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.
State of Service: GA
Qualifying Service: Civil Service / Patriotic Service
Marker placed in joint marking sponsored by the Athens, Atlanta, Blue Ridge Mountains, Captain John Collins, Marshes of Glyn, Mount Vernon, and Robert Forsyth chapters of the Georgia Society SAR
Photo is displayed courtesy of K Scott Collins, GA SAR
Directions to Cemetery / Gravesite:
Midway Cemetery on US Highway South in Midway, Georgia directly across the street from the church. Take I-95 to exit 76 - at end of the ramp turn west and travel 3.7 miles to U.S. 17 - Turn right and travel <1 mile to the Midway Church
SAR marker is located on the West side of the Stewart-Screven Monument
Photo: 1 of 1
Author: William Foye Ramsaur
[Note, the SAR Editor, Mark Davis, added additional information for a more well rounded biography]
Benjamin Andrew was born on 20 October 1713 in Dorchester District, South Carolina, and is thought to be the son of John and Mary (Medicott) Andrew.
He arrived in Midway District in 1754 from Ponpon, South Carolina, along with sixteen families from the church in Dorchester. He was married sometime before 1750 to Elizabeth Philbin, probably in South Carolina. They had the following known children:
• John was born on 2 October 1751
• Benjamin was born on 13 April 1753 and married Eleanor [surname unknown].
• Elizabeth was born on 25 September 1754
After Elizabeth’s death, he married again in about 1755 to Susannah [surname unknown]. They had the following known children:
• Susannah was born on 14 July 1756 and married Colonel Henry Hampton.
• Richard was born and died in 1758.
• Hannah was born in 1759 and died young.
• Andrew was born and died in 1761.
After Susannah’s death, he married Mrs. Mary (Buer) Philbin. They had the following known children:
• Sarah was born on 19 December 1764.
• Mary Buer was born on 27 January 1767 and married her cousin Reverend John Andrews.
• Lydia was born on 11 July 1769 and married Edmund Bugg Jr.
• Ann was born on 3 October 1772.
After Mary’s death, Benjamin married Elizabeth Lee in about 1788. They had the following known children:
• Moses was born about 1788 and married Mary “Polly” Lucas.
• Hannah (2) was born about 1790.
Before the American Revolution, Benjamin was a member of the Georgia Royal Commons House of Assembly for St. Johns Parish from about 1770 to 1775. In 1774, he served as the Justice of Peace and Magistrate in St. Johns Parish. As tensions mounted between Colonists and the British, he joined the Sons of Liberty in 1774.
Also, in 1774 he was appointed to a committee to prepare a resolution to consider Georgia's actions against the British. Attended Georgia Provincial Congress 1775 and was a member of the Georgia Committee of Correspondence 1775-1776. He was elected President of the Georgia Executive Council in 1777. In retaliation for his revolutionary work, the British burned his two rice plantations in 1778. By 1780, he was listed in the British Treason Act.
He was elected as a delegate from Georgia to the Continental Congress in 1780 but did not attend the sessions. He was also elected a Liberty County Representative to the Georgia House of Assembly in the years 1777, 1782, and 1783. He was again a member of the Georgia Executive Council from 1782 to 1783 and was a Georgia State Associate Justice in 1782.
The Patriot died on 16 December 1790 in Augusta, Richmond County, Georgia.
Author: Kenneth Scott Collins
Benjamin Andrew was born on October 20, 1713, in South Carolina. He was the brother of James, born 1709, and Joseph, born 1720.
He arrived in the Midway District in 1754 from Ponpon, South Carolina, along with sixteen families from the Church in Dorchester.
Benjamin was very active during the years of the Revolution: He was a member of the Georgia Royal Commons House of Assembly for St. Johns Parish from about 1770 to 1775.
He also participated in the first Georgia Revolutionary Committee, which was held at Savannah under the name of the Sons of Liberty in 1774. In the same year, he was a member of the Georgia Committee to Prepare Resolution to Consider Actions Against British.
In 1775, he was a member of the Georgia Provincial Congress. At the same time, he was a member of the Committee of Correspondence from 1775 to 1776. In 1777, he was President of the Georgia Executive Council.
Benjamin was very active elected as a Representative Georgia House of Assembly in 1777, 1782, and 1783. The British burned his two rice plantations in 1778, and he is listed in the British Treason Act of 1780.
He was elected Delegate to Continental Congress in 1780 but did not attend. After the war, he served as a representative in the Georgia General Assembly. He served again in the Georgia Executive Council 1782 to1783. In 1782, he served as an Associate Justice.
Benjamin died on December 16, 1790, but his gravesite has been lost to history.
Sources:
Davis, Robert Scott, and Hillary Neblock, Georgia Citizens and Soldiers of the American Revolution, South Carolina. Easley: Southern Historical Press, 1979, page 12.
Knight, Lucian Lamar, State Historian, Georgia's Roster of the Revolution, containing a list of the states defenders; officers and men; soldiers and sailors; partisans and regulars; whether enlisted from Georgia or settled in Georgia after the close of hostilities, Georgia. Atlanta: Index Printing Co., 1920, pages 300, 406.
Warren, Mary Bondurant, Marriages and Deaths, 1763 to 1820, abstracted from Extant Georgia Newspapers, Georgia. Danielsville, Heritage Papers, 1968,page 3.
Ross Arnold, and Hank Burnham, Georgia Revolutionary Soldiers & Sailors, Patriots & Pioneers; Vol. 2: Georgia. Athens: Georgia Society Sons of the American Revolution, 2001.
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