Peter Holm / Holmes - Rev. War soldier
HOLMES, HOLMS
Posted By: Loanne Livesay Rebuck (email)
Date: 5/5/2004 at 16:07:28
Peter Holmes/Holms was born in New York state 07 August 1754. In the 1830 Federal Census he lived in Alabama Township, Genesee County. The name of his wife is unknown. By 1850 he was living in Mallory Township, Clayton County, IA in the household of his son Samuel S. Holmes. He is listed as having served in the American Revolution. Federal records show he was a Private in Captain Henry Godevins Co, 5th Battallion, New York forces, having enlisted 18 February 1777. He died after 1852 and was buried in the Goshen Cemetery, Millville Township. A memorial marker was placed on the gravesite by Mary Knight Chapter of Daughters of the American Revolution, Strawberry Point, IA, and dedicated 01 October 1972.
Ref:
Revolutionary War Soldiers and Patriots Buried in Iowa. IA DAR, Des Moines, IA. 1978.
National Archives Revolutionary War Records Book.
__________________________________
Added by S. Ferrall Jan. 4, 2016:
A select group of 40 documented Revolutionary War veterans are buried in Iowa. Among that group is Peter Holms, who is buried in Millville Township's Goshen Cemetery.
Born in New York State in 1755, Holms served in the 5th New York Regiment. His service included participation in the so-called Sullivan Expedition, a punitive strike against the Iroquois Confederation in 1779.
In 1778 the British and their Loyalist and Iroquois allies savaged the western frontier of New York and Pennsylvania, slaughtering settlers and destroying the fledgling towns scattered throughout the area. Responding to a petition received in early 1779 from the frontier, General George Washington ordered John Sullivan to lead a force against the Iroquois with the mission wreaking "total destruction of their settlements and the capture of as many prisoners as possible."
Cutting their way through wilderness forests and swamps, Sullivan's men attacked Iroquois villages as they marched. The Iroquois began abandoning their settlements, moving further westward until they joined with British and Loyalist forces near present day Elmira, New York. In a short, sharp battle the British and their allies were thrown back in disarray.
Sullivan then destroyed more than 40 Indian villages and burned thousands of bushels of grain during the next few weeks before returning east. His actions effectively ended the Iroquois Confederation and gave western settlers breathing room during the next few months.
After the war, Holms gradually made his way west with his son Samuel, living in Michigan, Illinois and finally Iowa. He lived with Samuel and his family in Mallory Township before dying at the age of 95 in 1850.
A memorial marker identifying Holms as one of the few Iowa residents that served in the Revolutionary War was placed on his gravesite by the Mary Knight Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Strawberry Point. The marker was dedicated October 1, 1972, giving Clayton County the distinction of being one of the few counties in Iowa that holds the remains of a Son of the Revolution.
~Clayton County Register, September 9, 2009
Clayton Biographies maintained by Sharyl Ferrall.
WebBBS 4.33 Genealogy Modification Package by WebJourneymen