All spelling, punctuation and grammatical usage are given as in the original document.

State of New York
Oswego County
SS

On the 26th day of March 1840 personally appeared before me Elias Brewster a Judge of the County Court of the County of Oswego being a court of Record Anna Myers a resident of the Town of Mexico in said County of Oswego & State aforesaid who first duly sworn according to Law doth on her oath make the following declaration in order to obtain the benifit of the Act of Congress passed July 4, 1836. Says she is now as near as can recollect about 93 years old. that she has no record of her age & therefore cannot State the precise time when she was born. that her Maiden name was Oosterhout. that she was born at Canajoharie in the present County of Montgomery in the State of New York. that during the French War & when she was about 3 years to as near as she now recollects she was taken prisoner by the French & Indians & carried to Canada. that she well recollects the destruction. that the house in which her father & family resided was attacked & surrounded by the Indians & that her father and mother four sisters & one brother were killed by them & that she was taken prisoner & a brother by the name of John then about 15 years of age. that she understood & believes that the reason that she & her brother were not Killed was that one of the Indians belonging to the party had lost children of about the same age & he wanted them to adopt - that one other brother escaped whose name was Frederick. that at the time he was sick with the Whooping Cough & that when the Indians saw him cough they were frightened & let him alone. that the Indians took her & her brother to their camp but where or which way or however they travelled she cannot (recall?) but supposes & believes they went to Canada as she recollects they carried the (child) Canita. that she was with the Indians about three years when she learned the Indians language & when she returned to the Mohawk she had almost entirely forgotten her native language the Dutch. that afterwards she was sent to Albany where she was met by an Uncle of hers who had come there to see if any of his brothers children were alive. that she was taken by her Uncle to his residence at Canajoharry. that she then went to live with her Grandmother, Mrs. Katherine Hess, with whom she resided until she was about fifteen years old. that she was married to Henry Moyer or Myers about the 15th day of May 1770 that after she was married that she was married at the House of her father-in-law in Canajoharry where she had been residing for several weeks previous. that she was married by the Rev. Mr. Ehle a Clergyman of the Low Dutch Church. that David Hess was present at the time of said marriage as well as recollects he being a fiddler & played for the Company to dance the evening of the marriage. That she believes the said David is now living & she Knows of no other person who was present at said marriage. that a record was made of said marriage in the Family Bible but the same was destroyed afterwards as will appear from what appears afterwards. that she has had by the said Henry Moyer twelve children the oldest of whom is about 68 years & the youngest about 38 years. that there are 8 only of her said children now living. that the said Henry Moyer was several years older than this deponent & died on the 19th day of Jan. 1830. that soon after the Revolutionary War Commenced the Valley of the Mohawk became the scene of many important operations & bloody transactions. that he was frequently called out for the purpose of defending the frontier from the incursions of the Tories & Indians & was engaged at the Fort near by the whole time that for about a year before the Battle of Oriskany the said Henry held the office of Ensign or Lieutenant the Malitia in a company commanded by Capt. Diefendorf. that as soon as it was announced in the Spring & Summer of 1777 that Col. St. Leger was raising an Army of Tories & Indians at Oswego for the purpose of invading the Valley of the Mohawk the whole country was in a state of excitement. Gen Herkimer issued a proclamation for every able bodied man to turn out leaving the old men & those who were not able to bear arms to guard the Forts & other places where the Women & children were assembled. that the Company Commanded by the Said Defendorf turned out under Gen Herkimer & proceeded with him towards Oriskany. that the said Henry was at that time an Ensign or Lieutenant in the company of said Defendorf as far as German Flatts where town then called about 8 miles below Utica. that the said Henry was there taken lame in consequence of having cut his foot which had previously healed up but in consequence of travelling it had broken out & his foot swelled to such a degree that it had cracked open when he returned. that said Defendorf was Killed in the Battle of Oriskany & was a brother-in-law of said Henry having married his Sister. that it was said at the time that said Defendorf was Killed by an Indian who was in a tree. that during the Summer of 1777 the said Henry was absent most of the time in the service. that after the Torries & Indians had left Fort Schuyler thru Aug or Sept the said Henry returned to his home that after the return of said Henry as aforesaid he was engaged for the greater part of that time & until the 17th day of April following (1778) in assisting about the erection of a Fort in the present town of Minden in the County of Montgomery & State of New York about the six miles east of Little Falls which was called Fort Willet. that it was intended for the people living near said fort to remove therein on the next Monday. that on Sunday which was on the 17th day of April aforesaid about sunrise in the morning & while some of the children of this deponent were sent a few rods from the house to feed some calves this deponent discovered the horse then owned by the said Henry run past the door of the House great frightened & at the same time She heard her children scream - That she went to the door to see what was the matter & there saw several Indians who had taken the two children who had been sent out as aforesaid - that one of the Indians was near the door when she went out & he yelled & whooped & seized her by the arm - that the Indian took her & her four children about fifty rods from the house & stopped - that soon after they stoped they were met by another party of Indians who had been up to a neighbors by the name of Christian Bust who had taken the said Bust his wife & one child & the said Henry Moyer - that a few minutes before she had been taken by the Indians as aforesaid her husband Henry Moyer had left the house & gone to the said Busts' to see about Moving into the fort they had building aforesaid & while there was taken prisoner with the said Bust & his family - that she discharged by the Indians soon after the party met as aforesaid with a Sucking child then about two years old. that her husband the said Henry & three of her children were then taken away by the Indains & where they went she does not Know except from information. that after She was discharged as aforesaid She returned to her house which she found rifled of such articles as the Indians could carry & set on fire the house. that the Indians had put brands of fire between one or two beds which were on fire when she returned. that she suceeded in getting the beds out of the House & extinguished the fire & prevented the building from being entirely consumed. that about two hours after the Indians left two of her children returned who were daughters leaving the Said Henry her husband and one of her children a boy named Henry about three years old prisoner with the Indians. that when her daughters returned they informed this deponent that the Indians discharged them & that their father also wanted the Indians to discharge the boy Henry but they refused to do so & told the said Henry her husband that if he attempted to run away they would Kill his boy. that the wife of said Bust was also discharged by the said Indians & her husband & child a boy about seven years old were carried off by the Indians. that alarm was soon made & she the same day went to a house called Fort House where the people had assembled & where She remained for two or three years until it was understood that it was would be safe for the people to go on to their farms. that the said Henry informed this deponent which she belives then that the Indians took him to Niagara where he was forced to run the gauntlet, that while there he was struck by an Indians with a Tomahawk over the left eye wich produced a Scar of considerable size & which remained there until his death. that he was also at the same place received a cut on the right side of his the head which left a scar about three inches long. that from Niagara they went to Oswego. that while there he was set to chopping wood in the company with a man the name of Stimet noticed the lake Shore. that while a party of the British were endeavoring to get a boat a Shore for the purpose of receiving the wood the same was capsized when he & the said Stimet escaped & went up the Oswego River which was then a wilderness. that they went to three River Point about 25 miles South of Oswego where they discovered that they were pursued. the party encamped overnight & then he & the said Stimet crossed the river from the west to the east side & escaped. That they were Five weeks in the woods & finally found by a party of friendly Indians about six miles from Schoharry in the present county of the same name. that he remained there several days until he got recruited & had recovered his strength & then returned to Fort Willet where this deponent was. that this deponents son remained a prisoner with the Indians until peace was declared When he returned home. that during harvest the year before the said Henry was taken prisoner the people in the neighborhood where she resided in a house called Fort Walradt. that the Fort was situated about 2 miles from the Mohawk River & an alarm had been made that the enemy were in the neighborhood when the people left Fort Walradt & went to the river for greater safety. that all the furniture, clothing & all the household stuff of the said Henry was then destroyed & also the bible in which her marriage with the said Henry was recorded. And this deponent further says that she is now the widow of the said Henry Myers Never having been married to any other person. that she & the said Henry resided together in the Town of Minden aforesaid until about fourty two years since when they removed to the Town of Sullivan in the County of Madison in said State where they resided until about two years ago when they removed to the Town of Hastings in said County of Oswego where they resided until the death of the said Henry as before stated. And deponent further says that she has no record evidence of the service of her husband in the War of the Revolution & She does not Know that any exists.

All spelling, punctuation and grammatical usage are as in the original application.

Anna Moyer/Myers' pension application is a joint resource of Montgomery County NYGenWeb and Oswego County NYGenWeb, hosted by the Montgomery County NYGenWeb. Originally transcribed by Fulton County's City of Gloversville Historian James Morrison and generously contributed to our site by Jeanette Shiel.

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