Capt'n. Benjamin Bartholomew was born in Great Valley in the County of Chester State of Pennsylvania February 16th anno dom 1752.

At the earliest period of the Revolutionary War he left his plough, and with a heart glowing with patriotism assumed the military garb. He served in a seven years war in the defence of his country. Headed by the gallant Wayne* and after receiving many wounds gaining much honour and seeing his country free returned to his plough again.

He died on his own fertile and well cultivated farm March 31, anno dom 1812 lamented by his relatives and friends and sincerely regretted] by all his neighbors. His remains are here deposited.
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Marching to Victory: Captain Benjamin Bartholomew's Diary of the Yorktown Campaign, May 1781 to March 1782

Price: $7.95

Eyewitness narratives of the American Revolution, compiled during the conflict itself, are decidedly rare, especially those regarding the campaign in Virginia. On the infrequent occasion when such diaries and reports are discovered, they augment the letters of American soldiers that survive scattered in repositories across the country. The appearance, then, of a source that is new to students of the War for Independence is a notable event. And when that document also offers fresh insights from an important perspective, its value as a resource compels its wide dissemination.

Such is the case with the diary of Capt. Benjamin Bartholomew. A company commander in the 5th Pennsylvania Regiment of the U.S. Continental Line in 1781, Bartholomew religiously entered succinct summaries of daily events in his journal, summaries that today inform, surprise, and often tantalize the reader of this remarkable saga of a revolutionary warrior. His reports of the marches, skirmishes, battles, and siege in Virginia that made up what proved to be the Revolution's climactic campaign offer an unparalleled glimpse into both the monotony of the soldier's life and the high drama that was acted out at Yorktown in September and October 1781.

Bartholomew's diary came to the Virginia Historical Society in 2000, part of a generous bequest of rare books, manuscripts, maps, and newspapers from the estate of Paul Mellon. Mellon's agents had acquired the volume for his extensive collection of Americana in 1967 from H. P. Kraus, Inc., of New York, which had in turn secured the diary at an auction the preceding year. It remained in Mellon's library for more than thirty years, known only to a select few persons. Apparently, the owner always intended that the diary be made accessible to the public at a major historical repository. At Mellon's death, his executors took his wishes to heart. After thorough and careful deliberation, they designated Bartholomew's journal, along with a host of other valuable historical resources, to reside permanently in the collections of the Virginia Historical Society.

Now, thanks to a gift from VHS trustee Cecelia Stump Howell and her mother, Lucile H. Stump, this document is published as Marching to Victory: Capt. Benjamin Bartholomew's Diary of the Yorktown Campaign, May 1781 to March 1782, edited and introduced by E. Lee Shepard.

44 pages, paperback, ISBN: 0945015240, Virginia Historical Society, 20023769
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A bronze plaque is affixed to Captain Bartholomew’s grave momument and reads as follows:

Capt’n. Benjamin Bartholomew
was born in Great Valley
in the County of Chester
State of Pennsylvania
Februray 16th Anno Dom 1752.
At the earliest period of the
Revolutionary War
He left his plough,
and with a heart glowing with patriotism
assumed the military garb.
He served in a seven years war
in the defence of his country.
Headed by the gaallant Wayne
and after receiving many wounds
gaining much honour
and seeing his country free
returned to his plough again.
He died on his own fertile
and well cultivated farm
March 31, Anon Dom 1812
lamented by his relatives and friends
and sincerely regretted
by all his neighbors,
his remains
are here deposited.

Benjamin and Rachel DeWees Bartholomew’s grave is located at 40° 3.988′ N, 75° 25.989′ W. Marker is in Devon, Pennsylvania, in Chester County. Marker is on Valley Forge Road (Pennsylvania Route 1007) 0.4 miles south of U.S. 202, on the left when traveling south. Marker is in The Baptist Church in the Great Valley cemetery, north of the sanctuary. Marker is at or near this postal address: 945 North Valley Forge Road, Devon PA 19333, United States of America.3770
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There are several sources cited here for biographies on Benjamin Bartholomew.3771



*General "Mad" Anthony Wayne The American Revolutionary War Brigadier General Anthony Wayne, was born in Chester County, Pennsylvania, near Paoli, Pa., Jan. 1, 1745, and died Dec. 15, 1796. Privately educated in Philadelphia, General Wayne won major recognition in the American Revolution and in Indian warfare.3772


[See Richard Lee Gleason S-129 for data on a Benjamin Bartholomew b. 1725 in Montgomeryville, Montgomery, PA, brother of Rachel (ID #666 in his database]