Robert Leonard (bef. 1730 – 1780): Testimony of Thomas Dunlap Leonard’s “Biography of the Leonards” (1883)

Posted on by William D. Lindsey
Thomas Dunlap Leonard, “Biography of the Leonards” (1883), typescript of a manuscript whose present whereabouts have not been determined

Or, Subtitled: “He was at the Battle of Quebec. His discharge as a soldier of the English Army is yet in existence”

Robert Leonard (bef. 1730 – 1780) is one of the more problematic of my ancestors to sort out. There’s actually a goodly selection of documents providing first-hand information about his life. These include the following:

• A bible that appears originally to have belonged to Robert and wife Honor Pritchard Leonard

• A document showing him discharged from the British military unit HM 35th Regiment at a date only partly stated

• A document showing him indenturing his son William in Frederick County, Maryland, in 1755

• A power of attorney made by his widow Honor and other family members in 1800 stating Robert’s military service in the French and Indian and Revolutionary Wars

• A trail of documents including muster lists, payment records, and other records capturing Robert’s service under John Dagworthy and Alexander Beall in western Maryland during the French and Indian War

• A generally very reliable family history written in 1883 by Robert’s great-grandson Thomas Dunlap Leonard, which incorporates information told to him by his grandparents, Robert’s son Thomas and wife Hannah James

• Documents chronicling his enlistment in the 7th Maryland Regiment during the Revolutionary War, and his death in 1780 in the battle of Camden (for the continuation of this posting, please click the numeral 2 below)

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