Do you have ancestors who were in the United States during the Revolutionary War? How about celebrating July 4th by looking into these Revolutionary War ancestors? The men and women who have become known as Patriots put their lives in danger by supporting the move toward independence. What actions did these ancestors participate in to support the independence of the colonies from England? What were their lives like before and after independence? St. Tammany Parish Library can help you in your search.
Background
While several actions occurred in disagreement with taxations being placed on the colonies by the British, the war officially started when the British Army marched to Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts from Boston during the night of April 18, 1775 resulting in the Battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19 (History.com, Battles of Lexington and Concord, opens a new window).
It is not known how many actually served for the Patriots during the Revolutionary War. By the following year in 1776, General George Washington had gathered an army of 20,000 soldiers (FamilySearch Wiki, Revolutionary War, opens a new window). The war finally came to an official end on September 3rd, 1783 when King George III's representative met with the representatives from the United States for the signing of the Treaty of Paris (American Battlefield Trust, American Revolution Facts, opens a new window). Anybody who served or helped the Patriot movement between 1775 and 1783 is considered a Patriot.
Online Resources
DAR
A good place to start is by using the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) Genealogical Research System, opens a new window to see if a DAR member has claimed your ancestor for membership in the DAR. When searching the DAR database, it is suggested that you start your search with just the name of the possible Patriot. If you have too many hits, try adding a location and dates to narrow the search. If you do not get the search result that you expect, try searching using different variations of the name, especially the last name.
Fold3.com
Fold3.com, opens a new window is a database of military records that is provided by the St. Tammany Parish Library to library card holders. If you are accessing the database from home, you will enter your library card number to verify that you are a patron of the St. Tammany Parish Library. Once you are in Fold3.com, click on the picture for the US Revolutionary War to search the military records through Fold3.com.
FamilySearch.org
FamilySearch.org is a free database of genealogy records. Various military records have been digitized via FamilySearch.org and is available through their website. By going to Revolutionary War records of FamilySearch.org, opens a new window, you can access the various records through this database.
Ancestry.com
Ancestry.com also provides access to various Revolutionary War military records. Ancestry.com is provided via St. Tammany Parish Library, but you must use the computers at one of the library's branches, opens a new window to search Ancestry.com through the library's subscription. Only at the library can you search the Revolutionary War records of Ancestry.com, opens a new window for free.
Printed Resources
Within the Genealogy and Local History Room in the Covington Branch, several physical books are available to search for information about your Patriot ancestor. Here is a list of some of those titles: Revolutionary War sources at St. Tammany Parish Library, opens a new window.
Research Help
If you would like help with searching for information on your Patriot ancestor for your own interest or even for joining a heredity society, such as the Daughters of the American Revolution or the Sons of the American Revolution, either visit the genealogy librarian at the Covington Branch or email the librarian at genealogy-covington@stpl.us, opens a new window.
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