Samuel Crowley and the First Battle of the Revolutionary War

Samuel Crowley (~1741-1774), my fifth great grandfather, was killed in the first battle of the American Revolution at Point Pleasant, now West Virginia, on October 10, 1774. I chose Samuel Crowley for the first post because I read over and over that he was the first casualty of the Revolutonary War. However, after spending a long time trying to find evidence for this, I concluded that this was almost certainly not true (see below).

He was, however, killed on that day and his name is on the monument at the battle site. The battle in question is called Dunmore’s War or the Battle of Point Pleasant.).¹.

In 1774, the Botetourt County Militia was called up by Gov. Dunmore for service against the Shawnee Indians of Ohio, to be joined by the Virginia British Regulars. Samuel Crowley was detached from the Botetourt County Militia and assigned to Commander Lewis as a scout and Indian Spy (Virginia Ranger).

You’ve never heard of this battle? Neither had I, but the U.S. Congress declared the Battle of Pleasant Virginia (now West Virginia) to be the first battle of the American Revolution.

The Virginia Colonial Militia was camped at the river awaiting the regular army before crossing the river as a combined force. Because of the morning hunters discovering the Indians, and one of them being killed, the Shawnee did not storm into rear of sleeping Virginia Militia, but rather rushed against concentrated fire of Virginia sharpshooters firing from protected positions. Despite their superior numbers, Shawnee were decisively defeated, which led to Virginia’s uncontested claim to her western county. What was Virginia’s western county encompassed what is now Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia, and Kentucky. So if surprise attack of British-allied Shawnee had succeeded, Chicago might have become part of Canada. After the battle, the Virginians, along with a second force led by Lord Dunmore, the Royal Governor of Virginia, marched into the Ohio Valley and compelled Cornstalk to agree to a treaty, which ended the war.

Another ancestor was in that battle but survived the battle: Robert Davis, listed as a scout. We will return to Robert Davis in another context at a later time.

The Crowley family lived very near the frontier and European people were not allowed to live beyond a certain point. There were various treaties and deals with the Indians regarding land, some by the government and some private, some conflicting, which was the cause of some of the Indian unrest. Meanwhile many Virginians wanted to move beyond the mountains to the fertile land in what is now West Virginia and Kentucky.

“This region was formerly claimed by various tribes of Indians; whose title, if they had any, originated in such a manner, as to render it doubtful which ought to possess it: Hence this fertile spot became an object of contention, a theatre of war, from which it was properly denominated the Bloody-Grounds.” ².

We will learn in a later post that many people were still killed by Indians in the disputed land after this battle, including one of my ancestors, the same Robert Davis who participated in the Battle of Point Pleasant. And of course, Indians killed by the settlers…

Samuel was married to Elizabeth Strong (we will come back in a later post about the Strong family). She appealed several times for money from the state of Virginia to support her young children. There were eight children that we know of and who lived into adulthood. They also kept moving: 4 of them died in Missouri, one in Arkansas, and two in Kentucky.³.

In the mid 18th century, Virginia Crowleys were long hunters, exploring present day Kentucky and Tennessee. Samuel was a scout, a longhunter, a spy on the Indians, husband and father. We will come back to him in the future…

I never found documents by the person who claimed he proved it was true that Samuel was killed on the morning of the battle, and was hence the first casualty of the Revolutionary War, but I did find him paraphrased and what was claimed does not prove it. His claim is that since Samuel was a well known scout, he must have been one of the two people who went out on the morning of the battle and was killed by Indians. That is not a good reason, especially when there are several reports of who the two people were. The person who returned alive is known, but two different names have been given to the person killed early that morning, and neither of them Samuel Crowley. In fact, several reports say that it was two young men going out hunting that morning. Samuel was not young, and although he was surely a good hunter, there is no evidence that he was killed that morning going out as a hunter.

There are a number of sites that claim he was the person killed on that morning at Point Pleasant, but I believe it’s not true. Other information in these articles probably are true. Here’s one example… https://www.pilgrims-patriots-pioneers.com/2019/10/08/samuel-crowley-first-casualty-of-the-revolutionary-war/

There is a lot of information available about Dunmore’s War and the Battle of Point Pleasant, both web pages and books. Wikipedia can provide a wealth of information about many general topics. And of course books: “Dunmore’s War: The Last Conflict of America’s Colonial Era” by Glenn F. Williams, published May 5th 2017 by Westholme Publishing.

And “History of the Battle of Point Pleasant fought between white men and indians at the mouth of the great Kanawha river. (Now Point Pleasant, West Virginia.) Monday October 10th, 1774. The Chief Event of Lord Dunmore’s War” by Virgil A. Lewis, A. M. (state historian and archivist). Published in 1909. This book is available online for free, for example at google books.

1. The Battle of Point Pleasant https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=22553
2. The Discovery, settlement and present state of Kentucke (1784), page 9
3. Virginia. General Assembly. House of Burgesses., Kennedy, J. Pendleton., Virginia (Colony). Committee of correspondence. (1905). Journals of the House of burgesses of Virginia 1773-1776 including the records of the Committee of correspondence. Richmond, Va.: p263-264. It appears to your Committee, that Samuel Croley, the husband of the Petitioner having been a Soldier, under the Command of Colonel Andrew Lewis, on the late Indian expedition, was killed in the engagement on the tenth day of October last ; and that the Petitioner and several small Children are now left in a helpless situation by the death of the said Samuel on whom they intirely depended for support, having no possible means of maintaining themselves. Whereupon the Committee came to the following Resolution : Resolved, that it is the Opinion of this Committee, that the said Petition is reasonable; and that the sum of twenty five Pounds ought to be allowed the Petitioner for the present Relief of herself and her Children, and that the further sum of ten Pounds, per Annum, for ten Years, ought to be allowed, and deposited in the hands of the Church-wardens for the time being of Cambden Parish, in the County of Pittsylvania, which annuity is to be for the life of the said Petitioner and Children during her widowhood, and after her death or marriage, to be applied towards the maintenance of the Children, for the remainder of the Term.