The United States’ First Veterans: Accessing Revolutionary War Pension Files

Vermont Revolutionary War veteran Edward Elley was 95 years old when he recounted the story of his service in a sworn affidavit for his pension file.

Spread out over several years, his service culminated at the Battle of Yorktown.

At Yorktown he rallied his fellow soldiers with the encouraging words “come, my brave fellows, stick to your posts and the day will soon be ours,” within earshot of General James Clinton. General Clinton was so moved by these words that he rewarded Edward Elley with a good breakfast, the first food he had in twenty-four hours.

This story is just one part of one Revolutionary War pension file found in the National Archives and the National Parks Service Revolutionary War Pension File Transcription Project.  The project includes over 83,000 pension files from Revolutionary War veterans with the goal of transcribing them for our nation’s 250th birthday in 2026.

What are the Pension Files?

Originally, the Continental Congress provided a pension for soldiers wounded in the war and unable to earn a living.  In 1818 Congress passed a law allowing all veterans who served for at least nine months to receive a pension. That was expanded in 1832 to veterans who had served for six months, and in 1836 widows were allowed to apply.

The files average 30 pages each, but many are much longer. They contain accounts of the veterans’ time in service, including the campaigns they took part in.  Familiar names and places are peppered throughout the files: Saratoga and Yorktown, Washington and Lafayette.

You can find the pension files here.

Genealogists will be happy to learn that some pension files include genealogical information taken directly from family bibles to provide proof of familial relationships.

Transcribers of Edward Elley’s pension file found a sworn affidavit in which he recounts his military service in Virginia.  Drafted into service a number of times for several months at a time, his third time being drafted, he hired a substitute.

The fourth time he was called in a requisition of men, Elley found himself marching to Williamsburg and on to Yorktown. He describes engagement with the British, the cannonballs hitting the battery near him, and sightings of General George Washington.

After two months, a substitute arrived, hired by his wife. Elley quickly made for his home. Along his way home in Fredericksburg he learned the British surrendered and the war had ended.

Help Transcribe

By transcribing these handwritten records, you can help make them searchable and accessible by the public. You can submit interesting finds in a very brief survey linked on the Revolutionary War Pension Files Transcription Mission page.

So far, the National Archives has heard stories about men in Washington’s Life Guard, a soldier who traveled with Lafayette, and this account of crossing the Delaware:

“We crossed the Delaware to Trenton and remained in the opposite side until the 26th Decr. [December] 1776 & in the night we recrossed the river & took a body of Hessians lodged in Trenton on the next day I was appointed officer of the day to bury the dead…”

If you are ready to help transcribe American Revolutionary War pension files you can learn how to register and get started (be sure to review this tutorial Get Started Transcribing).

If you already have an account, you can login here. Questions? Check out the Frequently Asked Questions.

Photo: American Revolution Battle Reenactment at Fort Ticonderoga.