Subj: Nancy Ashley (widow of Thomas) War of 1812 Pension Application Subj: Nancy Ashley (widow of Thomas) War of 1812 Pension Application
The following is a transcription of  the War of 1812 Pension Application
of Nancy Pruitt Ashley, widow of  Thomas Ashley,  of Anderson County,
South Carolina:

War of 1812
Declaration for Pension under Act of February 14th, 1871
State of South Carolina
County of Anderson

Declaration for Pension

On this 13th day of September  A.D. One Thousand Eight Hundred and
Seventy One,  personally appeared before me Andrew O. Harris, Judge of
Probate, a court of record, within and for the county and state
aforesaid,   Nancy Ashley, aged about eighty seven years, a resident of
Anderson County  State of South Carolina;  who being duly sworn
according to law, declares that she is the widow of Thomas Ashley to
whom she was married in Abbeville District now County, South Carolina on
the __day of March about the year 1804, Eighteen hundred and Four.  She
cannot say what year but she had four children when her husband entered
the service;  and that her said husband Thomas Ashley served in said war
over sixty days, in the service of the United States in the War of
1812;  that he is the identical Thomas Ashley who was enlisted in
Captain Jacob Reed's Company;  she thinks in Earles Regiment Brigade and
Division;  at  ___on the ___day of  ___181--about three months during
the War of 1812 and that he was honorably discharged at ___on the ___day
of 1812; she cannot give the exact year and time, but that he brought
home with him his discharge papers but they have been lost or
misplaced.  That he was in the Infantry Service, but her husband having
died soon after the War she is not now able
to give any particular account of his services.  That she was his wife
while in service and at the close of the war when the treaty of peace
was ratified and that she has never intermarried with any other person
since his death and is now his wodow.  And that she has at no time
during the late rebellion against the authority of the United States,
adhered to the cause of the enemies of the government, given them aid or
comfort, or exercised the functions of any office whatsoever under any
authority or pretended authority, in hostility to the united states;
that she will support the consitution of the united states, that she is
not in receipt of a pension under any previous act and that she has
never received or made application for a land warrant; and that she
makes this declaration for the purpose of being placed on the pension
roll of the United States under the provision of the act approved Feb
14, 1871;  and that she hereby constitutes and appoints with full power
of substitution and revocation,  John B. Moore of Anderson Court House,
S.C. her true and lawful attorney to prosecute her claim and procure the
issuance of a pension certificate to her.  That her post office address
is Anderson Court House, County of Anderson, State of South Carolina and
her domicile is the same state and county.
Nancy Ashley   X   her mark
Witnesses:  John E. Breazeale
Wiley Mitchel    X  his mark

Also personally appeared John E. Breazeale and Wiley Mitchel,  both of
the County of Anderson  S.C.  persons whom I certify to be respectable
and entitled to credit, and who being by me duly sworn says they were
present and saw Nancy Ashley the claimant sign her name by making her
mark to the foregoing declaration; that they have every reason to
believe, from their appearance of said claimant, and they are acquainted
with her, that she is the identical person she represents herself to be;
that at no time during the late rebellion against the authority of the
united states did she adhear to the cause of the enemies of the
government, give them aid or comfort, and that they have no interest in
the prosecution of this claim.    13 September 1871
John E. Breazeale
Wiley Mitchel  X    his mark
A.O. Norris (?)
Judge of Probate

South Carolina
Anderson County

Personally appeared before me  William Bannister and was duly sworn
before me deposeth and saith that he is a citizen of the aforesaid
County and is about eighty six years old and that he was and is now
acquainted with Nancy Ashley who was Nancy Pruitt before she was married
and that the said Nancy Pruitt did marry Thomas Ashley as he was present
and saw them married and that they so lived as long as said Thomas
Ashley lived; and William Bannister further swears that this identical
Thomas Ashley was in the War of  Eighteen Hundred and Twelve and that he
was in the Company of Capt. Jacob Reed and knows that he was mustered
into service and that he did go and was honorably discharged,believes
that he was in Earles (?) Regiment and says further on oath that the
said Nancy Ashley is the widow of the said Thomas Ashley.  Sworn to and
subscribed before me this April 12, 1871
R.N. Wright, Trial Justice          William Bannister,  X   his mark

The within affadavit was made by an Old Soldier who was in service with
Thomas
Ashley:    The State of South Carolina,  County of Anderson:
Personally appeared before me   Moses Ashley aged seventy one years of
age, and Francis Pruett over seventy years of age, and being duly sworn
says they were well acquainted with Thomas Ashley the late husband of
Mary (?) Ashley, who makes application for Widows Pension under Act of
14th Feby 1871 (No. 6581) and on oath says that during the War of 1812
he enlisted in the service of the united states
and left his home with a company of soldiers, and was absent for more
than three months and returned back home with the company and among
others in the same company was Michael Tarploy (?), Archey Shaw,  Owen
Freaman,  Samuel Jones and Moses Ashley, but each one of these have long
since died. Neither of the deponents were in the service of this war,
but they resided in the neighbornood with Thomas Ashley and know he left
with other soldiers for the war and was gone over three months, and
returned back with the soldiers, and that he ws known and recognized by
all as one of the soldiers;  we have heard him in frequent conversations
with the old soldiers in which they would related and speak of marches
and the incidents of the camps and that he was at all times and by all
who was acquainted with him known to be a soldier of the said war; and
these deponents have no doubts of the correctness of the claim  Mary (?)
Ashley his widow;  for there can be no doubt that Thomas Ashley was a
soldier in said war;  he joined the ____in Abbeville County but where he
mustered into service and where he was discharged they cannot say.
Moses Ashley  Senior and Francis Pruitt,  X  his mark
Sworn to and subscribed before me this 21st day of August 1872.  R.?
Wright, Trial Justice A.C. S.S.

Pension Rejected Dec 21, 1872 for insufficient information or proof of
service of Thomas Ashley, whose name was not found on the rolls of Capt.
Reed's Company
in available records.
Submitted by Candace Gravelle 16 Apr 2000