more away from the military headstone.
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