Colonel Josiah Dunn, my GGGGGgrandfather
By James A. Strain, © 2006
Much of the factual information contained in my Dunn narratives is the result of research and compilation by Lanelle Hanke, my distant cousin and descendant of Josiah Dunn, who has graciously shared all her findings with me and other Dunn descendants.
Josiah Dunn was the son of Benjamin and Sarah Dunn of the Wrightsborough, GA, Quaker settlement. They each appear, along with Josiah’s brother, Nehemiah, in the minutes of the Monthly Meeting for the congregation there, and based on land deed research, it is believed that Benjamin and Sarah Dunn migrated to Wrightsborough from Bladen Co., NC. Because his exact birth date is unknown, Josiah could have been born in either NC or GA.
Coming of age during the Revolutionary War, Josiah took an active part in the struggle for independence in several southern battles, and was killed during the war. As GA began to free itself from British control and established local governmental control, Josiah Dunn was appointed a Colonel in charge of the Militia for Richmond County at the Battle of Augusta according to his service voucher and land bounty application on file in the Georgia archives. The entire voucher reads as follows:
State of Georgia
This is to Certify that
Josiah Dun was appointed Col. of Richmd
County Bat’n at the Siege of Augusta & faithfully
Discharged his office Untill his Decease is
Therefore Entitled to a bounty of land. Agreabl
to Land. Given under my hand this 20th
May 1784 -
Elija Clark Col.
By his order
H. Truman [looks like]
[And Petition for land on the outside:]
To the Honorable President & the Members of the Honbl
Council [tear] Petitioner Nehemiah Dunn Admin’tor
to the with[in] named Josiah Dunn deceased prays
he may have land granted him Agreeable to
the Within Certificate in the County of Washington.
Nehemiah Dunn
Nehemiah Dunn, Josiah’s brother, was also granted land as a soldier in the war, and was the executor of both Josiah’s estate and their father’s estate. As both sons of Benjamin Dunn were active in the war, a distinct violation of the peaceful beliefs of Quakers, they were disowned from the Monthly Meeting. In addition, Sarah Dunn was harassed and her property taken from her because of their activities, which resulted in a resolution by the GA Council to return her belongings and to cease any further harassment of her to Col. William Few.
According to the GA Historical Quarterly II, Dec. 1927, pp. 334-341, the Second Regiment of the Colonial militia of St. Paul’s Parish had Josiah Dunn appointed as a Colonel on 21 Aug 1781, and he died in commission after 6 May 1782. On page 138 there is an entry that the return for the Georgia Brigade at Augusta, dated 22 Nov 1781, included the Upper Richmond Co. unit under the command of Col. Josiah Dunn. There are several documents signed by Josiah Dunn in the GA Archives requesting payment for supplies or regarding military matters.
As Josiah died during the war, the exactly location isn’t known, so there is no marker for his grave. There seems to be at least one family tradition that he died near Kettle Creek, GA, but no documentation has been found to support this to my knowledge. This tradition has crept into authoritative publications on the war in Georgia, always with no source for the information, so it remains suspect as far as I’m concerned; like many family traditions though, it could indeed turn out to be true.
After the war, Nehemiah probates the estates of both his father, Benjamin, and his brother, Josiah. Benjamin’s land (town lot #75) in Wrightsborough was sold by Nehemiah in 1784. His father had given it to him in 1779, calling it a “gift to my beloved son Nehemiah.” In 1804 the land of Sarah Dunn, deceased widow of Benjamin, is sold to John Pittman by her heirs. The abstract for this transaction lists the heirs and witnesses as follows, each heir being her child, grandchild, or spouse of a child or grandchild:
Heirs: Nehemiah Dunn, Isaac Pinson, Samuel Mains, Alexander Angelly, Thomas Johnston, Joseph Dunn, Polly Dunn, Benjamin Dunn, Thomas Dunn, Mary Dunn, Abraham Ricketson, and John Baker.
Witnesses: John W. Willingham, Bailey Steward, and Mary Dunn
The name of Josiah’s wife is unknown. Josiah Samuel Allen, who was my grandfather’s “Uncle Joe” and a descendant of Josiah Dunn, certified a statement that his family Bible, which began with Thomas Dunn, son of Col. Josiah Dunn, was burned in a fire and that it had Josiah Dunn’s name written at the top. He had previously transcribed all the information due to his interest in family history, so he documented all the children of Thomas Dunn, who is my GGGGgrandfather, and a son of Josiah Dunn. A different Bible, passed down from another line, is currently in possession of a distant cousin of mine. It also includes the descendants of Thomas Dunn, with minor differences in the names.
Based on the Quaker minutes, land deeds, and other documents, the children of Josiah Dunn are:
Benjamin Dunn (Abt. 1775 – Oct 1844, Autauga Co. AL) married Susanna?
Children of Benjamin and Susanna Dunn:
Thomas Dunn m. Martha Hobbs
Mary Dunn m. Henry C. Richard
John Wesley Dunn m. Lorena/Luraney/Lurana Hobbs
Josiah Dunn
Stephen Dunn?
William Dunn? m. Phadran Hanks?
Elizabeth Dunn m. Joseph Jackson Burson
Lemond Dunn? m. Rachel Watson
Benjamin F. Dunn? m. Lucy Ann Evans
Marlin Dunn m. Sarah Jones
Thomas Dunn (20 Nov 1776/1778?, Wilkes Co., GA – 1 June 1858, Choctaw Co., MS) married Nancy Ward (4 Jan 1775, near Baltimore, MD – 27 Mar 1857, Choctaw Co., MS)
Children of Thomas and Nancy Dunn:
Solomon Ward Dunn m. Minnie Burton
Benjamin Arnal Dunn m. Martha S. Howard
Josiah Green Dunn m. Nicy Andrews and Martha -?-
David Long Dunn
John Marlin Dunn m. Phillotha Harrod
Thomas Madison Dunn
Samuel Seymour Dunn m. Mary G. Anderson
Daniel Hiram Dunn m. Amelia Caroline Young
Martha Louisa Dunn m. Samuel Caldwell
Mary Matilda Dunn m. Kirk? or Henry?
Priscilla Malinda Dunn m. Jesse Roark
Mary (Polly) Dunn (born 1780 Wilkes Co. GA) m. William Gardner on Nov 20, 1807 Columbia Co. GA.