Middlesex Revolutionary War Soldier Josiah Cornelius

Through research within the Southern Campaign American Revolution Pension Statement and Rosters records, we discovered Josiah Cornelius VAS3148. Josiah Cornelius enlisted as a regular soldier in Captain Anthony Singleton’s Company of the 1st Continental Artillery Regiment. It was organized early in the war in the spring and summer of 1777 in Williamsburg. He signed up for a three-year enlistment on March 25, 1777. After much training and drilling, the unit entered Valley Forge, Pennsylvania in May of 1778 with 289 men ready to fight. They drilled for a month and left Valley Forge in June of 1778 with 331 men. This record places Cornelius directly in the Northern Continental theater.

Cornelius would have been involved with the Battle of Monmouth on June 28, 1778 in New Jersey. This battle pitted George Washington and his Continental army against British troops under Sir Henry Clinton in a long brutal fight that ended in a tactical draw. It was a proving ground for our newly trained American troops.

Cornelius would have also been involved in the battle of Stony Point in New York which took place on July 16, 1779. Under Brigadier General Anthony Wayne, there was a surprise midnight charge and assault with bayonets on a strategic British outpost located on the Hudson River. It was a big victory for the Continental army and was a very large morale booster for the soldiers involved. The continental army had gained control over a vital crossing point on the Hudson River.

(It was during this time that the local Middlesex record of "aid given to his wife" in 1779 was transcribed. This would be consistent with the state policy of supporting the families of soldiers deployed away from home in regular Continental service.)

He left his service with the 1^st Continental Artillery Regiment early by procuring John Oliver of the same regiment to serve the remainder of his time (three months) from 20^th December 1779 to March 24^th 1780.

Primary source documentation (VAS3148) includes a discharge signed at Morristown, New Jersey, on December 20, 1779 which states, “His behavior as a good soldier intitles him to the respect & esteem of his Countrymen.” He is also later recorded as receiving Virginia bounty-land for his enlistment.

Thank you for your service, Josiah Cornelius. We the people of Middlesex County are appreciative.