Pension Application

W.21590 (Widow: Magdalena or Lana)
State of New York
County of Onondaga SS.
            On this twenty fifth day of May 1847, personally appeared in open court before the Court of Common Pleas in & for the County of Onondaga, now sitting John Lower a resident of the town of Manlius in said County—and he being duly sworn according to law, doth on his oath make the following declaration in order to obtain the benefit of the act of Congress passed June 7th 1832.
            That he was born, as his parents informed him, and as was recorded in his father’s family Bible, on the 17th day of July in the year one thousand seven hundred & sixty (1760) he was enrolled in the company of Militia in said District commanded by Captain Christian House in the Regiment of Colonel Jacob Clock, John Timmerman was subaltern officers (a Lieutenant or Ensign) in said company when this declarant was enrolled in the same, but died before this declaration was taken prisoner as herein after stated. The names of the other company and field officers he served under he cannot now distinctly call to mind.
            This declarant after his enrollment as aforesaid engaged in several expeditions as a spy and a scout with detachments of militia from said regiment. These expeditions were many in number, but were each of short duration; a few days each—whenever and wherever it was reported parties of the enemy were lurking, then and there, the expeditions were ordered & performed service—But this declarant cannot possibly specify or give a detailed statement of the length of each tour. Besides engaging in these expeditions, he performed garrison duty at Fort House, a fort situated about seven miles from the residence of this declarant, while thus engaged on a certain occasion as herein after specified, he was carried by the enemy into captivity & detained as a prisoner for three years and eight months & until so late a period of the revolutionary war, that the service of the militia in his district were no longer in requisition. Hence other than the scouting expeditions aforesaid, and brief spells of garrison duty he had no opportunity of rendering service in the company to which he belonged or with any detachments from said regiment.
            On one of the last days of the month of October, the precise day this declarant cannot recollect while he this declarant was performed garrison duty—at fort House aforesaid, he and his father Conrad Lower was taken prisoner by a party of the enemy. Declarant cannot name the year in which this occurred, but knows it was the same year & on the day before General Brown was killed, as Declarant understood the fact to be afterwards. Declarant & his father Conrad Lower, were captured at said Fort or near it, about four of the clock in the afternoon & the next morning early when travelling as prisoners within twelve miles of Stone Arabia, on their way to Canada, they heard the firing of the cannon in the engagement in which General Brown was killed as aforesaid. Declarant & his father were ordered by Captain House commanding said Fort, in the afternoon aforesaid to proceed to the woods nearly a quarter of mile from said Fort, and procure some firewood for the use of the garrison. While in the discharge of the duty they had been thus detailed to perform, they were surprised and surrounded by the party of the enemy before named. This party consisted of twelve men, one of whom the commander was called Lieutenant McCoy. Declarant & his father were unaccompanied by any other soldiers from said garrison and were too far from it to give the alarm & overcome by superior numbers were obliged to submit to their fate. On the ninth day after their capture they reached Carlton Island in Canada at which & other places they remained in captivity for a period of two years and about eight months, when they found an opportunity to escape, and arrived at Rome (now in Oneida County NY) & from thence proceeded in a canoe on the Mohawk river to his place of residence in Palatine aforesaid.
            The father of this declarant, Conrad Lower aforesaid, shortly after the termination of said war purchased several military lots in said county of Onondaga & town of Manlius, on a section of which this declarant now resides. In consequence of which purchased this declarant & his said father concluded to take up their residence on said land. Accordingly some few years after the close of said war they removed to said town of Manlius & here his said father resided till the day of his death, & this Declarant has continued to reside up to the present time; to wit, for a period exceeding sixty years.
            Declarant was personally acquainted with very few officers except those before specified under whom he served as aforesaid, and this was partly owing to the fact that he was deprived of opportunities to form such acquaintances in consequence of his being carried away captive to Canada.
            He never received a written discharge from the service.
            He has no documentary evidence & knows of no persons whose testimony he can procure who were personally or otherwise cognizant of his service or captivity, except those who served circumstantially & whose affidavits and certificates accompany this declaration.
            He hereby relinquishes every claim whatever to a pension or annuity except the present, & declares that his name is not on the pension roll of the agency of any state.
            And this declarant further saith, that more than twenty years ago, (the precise time he made no memorandum of & cannot recollect) he signed papers in the matter of his application for a pension under some old pension act & which he is informed must have been the act of 18n March 1818) and he shortly after received information from the person who acted as his attorney in that matter, that said application was not entertained & his claim rejected, for reasons he does not now recollect. That after the passage of the law of 1832, he conversed with the Hon. Wm. Taylor the [?] C. for a pension but finding no one offering to prepare his papers, though his friends said they would present them, if & when prepared he made no application in form, in consequence. About a year since he became acquainted with Mr. G. R. Yates who has at length undertaken to prepare his papers & presented his claims. (Signed) John Lower
            Subscribed and Sworn to the day & year first aforesaid in open court as aforesaid. V. W. Smith, Clerk.

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