
Lt. David Jameson
Contributed by: Charles Jameson
David Jameson Brother of Col. John Jameson and his Revolutionary War Service from Pension Files
Col. John Jameson, one of George Washington’s close commanders who was involved with the discovery of Turncoat, General Benedict Arnold, was a well-known soldier during the Revolutionary War, but his brother, Lt. David Jameson, was an equally notable and interesting character. Lt. David Jameson was a Culpeper Minute Man from 1775-1776 who re-enlisted to return to duty in 1780- 1781.
The Beginning:
Another interesting Gentlemen was their Uncle David Jameson. David was born around 1723, his exact birthday is unknown, to Thomas and Margaret (Jennings) Jameson, in St. Anne’s Parish, Essex County, Province of Virginia. This is where David grew up and married Mildred Smith sometime after 1751. They had no children of their own. It was said that David graduated from Princeton College N.J. and established himself as a successful and prominent merchant and inventor in Yorktown Va. In 1777 he was a member of Patrick Henry’s privy council and was appointed Lt. Gov. of the Commonwealth in 1780-1781 under Gov. Thomas Nelson. He and his wife Mildred inherited her family’s home, the Edmund Smith House in Yorktown and lived there many years. It is still in service for Park Service personnel. His burial location has not been found, but Mildred is buried in the Moore House Cemetery on the Yorktown Battlefield.
David gave 5,000 acres of land to his nephew John Jameson and to his brother David 500 acres as he did to another nephew also named David Jameson in Caroline County.
David’s Service as a Culpeper Minuteman:
On July 17, 1775 under an oak tree in Clayton’s field in the Town of Culpeper, Virginia the militia of the Culpeper Minutemen met.
From David Jameson’ verified American Revolutionary Pension files
David Jameson stated in the latter end of Apr. 1775, being in a company commanded by Captain Edward Stevens, the designated Independent companies. I marched with the company with the intention of marching to Williamsburg to prevent Lord Dunmore from doing further harm, and to obtain satisfaction for the powder seized. When reaching Fredericksburg, where a number of other militia from other counties had assembled for the same purpose. A letter was received from Peyton Randolph informing us that some arrangement had been made with Dunmore, satisfactory to the inhabitants of Williamsburg. We held council under the supervision of Richard Henry Lee in which we decided to return home.
About the middle of May, I marched with a detachment under the direction of the Committee of the County with instructions to proceed to Philadelphia, but after reaching Baltimore, we returned after a 15-16-day march. Sometime in August I was appointed Ensign under Captain John Jameson, who raised a company of what was termed Minute Men, who with other Captains enlisted 10 companies and formed a Battalion designated the Culpeper Minute Battalion, raised from the counties of Culpeper, Fauquier, and Orange. This Battalion was under the command of Colonel Lawrence Taliaferro, Lt. Col. Edward Stevens, and Major Thomas Marshall. About the last of September, the Battalion was ordered to Williamsburg. There ended up being more recruits who could not be armed; half of the recruits were returned home. The remaining troops were organized under 5 Captains John Jameson, John Chillton, William Pickett, Abraham Buford, and Joseph Spencer, which were joined by five companies of the 2nd Va. Regiment under Colonel William Woodford, Lt. Colonel Charles Scott, and Major Francis Eppes and were ordered to the Great Bridge in Norfolk for the defense of the lower part of the country. At the Great Bridge we were attacked in the month of Dec. by a party of British troops whom we defeated and remained there until the latter part of winter. And from there we marched to Suffolk where we remained till the latter part of March and then returned to Williamsburg. We were discharged and marched home, I arrived a little later than the main troops after being confined at Hanover Courthouse for nearly 3 weeks due to an attack of Pleurisy. I returned home to Culpeper and served as Clerk and Magistrate while my brother John was away.
Then in 1780 the Executive Order of Va. called on Culpeper County to raise two companies of Militia by draft, for 6 months to march to the relief of South Carolina. A few weeks after volunteering, Colonel James Barbour commissioned me as a Lt. by a blank Commission sent by Governor Jefferson to fill and deliver as contingencies arose. A few days later our company marched to Hillsborough N.C., the place appointed for the Va. Militia to rendezvous. Those two Battalions formed a Brigade commanded by then Gen. Edward Stevens. About the 10th day of Dec. I was dispatched by General Stevens at the instance of General Nathaniel Greene to explore the Yadkin River to a certain point and then cross to the Dan River and be ready to make a report to Gen. Greene in Jan. 1781 at Headquarters. General Greene requested that General Stevens take prisoners captured by Gen. Daniel Morgan. We did not get to Salsbury before the prisoners were sent off, as Cornwallis was pressing hard upon us, but we had the gratification of crossing the Yadkin River to the East side and securing the bank on our side, and having a flood on the Yadkin which rendered it impenetrable for Cornwallis to cross, and thereby, I believe saving us a confounded drubbing. After the Battle of Saratoga, Horatio Gates was appointed Commander of the Southern Army. He was soon defeated by the British Army under Lt. Gen. Lord Charles Cornwallis at the Battle of Camden in S.C. George Washington chose Nathaniel Greene to replace Gates. What Greene found when he reached Charlotte, N.C. was an Army in wretched condition. He realized he could not have a head on battle with the British. He would split his Army in 2 forces, use guerilla warfare tactics, attempt to draw the British away from their source of supplies and wear them down.
Half of Greene’s Army under the command of Daniel Morgan fought Lt. Colonel Banastre Tarleton at Cowpens S.C. Morgan instructed the militia to skirmish and after firing 2 rounds to fall back. The British mistook this repositioning as a rout and ran into an unexpected volley of concentrated rifle fire coupled with a cavalry charge, followed by the return of the militia. Tarleton escaped, but British losses were staggering with 90% either killed, wounded or captured. Learning of this loss Lord Cornwallis swore he would regain his prisoners, “no matter what the cost.”
Totally enraged by the loss at Cowpens, Cornwallis and Tarleton began to chase the Americans and their hundreds of British prisoners (General Stevens, David Jameson and the Va. Militia were with this contingent). Greene and Morgan maneuvered north with the British trailing close behind. Greene’s strategy was to avoid battle and draw the British forces further away from their supply lines. Being obsessed with catching the Americans, Cornwallis burned most of his army’s supply wagons and destroyed all the soldier’s daily rations of brandy.
While stopped at Guilford CH (Greensboro N.C.) Greene asked his officers whether it was best to end the retreat and confront the British there or to race to the Dan. It was decided to go into Va. to get additional recruits and supplies. In anticipation of the Dan Crossing, military engineer Colonel Thaddeus Kosciuszko was sent ahead to build earthworks (defenses) and Lt. Edward Carrington was dispatched to gather boats.
Greene again split his army, sending 700 men away from his main force as decoys toward the upper fords (shallow places in a body of water where one can cross by walking) of the Dan River upstream from Danville. The main, slower moving Army with artillery and supply wagons, took the shorter route and crossed the swollen Dan on Feb.14,1781 with boats near Boyd’s Ferry (South Boston). As the last Americans finished crossing the river, the British troops arrived. Without boats they were unable to cross. Greene had won the race to the Dan.
As described in his pension files, David Jameson volunteered for 6-month duty in Nov. of 1780. David, at this time, was a Lt. With orders from General Greene asking General Stevens to deploy 1 officer and 3 privates (David being the officer) to explore the Yadkin from the ford that they had passed the prior day up as high as Hughes Creek. The General also wanted to know about transportation from the Yadkin to the Dan and on to the Catawba River. David was to check the depths of waters, the current, the rocks and every other obstruction that may impede the business of transportation. David was dispatched about the 10th day of December and was told to report back to Gen. Greene in late Jan. at a camp called Cheraw in S.C. From David Jameson’s records the planning and “the swollen river saved them from a confounded drubbing”. Possibly, General Greene’s foresight and Culpeper’s General Stevens plan with Jameson’s exploration allowed the Patriots to live and fight another day.
After the War:
After the War: David became High Sheriff and Chief Magistrate of Culpeper County. He also went on to be Culpeper’s Delegate to the Legislature in 1790-1791. One of his greatest honors was when he was entrusted the duty of standard bearer of their celebrated coiled snake flag