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Table of Contents > Revolutionary War > Lot 98 |
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Browse the Auction in Groups of 25 Lots: |
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Lot Number: 98
Click for a Printable PageSign-in to Bid or Register to Bid Estimate Range: $20,000 - $30,000 |
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c. 1776 Revolutionary War Era Wool Frock Uniform Coat of John Dunwoody with DAR Ancestor Number A035110 |
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c. 1776 Revolutionary War Era, American Wool Frock Uniform Coat, attributed as belonging to John Dunwoody (1747-1824), with 22 original decorative Colonial Era Brass Floral Buttons attached, Hand-stitched, well worn and of the proper age and fabric, Fine. Wool Frock Uniform Coat worn by Continental Army soldier JOHN DUNWOODY (1745- May 19,1824) of Chester County, Pennsylvania. Good condition considering its age, with its original 22 period brass buttons, each hand-sewn, with signs of actual wear yet are fully intact. Affidavits dated 1990 attesting to generations of care by family descended from the soldier.See: “GENEALOGY OF DUNWWOODY AND HOOD FAMILIES AND COLLATERAL BRANCHES. THEIR HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY, by Gilbert Cope, Westchester, Pennsylvania, 1899.” This genealogical study completed in 1899 provides details on the contributions and military service of the Dunwoody family of Chester County, Pennsylvania to the American effort in the American Revolution. At the time of the Revolution, an Irish-born immigrant named David Dunwoody owned at least 290 acres in Goshen township, Pennsylvania. He and his family found themselves on the path the British Army traveling from the Chesapeake Bay to Philadelphia, and he complained that during their encampment on his lands the British "committed great depradations thereon. The fence rails were doubtless used for camp fires." (p. 14). Two sons of John Dunwoody (1707-1776), who lived in the adjacent Nantmeal township, saw military action at the Brandywine battle -- John (Junior) (1745-1824) and Robert (1740-1798) helped to get the Marquis de Lafayette to safety after he was wounded in the battle (p. 49). During the Revolution, four of John's seven sons saw action in the War. When George Washington crossed the Delaware above Trenton, he famously posted soldiers at camp fires along the river to give the impression that the Continental Army had encamped there. John was "one of the pickets to keep up the camp fire" while Washington crossed the Delaware" and he was in the last boat which crossed the river." No doubt because of his familiarity with Chester County, his team [of horses] "was much employed in hauling cannon from Joanna, Hopewell, Warwick, and other furnaces, for the government." The Continental Army at that time was encamped at Valley Forge. He and brothers James, William, and Robert are identified as having served in the Continental Army. William was killed in action at Crooked Billet, present-day Hatboro PA, on May 1, 1778. In 1884, one of their grandchildren wrote, "My grandfather [James] Dunwoody (1741-1809) was a determined Whig and a surgeon in the war of independence." After the Revolution, James moved his family (including his mother Susanna) to Georgia. John, however, returned to Chester County and died in Nantmeal Township in 1824. John's widow gave a portion of their substantial land holdings in that Township to their son John (Third of his name in America) in 1832 and "the remainder of the land to their daughters, Rebbecca and Mary..." (p. 49). Their daughters folded John's cherished coat from the Revolutionary War and kept it in a trunk in the attic, according to an affidavit filed with the Chester county courthouse in West Chester, Pennsylvania on October 29, 1990. ___ The John Dunwoody in question was born in 1745 and passed away in 1824. He is listed as DAR Ancestor #A035110 as a soldier from Pennsylvania during the American War for Independence. His service record includes time under both Captain James McClure and Captain Evan Anderson. Family lore and the museum’s file of documentation provided is the basis for statements made in the description and further research is recommended for this historic coat. Mary Jane Trego Henderson was the owner of this coat, and states that she is a direct descendant of John Dunwoody. She says in her written affidavit that: “My earliest recollections of the coat are as a young child when my grandfather would refer to its existence as a cherished family relic and its location as being stored in a trunk in the attic. Later in my life the trunk was pointed out to me in the attic where the coat was stored, as it was deemed too fragile to handle. Upon my inheritance of the property, and preparation for the auction of the contents of the house, the coat was removed from the trunk and sold at the auction. (See: 1990 Auction brochure with mention of the Dunwoody item, accompanying this lot.) This coat has always been in possession of my family and was purchased at auction directly from the house occupied by my family since about 1830...”. It is a likely proposition to believe that Dunwoody would have worn this uniform coat while serving with General Washington, including during the historic Delaware River crossing on the night of December 25th, 1776, during the Continental Army’s secret surprise advance for the Battle of Trenton on Christmas Day, December 26th, 1776, and in later engagements including the Battle of Brandywine, September 11th, 1777 and other battles.” Provenance: Documentation of this Coat includes; a handwritten history of the Trego family records, a 1990-dated Printed Auction House Brochure stating the Dunwoody clothing; with a Notary Signed with Seal Statement sworn of Mary Jane Trego Henderson as to the authenticity of this coat. A second signed statement from M. J. Trego Henderson as to authenticity. Printed Virginia History Museum Display Identification Card. *Note: The Shirt shown in the image is of Civil War Vintage, it is Not Colonial, yet provided for illustration purposes only and it will accompany the Coat. Reference: “GENEALOGY OF DUNWWOODY AND HOOD FAMILIES AND COLLATERAL BRANCHES. THEIR HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY, by Gilbert Cope, Westchester, Pennsylvania, 1899.” John Dunwoody Coat; He wore this wool frock uniform coat with 22 brass floral period buttons while serving with General Washington during the Delaware River Crossing on December 25, 1776. Also, during the Battle of Trenton on December 26, 1776 and in the Battle of Brandywine, September 11, 1777 and other battles. John Dunwoody was born in 1737. As an adult he was listed as a school teacher at Fags Manor, Londonderry Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania. He later resided on a West Nantmeal Township farm. He married Susan Crestwell and fathered 8 children. |
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Lot Number: 98
Click for a Printable Page Sign-in to Bid or Register to Bid |
Estimate Range: $20,000 - $30,000 |
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Early American History Auctions, Inc. 1520 Commerce St., # 312 • Winchester, VA 22601 Phone: 858 • 759 • 3290 Email: Auctions@EarlyAmerican.com |
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