We are excited as we prepare for the 250th Birthday of the United States of America in 2026! We are proud to recognize the Patriots of the New River Valley of Virginia who sacrificed their lives and fortunes for our liberty. As tensions between Great Britain and the American colonies increased during the 1770’s, the settlers on the Virginia frontier were coping with more than one potential conflict.

1. They were concerned about protecting their homes from indigenous groups such as the Cherokee, the Shawnee, and the Mingo. In 1774 several conflicts between the latter two groups and settlers prompted the British Governor of Virginia, Lord Dunmore to declare war against the tribes and many men from the New River Valley joined the forces that engaged in battle at Point Pleasant on the Ohio River.

2. They were as angry about the British Intolerable Acts as colonists from Boston to Charleston and Savannah. Mere months after being at Point Pleasant some of the same men signed the Fincastle Resolutions, pledging to fight against the British to the death in order to keep their personal liberty. When the Revolution began, dozens of these men left their fields, their homes, and their families to fight for the fledgling country.

3. Many, perhaps most, were of Scots-Irish ancestry and had long standing antipathies to the British. Others, of German ancestry, had a Lutheran background and had reluctantly taken an oath of loyalty to the British crown so they could obtain land-grants. While willing to defend their land and homes against the Shawnee and Cherokee, not all of them were willing to break their oath of allegiance to King George III and this led to neighbor against neighbor conflicts in several cases.

The names listed here represent a partial list of those who joined the colonial forces. Though listed here by the modern day names of the counties from which they came, most of them would have originally been listed as coming from Fincastle County. (The territory then called by that name is now divided into 9 different counties in Virginia and West Virginia.) After the war, many returned to their homes to live out their lives and are buried in the area. Others chose to go further west in search of more and better land. NOTE: We encourage people to notice how many of these names come from the same families. This could mean that all the men in the family were with the military and the women were left at home to guard their property and work the fields alone.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY https://www.alleghanydar.org/america-250-montgomery-county-virginia-patriots/

GILES COUNTY https://www.alleghanydar.org/america-250-giles-county-virginia-patriots

PULASKI COUNTY https://www.alleghanydar.org/america-250-pulaski-county-virginia

FLOYD COUTY https://www.alleghanydar.org/america-250-floyd-county-virginia-patriots/