Mexican War Era Soldiers
(1846 - 1848)
last updated July 17, 1999
(1846 - 1848)
During the early years of Lawrence County's history, the population was increasing even though the size of the territory was decreasing. Yet, records of our early ancestors are sparce. And when relying upon the history of many old cemeteries to give us the clues we search for, we often fall short from obtaining that one piece of information we need in completing our family history. The reason, as Wolfford describes, "Burial customs remained primitive, with families handling their own arrangements and usually placing only a simple rough stone at the head of a grave. Others, with more money, ordered monuments or in some cases prepared their own tombs of stone." (source 3)
Evidence of Mexican War Era Soldiers in Lawrence County has been recorded in Court Order Books, cemetery records, federal census, Pensioners Lists, pension application papers, and DAR records. It should be noted that soldiers who were recorded in Floyd County prior to 1822 but whose physical location actually fell within the boundaries of Lawrence upon her formation in 1822 are listed here. Also, evidence of soldiers found within the boundaries of early Lawrence County (before her redistribution to Carter (1838), Johnson (1843), Boyd (1860), Elliott (1869), and Martin (1870)) are also listed here. The list below is compiled from various sources, and is not intended to be a complete account of Mexican War Soldiers who had connections to Lawrence County. If you have record of an ancestor who was born in the county, lived in the county, filed a pension application in the county, or died and is buried in Lawrence County, please contact me so that the information may be added to this list.
--Beverly L. Pack
| NAME | DATE OF BIRTH | DATE OF DEATH | SERVICE INFORMATION | WHERE BURIED |
| John Botner | unk | unk | Moses Preston Cemetery | |
| John H. Brown | unk | July 26, 1848 near mouth of Salt River, in Ohio River | mustered in April 28, 1847 at Louisa | |
| Matthew Drake | (age 69) | 1870-1890 | Sailor | |
| Charles Foster | unk | unk | mustered in April 28, 1847 at Louisa; mustered out August 5, 1848 at Newport | |
| John William Keller | abt 1821 | 1865 | Company E, 16th Infantry Regiment, U. S. Army; enlisted 12 April 1847; Sergeant | |
| H. W. Norris | unk | 1870-1890 | ||
Note: Not all of this information has been documented and verified. If you find errors, please contact me at the address below and let me know. I appreciate all assistance in maintaining accurate information.
Additional information, such as Wills, Biographies, Letters, Diaries, Pension Application Papers, etc., may be found on those soldiers which have a link indicated. If you have a web page with information about one of these soldiers, please contact me so that I may add your page to the links.
1. "Biography of John W. Keller Family of Lancaster County, c. 1770 - c. 1900", submitted to Rootsweb by Roland Keller, August 10, 1997.
2. "History of Lawrence County, Kentucky," compiled by Regina Tackett, Patricia Jackson, Janice Thompson; Curtis Media Corp., Dallas, TX, 1991.
3. "Lawrence County - a pictorial history," by George Wolfford, WWW Company, Publishers, Ashland, KY, 1972.
4. "Lawrence County, Ky Cemeteries Volume 1, 1995," compiled by Mary Ellen Reid, Beulah Greene, Isabelle Johns; TMC Printing, Paintsville, KY, 1995.
5. Letters from John W. Keller, submitted to Rootsweb by Roland Keller, January 1997.
6. North Arizona Genealogical Society, July 1992, Summit County Chapter, OGS, April 1993.
This information is provided for personal, non-commerical use ONLY.
You may write to me at email Beverly L. Pack
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