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.
Birth: 14 Dec 1752 / / VA Death: 24 Dec 1822 bur / Chapmpaign / OH
Qualifying Service Description:
1774, serving as a Sergeant in the company of James Ward (father)
1777, was serving as a Lieutenant in the Virginia Militia
1780/81, commissioned a Captain
Additional References:
Roster of Rev War soldiers buried in Ohio. Wilbur R. Branthoover, compiler. Veterans Affairs, Ohio. Reprinted by OHSDAR. 1929
McAllister, J.T, Virginia Militia in the Rev War, Virginia. Hot Springs: McAllister Publishing Co, 1913, pg 207
J.H. Gwathmey, Hist Reg VA in the Rev, 1775-1783, 1938, pg 805
Thwaites, Reuben Gold, Documentary History of Dunmore's War, 1774, Wisconsin. Madison: Wisconsin Historical Society, 1905
Thwaites, Reuben Gold; Kellogg, Louise Phelps, The Revolution on the Upper Ohio, 1775-1777. Wisconsin. Madison: Wisconsin Historical Society, 1908, pg 240
Spouse: (1) Rebecca XX; (2) Margaret Barr Children: William;
Members Who Share This Ancestor
None*
*This means that the NSSAR has no applications for this Patriot on file.
Instead the information provided is best effort, and from volunteers who have either researched grave sites, service records, or something similar. There is no documentation available at NSSAR HQ to order.
Broken and repaired stone contemporary with the death of the Patriot
Directions to Cemetery / Gravesite:
The cemetery is located at 319 Patrick Ave. in Urbana
Author: Dr. Michael Bernard Gunn
William Ward was born on 14 December 1752, in Greenbrier County, Virginia, to parents James and Phoebe (Lockhart) Ward.
According to a story in The History of Champaign County, Ohio, William was a Lieutenant [Documentary History of Dunmore's war, 1774 says he was a Sergeant] in the Company of his father, Captain James Ward of the Virginia Militia. During the Battle of Point Pleasant on October 1774, his father was killed, and William led the company during the remaining fight. In 1777 he was serving as a Lieutenant at Fort Randolph.
Records from Greenbrier for 1780/1781 list the commission of William as a Captain.
After the war, he returned to his home in Virginia before moving to Kentucky in about 1790. About 1802, he settled in the area that is today near Urbana, Champaign County, Ohio. He purchased land that would eventually become the site of Urbana, where he became the town proprietor. He was a member of the Presbyterian church.
He was married first to Rebecca Anderson (1762-1805), and he was married a second time to Margaret Barr on 6 April 1813 in Champaign County, Ohio.
He was father to a large number of children, including:
James (1) was born on 5 January 1782.
John was born on 7 August 1783.
William [Jr.] was born on 27 May 1785 and married Elizabeth Hughes.
Phebe was born on September 1799.
Margaret was born on 17 March 1802.
Lewis Marshall was born about 1815.
James (2) was born about 1816
Rebecca was born on 21 May 1817.
He died on 24 December 1822 in Urbana, Ohio, and was buried at Oak Dale Cemetery, where he has a broken gravestone.
Sources:
Middleton, Evan P., History of Champaign County, Ohio, Its People, Industries and Institutions, Vol. 1, Indiana. Indianapolis: B.F. Bowen & Company, Inc., 1917, pages 1088-1090.
Wilbur R. Branthoover, compiler. Veterans Affairs, Ohio. Reprinted by OHSDAR, 1929.
McAllister, J.T., Virginia Militia in the Revolutionary War, Virginia. Hot Springs: McAllister Publishing Co., 1913, page 207.
Gwathmey, John H., Historical Register of Virginians in the Revolution: Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, 1775-1783, Virginia. Richmond: Dietz Press, 1938, page 805.
Thwaites, Reuben Gold, Documentary History of Dunmore's War, 1774, Wisconsin. Madison: Wisconsin Historical Society, 1905.
Thwaites, Reuben Gold; Kellogg, Louise Phelps, The Revolution on the Upper Ohio, 1775-1777, Wisconsin. Madison: Wisconsin Historical Society, 1908, page 240.
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