In recognition of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the Lenawee County Family Researchers (LCFR) and the Lucy Wolcott Barnum Chapter for the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) have joined forces to honor the patriots who served in the Revolutionary War and whose final resting places are in local cemeteries.
Together, the two organizations created a booklet that includes information about each of these individuals (including the wives of the patriots who moved to Michigan after their husbands died) along with a photo of their grave marker. The collection will be available online at no cost via the Lenawee Historical Museum website, making it widely accessible and allowing for additions. “Judy Sheldon, president of the DAR, got the ball rolling,” said Julia Klink, secretary of the LCFR. “We each chose a patriot, did our own research, and completed a story about the individual. Then, Paul Plassman from the museum edited the entire booklet.” These patriots also will be commemorated with a plaque placed on a large rock in front of the Lenawee Historical Museum, thanks to the DAR’s efforts to secure a grant to pay for the monument. A public dedication will be held on July 19 at 2pm, followed by a reception at the Governor Croswell House (RSVP required). On July 8, on the 250th anniversary of its original public reading, the Declaration of Independence will be read outside of the Lenawee County Courthouse at 6pm. One of the patriots being honored is Col. Henry Hewitt, who is interred at Brookside Cemetery in Tecumseh. Hewitt initially enlisted for one year as a private from Stonington, Conn., at the age of 16, and re-enlisted in the fall of 1779 for six months and again in May of 1780 for seven months. For those two years of service, Hewitt would eventually earn a pension of $80/year beginning in 1831. In his book “Tecumseh’s Hometown Heroes,” local historian Bob Elliott notes that Hewitt also served during the War of 1812. In 1786, Hewitt married Phoebe Morgan, and they raised a family, living first in Connecticut and then settling in East Venice, N.Y. After Phoebe’s death in 1849, Hewitt moved to Tecumseh and lived with his son Charles and family. Hewitt’s son Henry also lived in town. Both of Hewitt’s sons were active in the business, political, and cultural life of Tecumseh. And Charles would go on to serve in the Civil War, enlisting in the 18th Michigan infantry in 1862. Col. Hewitt died in Tecumseh on Nov. 8, 1851, at the age of 88. In celebration of the country’s semiquincentennial, the Tecumseh Historical Museum is featuring an exhibit of Revolutionary War memorabilia curated by Elliott, including photographs and artwork, a uniform and weapons, booklets from the Abi Evans Chapter of the DAR, an original payroll slip, and other artifacts. The public is welcome to visit the museum every Saturday, 10:30am-3:30pm. America 250!Reading of the Declaration of Independence
Wednesday, July 8, at 6pm
Lenawee County Courthouse
301 N Main St, Adrian. Free refreshments will be served.
Contact: Nancy Kujda nancykujda86@gmail.com America 250!
Patriot Marker Dedication
Sunday, July 19, at 2pm
Lenawee Historical Museum
110 E Church St, Adrian. Free
Reception following at the Governor Croswell House
(RSVP to Nancy Kujda) Tecumseh Historical Museum
302 E Chicago Blvd
historictecumseh.org
517-423-2374
Sat 10:30am-3:30pm Brookside Cemetery
501 N Union St, Tecumseh
517-423-3632
