Revolutionary War Patriots

I have always been aware that there were a few ancestors down the line who fought in the Revolutionary War. But imagine my surprise when I began a quick search using the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) Genealogical Research System and found a whopping ten patriots! And that is just in my maternal lineage - there are even more on my father's side of the family. It was a challenge to wrap my head around all the relationships, so I created the following chart with patriots marked in red (click the graphic to view it in a larger size):

Revolutionary War Ancestors of Margaret (Green) Livingstone

Of particular note to me were some of the relationships I found. For instance, the three pairs of men whose children eventually married each other: Jotham Bigelow's son Josiah wed David Culver's daughter Sarah; David Redman's son Michael wed Moses Carpenter's daughter Susannah; Simeon Ballou's son Abraham (also a veteran) married Gideon Mowry's daughter Diana. Here are the names that correspond to the chart:

1. Jotham Bigelow (1717-1876)
2. David Culver (1736-1801)
3. David Redman (1758-1838)
4. Moses Carpenter (1751-1829)
5. Adonijah Taylor (1730-1802)
6. Simeon Ballou (1740-1786)
7. Abraham Ballou (1764-1843)
8. Gideon Mowry (1736-1795)
9. Edmund Ranger Bird (1759-1835)
10. Moody Howes (1725-1806)

The veterans listed here are, of course, only from my maternal grandmother's lineage. My grandfather's family, the Livingstones and Smiths, came to America from Scotland and England much more recently... so it's entirely possible that someone down the line was standing on the opposite side of the battlefield, facing their future in-laws!