John Benham

Notes:

John Benham was born November 3, 1671 in Wallingford, Connecticut. He married Neeltye, a dutch girl. Her name translated is Eleanor or Nellie. This John Benham is sometimes referred to as John Benham of Long Island or John Benham, Englishman. He settled at Bergen, New Jersey in 1693 at which time he was between 21 and 22 years old. There is much contradiction on his children, but without doubt one of his children was son John, born August 15, 1692.

Family/Spouse: Vulpie Wolfe. Vulpie and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

John married Anna Neeltje Kymber about 1691. Anna was born about 1672 in Brooklyn, Kings County, New York, British Colonial America; died about 1720. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Will: 7 Aug 1784, Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States
• Probate: 20 May 1785, Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States

Notes:

...JOHN BENHAM: The exact date of birth is unknown. In the BENHAM FAMILY OF AMERICA, by Randall it states he was born August 15, 1702/04, and according to Mr. Milford Benhams chart and the Wright papers he was born August 15, 1692.
...In a letter written November 12, 1946 by Mr. Fred R. Benham of Indianapolis, Indiana, to his Uncle Silas Benham, a copy of which was loaned to Mrs. Georgianna Randall, to aid her in writing THE BENHAM FAMILY IN AMERICA, it said: "John Benham (1702-1785) was a man of some importance. His name consistently appears in the records of his country along with his dutch son-in-laws. He left a sizable estate, including slaves and real estate. There are records where he purchased and paid 6.18.5 pounds for a French Psalm book, Alsops Demus, Tutamen, Porthsmouth Dispute, Basarush, and others. The personal inventory of his estate suggest household furnishings of a cultivated and gentle family. His household was furnished with iron and plated cooking utensils, eight books listed by his executors at 15 shillings, and good evidence of his station in life was " 1 bed with curtains." In all his personal property for administrative purposes was valued at 68 pounds. He freed old slave " the old Wench Rose." He gave a slave to each of his daughters, probably for their domestic use. He left nothing in his will to his second son, Peter, our lineal ancestor, who was dead at the time the will was made, but left Peter's eldest son John 5 shillings.
...The books mentioned above were purchased by John Benham in an estate sale in 1729. In NEW JERSEY ARCHIVES 1st SERIES ABSTRACTS OF WILLS, Vol. 16-70 1730, page 440 appears "1729 April 12. Stelle, Ambrose of Monmouth County, Trader. Inventory of the personal Estate of 6.18.5, Incl. A French Psalm book, Alsops Decus and Tutamen, the portsmough Dispute and Basaruah zb.; made by Henry Leonard and Daniel Tillton, sworn to by Jonathan Forman, the Administrator. 1729 November 8 account of the sale at public auction, which has brought for the goods as inventoried 9.3.2, the buyers being Aaron Forman, Samuel Forman, Samuel Barton, Thos. Redford, Benjamin Van Cleaf, William Creag, Lawrence Van Cleaf, Joseph Froman, Steven Aumock, John Forman, and John Benham.
1732 November 1 account by the administrator, who" desireth allowance of a certain debt due by bond to Walter Thong of New York, Merchant and paid by the Administrator 20"
...John Benhams will of August 17, 1784 was probated May 20, 1785 and appears in Monmouth County New Jersey Archives, Vol. VI: 41 of Abstracts of wills of 5401-5408 M. Book 27:133. It says he was sick and weak in body but of perfect mind and memory. It names;
...Grandson John, son of Peter, 5 shillings
...Son Joseph 10 pounds
...Daughter Ann Taylor (negro girl Nan)
...Daughter Handerrickye (same as Hendrics) Van Dike (negro girl named Bett)
...Daughter Catharine Van Horn (negro girl named Rose)
...Daughter Elizabeth Covenhoven (negro boy named Yafe)
...Wife Catharine Benham full use of lands and all remaining goods for her lifetime. After her death it was to be sold and divided among his daughters: the four named above, and his grandchildren who were the children of his deceased daughter, Mary Clayton. He named these children: Robert Clayton, John Clayton, William Van Cleave and said they were to have one share
...He freed old wench Rose, after the death of his wife.

Executors named: Hendricke Smock and Garret Canderveer. Signed by mark in presence of John Van Cleave, Joseph Hilzee, and Hendricke Smock. The inventory amounted to 68.11.3: taken by John Clayton and David Covenhoven, Appraisers and dated May 3, 1785.

Probate:

Extract from the Will of John Benham
Item I give an bequeath unto my well beloved wife Catharine Benham the full use and Benefit of all my Lands and Tenemants, and all the remaining Part of my goods and Chattels movable or immoveable during her natural Life, and after my Wifes Decease It is my Will and desire that all and every part of real and Personal Estate be sold by my Executors and equally divided betwixt my Daughters __?__. I do likewise make & ordain Hendrick Smock & Garret Vanderveer my sole Executors of this my last will and Testament __?__.

John married Geertje Van Dyke about 1717 in Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America. Geertje (daughter of Charles Van Dyke) was born about 1700; died after 1792. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Baptism: 3 Apr 1722, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; Address:
  Dutch Reformed Church

Other Events:

• Baptism: 1 Jan 1725, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; Address:
  Dutch Reformed Church
• Military: Between 1776 and 1778; American Revolutionary War - Sergeant/Ensign

Notes:

...The New Jersey Colonial Documents, marriage records, list the three marriages of this Peter Benham. He first married in 1747 to Anne (or Anna) James, daughter of Robert and Amey James. She died in 1758
...Peter married the second time on Apr 2, 1759 in New Jersey as Peter Benham of Middlesex to Hannah Clayton of Monmouth, New Jersey.
...Peter married the third time on Feb 24, 1761 as Peter Benham of Freehold, New Jersey to Catharine Wessel of Freehold, New Jersey. She outlived him and was granted letters of administration on his estate in Loudon County, Virginia. These letters were obtained Jun 12, 1780 and the bond posted was for 1000 pounds. From the amount of the bond, Peter left behind a small estate. He left no will and consequently Peter's eldest son, John, under the English law succeeded to the estate.
...Feb 12, 1781 James and his brother Nathaniel, orphans of Peter were bound to Samuel Cox by the Loudon County Court through the Wardens of Shelbourne Parish. I have spoken to the Rector of Shelbourne Parish and he advises that at the time this took place the Parish had almost as much jurisidiction over the welfare of the citizens of Virginia as the state courts. Shelbourne Parish is the Episcopal Church.
...Upon visiting the Daughters of American Revolution Headquarters in Washington, D.C. I found that numerous persons had established their ties with Peter Benham.
...These DAR records show that Peter served as a sergeant in Captain West's Company and also designated as Captain's Reuben Briscoe 3rd Virginia Regiment (1776 - 1778). Documentation for this is found in Colonel Thomas Marshal and Colonel William Heth's report of AGO Court records, Loudon County Virginia.
...I also found in the accounts of the United States for the Militia of North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia, Book A, page 282 where Peter furnished sundries for the Militia of the just mentioned states and was paid 30 pounds.
...Peter was a military sergeant of Carters Company, 10th Regiment which is recorded in the Colonial and State records of North Carolina Volume 1 - 16, page 1120 and Polio, North Carolina Revolutionary Army Accounts, Volume 2, page 8.
...While living in Loudon County Virginia Peter was appointed an Ensign on May 1778 in the Virginia militia. His appointment appears in "Legends of Loudon" by Harrison Williams, page 126 and also in the book "Virginia Militia in the Revolutionary War" by McAllister, pages 210 and 213.
...Page 205 of the HISTORY OF THE OLD TENNENT CHURCH, by the Reverend Frank R. Symmes, 1904, under Early Baptismal Records, is the following: "Peter Benham had baptised: John, Robert, Peter, Richard, Amey, and Catharine, all baptized at once, presented by their father and their mother-in-law Hannah which had been (illegible) Clayton, May 31, 1759."
...It appears that Peter Benham after his marriage to Catharine Wessell in 1761 moved to Loudon County Virginia. His six older children were left behind in the care of their grandmother Catharine (Van Dyke) Benham. (Source: Compiled by James Lee Wignall, Following the Footprints on the Sands of Time, 1986)

Peter married Anne James on 2 Apr 1747 in Freehold, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America. Anne (daughter of Robert James, Sr. and Amey _____) was born on 29 Jan 1727 in Freehold, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; died in 1758 in Freehold, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Peter married Hannah Clayton on 2 Apr 1759 in New Jersey, British Colonial America. Hannah was born about 1740; and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Peter married Catherine Wessel on 24 Feb 1761 in New Jersey, British Colonial America. Catherine was born in 1728 in Freehold, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; died before 12 Feb 1781 in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Name: Anke Benham
• Baptism: 29 Jan 1727, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; Address:
  Dutch Reformed Church

Anna married Joseph Taylor on 25 Sep 1762 in Lower Freehold, New Jersey, British Colonial America. Joseph and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Mary married Jonathan Clayton on 6 Dec 1759 in Freehold, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America. Jonathan was born about 1729 in Freehold, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; died about 1779. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Baptism: 5 Oct 1734, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; Address:
  Dutch Reformed Church

Elizabeth married Garret Covenhaven on 26 Feb 1759 in Freehold, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America. Garret and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Baptism: 17 Dec 1738, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; Address:
  Old Tennent Church

Family/Spouse: Van Horne. and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Baptism: 2 Dec 1742, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; Address:
  Old Tennent Church

Other Events:

• Baptism: 1744, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; Address:
  Old Tennent Church

Family/Spouse: Unknown. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Name: Henderickye Benham

Hendrica married Jacob VanDike on 10 Nov 1768. Jacob was born before 1768 in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, British Colonial America; and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Baptism: 31 May 1759, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; Address:
  Old Tennent Church

Family/Spouse: Margaret Fowler. Margaret and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Military: as a Captain in the Revolutionary War
• Religion: Presbyterian
• Baptism: 31 May 1759, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; Address:
  Old Tennent Church
• Will: 6 Feb 1809, Warren County, Ohio, United States
• History / Bio: 1882; The History of Warren County, Ohio (Chicago: W. H. Beers & Co., 1882) p353, 354 and 357.

Notes:

...The first ferry to Newport was run by Captain Robert Benham, under a license from the Territorial government, granted September 24, 1792, from Cincinnati to the opposite bank, the present Newport, on the east side of the Licking.
The document by virtue of which the first ferry was established...
...On the thirteenth of February, 1792, the secretary of the Northwest Territory, then at Cincinnati, and, in the absence of Governor St. Clair, acting governor, issued the following proclamation:
..."To all persons to whom these presents shall come, greeting:----
...Whereas, it has been represented to me that it is necessary for the public interests, and the convenience of the inhabitants of the county of Hamilton, that a ferry should be established over the river Ohio, nearly opposite the mouth of Licking in the commonwealth of Virginia, and Mr. Robert Benham having requested permission to erect and keep said ferry:
...Now, know ye that, having duly considered of the said representation and request, I have thought it proper to grant the same, and by these presents do empower the said Robert Benham, of the county of Hamilton, to erect and keep a ferry over the Ohio river, from the landing place in the vicinity of his house-lot, which is nearly opposite the mouth of Licking, to both points of the said rivulet and upon the Virginia shore: and to ask, demand, recover and receive as a compensation for every single person that be may transport over said
ferry.....................................6 cents
For a man and horse.....................18 "
For a wagon and team...................100 "
For horned cattle, per head...............18 "
For hogs, each............................6 "
until those rates shall be altered by law or future instructions from the governor of this territory.
...And he is hereby required to provide good and sufficient flats or boats for the purpose, and to give due attention to the same according to right and common usage, and to govern himself in the premises by all such laws as hereafter may be adopted for the regulation of ferries, as soon as such laws shall be published i the territory.
...Given under my hand and seal, at Cincinnati, in the county of Hamilton, the eighteenth day of February, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and ninety-two, and of the independence of the United States the sixteenth--and to continue in force during the pleasure of the governor of the territory. Winthrop Sargent.
(Source: W. H. Beers, The History of Warren County, Ohio: Containing A History of the County; it's Townships, Towns, Schools, Churches, etc,; General and Local Statistics; Portraits of Early Settlers and Prominent Men; History of the Northwest Territory; History of Ohio; Map of Warren County; Constitution of the United States, Miscellaneous Matters, Etc., Etc. (Chicago: Culver, Page, Hoyne & Co., 1882), Hamilton County, General History, pg. 76, 225)

Note: Gateway to the West, Vol. II, Warren County, Ohio Marriages 1803-1810 pg. 657 lists Robert Benham to Polly Price 7-3-1806, and Robert Benham, Jr. to Nancy Price 8-17-1808.

History / Bio:

Robert Benham. This pioneer and soldier, whose name is familiar to readers of the early history of the Ohio Valley, was born in Pennsylvania in 1750. He was an officer in the Revolutionary war, and, after the close of that struggle, became one of the early settlers in Symmes' Purchase. He is said to have built, in 1789, the first hewed-log house in Cincinnati and to have established the first ferry over the Ohio at Cincinnati February 18, 1792. He served under Harmar in his campaign against the Indians, was in the bloody defeat of St. Clair and shared in Wayne's victory. About the commencement of the present century, he settled upon a farm southwest of the site of Lebanon, which was his home until his death. He was a member of the first Legislature of the Northwest Territory and of the first Board of County Commissioners of Warren County; in the latter capacity, he served several years. Judge Burnet, who served in the Legislature with him, says: "He was possessed of great activity, muscular strength and enterprise; had a sound, discriminating judgement and great firmness of character. He was the grandsire of the accomplished Mrs. Harriet Prentice, of Louisville." Joseph S. Benham, his son, became a distinguished lawyer and orator of Cincinnati, and delivered the oration on the reception of La Fayette at Cincinnati. Robert Benham died early in the spring of 1809, and was buried at Lebanon, a troop of cavalry following his remains to the grave.
The most interesting event in the life of Capt. Benham is his survival after being wounded at Rodgers' defeat, and his life on the battle-field. Strange as this story is, its truthfulness has Been indorsed by Judge Burnet and other careful historians. The account below is from "Western Adventures:"
"In the autumn of 1779, a number of keel-boats were ascending the Ohio under the command of Maj. Rodgers, and had advanced as far as the mouth of Licking without accident. Here, however, they observed a few Indians standing upon the southern extremity of a sand-bar, while a canoe, rowed by three others, was in the act of putting off from the Kentucky shore, as if for the purpose of taking them aboard. Rodgers immediately ordered the boats to be made fast on the Kentucky shore, while the crew, to the number of seventy men, well armed, cautiously advanced in such a manner as to encircle the spot where the enemy had been seen to land. Only five or six Indians had been seen, and no one dreamed of encountering more than fifteen or twenty Indians. When Rodgers, however, had, as he supposed, completely surrounded the enemy, and was preparing to rush upon them from several quarters at once, he was thunderstruck at beholding several hundred savages suddenly spring in front, rear and upon both flanks. They instantly poured in a close discharge of rifles, and then, throwing down their guns, fell upon the survivors with the tomahawk. The panic was complete and the slaughter prodigious. Maj. Rodgers, together with forty-five others of his men, were quickly destroyed. The survivors made an effort to regain their boats, but the five men who had been left in charge of them had immediately put off from shore in the hindmost boat, and the enemy had already gained possession of the others. Disappointed in their attempt, they turned furiously upon the enemy, and, aided by the approach of darkness, forced their way through their lines, and with the loss of several severely wounded, at length effected their escape to Harrodsburg.
"Among the wounded was Capt. Robert Benham. Shortly after breaking through the enemy's line, he was shot through both hips, and, the bones being shattered, he fell to the ground. Fortunately, a large tree had lately fallen near the spot where he lay, and, with great pain, he dragged himself into the top and lay concealed among the branches. The Indians, eager in pursuit of the others, passed him without notice, and, by midnight, all was quiet.
"On the following day, the Indians returned to the battle-ground, in order to strip the dead and take care of the boats. Benham, although in danger of famishing, permitted them to pass without making known his condition, very correctly supposing that his crippled legs would only induce them to tomahawk him upon the spot in order to avoid the trouble of carrying him to their town. He lay close, therefore,until the evening of the second day, when, perceiving a raccoon descending a tree near him, he shot it, hoping to devise some means of reaching it, when he could kindle a fire and make a meal. Scarcely had his gun cracked, however, when he heard a human cry, apparently not more than fifty yards off. Supposing it to be an Indian, he hastily reloaded his gun, and remained silent, expecting the approach of an enemy. Presently, the same voice was heard again, but much nearer. Still, Benham made no reply, but cocked his gun and sat ready to fire as soon as an object appeared. A third halloo was quickly heard, followed by an exclamation of impatience and distress, which convinced Benham that the unknown person must be a Kentuckian. As soon, therefore, as he heard the expression, 'Whoever you are, for God's sake answer me!' he replied with readiness, and the parties were soon together.
"Benham, as we have already observed, was shot through both legs. The man who now appeared had escaped from the same battle with both arms broken. Thus each was enabled to supply what the other wanted. Benham, having the perfect use of his arms, could load his gun and kill game with great readiness, while his friend, having the use of his legs, would kick the game to the spot where Benham sat, who was thus enabled to cook it. When no wood was near them, his companion would rake up brush with his feet and gradually roll it within reach of Benham's hand, who constantly fed his companion and dressed his wounds, as well as his own, tearing up both their shirts for that purpose. They found some difficulty in procuring water at first, but Benham at length took his own hat, and, placing the rim between the teeth of his companion, directed him to wade into the Licking up to his neck and dip the hat into the water (by sinking his own head). The man who could walk was thus enabled to bring water by means of his teeth, which Benham would afterward dispose of as was necessary. In a few days, they had killed all the squirrels and birds within reach, and the man with the broken arms was sent out to drive game within gunshot of the spot to which Benham was confined. Fortunately, wild turkeys were abundant in those woods, and his companion would walk around and drive them toward Benham, who seldom failed to kill two or three of each flock. In this manner they supported themselves for several weeks, until their wounds had healed, so as to enable them to travel. They then shifted their quarters and put up a small shed at the mouth of the Licking, when they encamped until late in November, anxiously expecting the arrival of some boat which would convey them to the falls of the Ohio.
"On the 27th of November, they observed a flat-boat moving leisurely down the river. Benham hoisted his hat upon a stick and hallooed loudly for help. The crew, however, supposing them to be Indians, at least suspecting them of an intention to decoy them ashore, paid no attention to their signals of distress, but instantly put over to the opposite side of the river, and manning every oar, endeavored to pass them as rapidly as possible. Benham beheld them passing him with a sensation bordering on despair, for the place was much frequented by Indians, and the approach of winter threatened them with destruction unless speedily relieved. At length, after the boat had passed him nearly half a mile, he saw a canoe put off from its stern and cautiously approach the Kentucky shore, evidently reconnoitering them with great suspicion. He called loudly upon them for assistance, mentioned his name and made known his condition. After a long parley, and many evidences of reluctance on the part of the crew, the canoe at length touched the shore and Benham and his friend were taken on board.
"Their appearance excited much suspicion. They were almost entirely naked, and their faces were garnished with six weeks' growth of beard. The one was barely able to hobble upon crutches, and the other could manage to fee himself with on of his hands. They were taken to Louisville, where their clothes (which had been carried off in the boat which deserted them) were restored to them, and, after a few weeks' confinement, both were perfectly restored."
It is stated in "Western Annals," that Benham afterward bought and lived upon the land where the battle took place. His companion, whose name is given as John Watson, afterward lived at Brownsville, Penn. (Source: W. H. Beers, The History of Warren County, Ohio: Containing A History of the County; it's Townships, Towns, Schools, Churches, etc,; General and Local Statistics; Portraits of Early Settlers and Prominent Men; History of the Northwest Territory; History of Ohio; Map of Warren County; Constitution of the United States, Miscellaneous Matters, Etc., Etc.

Family/Spouse: Elizabeth Miller. Elizabeth was born in 1753; died in 1817 in Lebanon, Warren County, Ohio, United States; was buried in 1817 in Warren County, Ohio, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Baptism: 31 May 1759, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; Address:
  Old Tennent Church

Notes:

Resided: 1785, Washington County Pennsylvania.

Family/Spouse: Cornelius Shroud. Cornelius and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Baptism: 31 May 1759, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; Address:
  Old Tennent Church
• Residence: Between 1793 and 1794, Newport, Campbell County, Kentucky, United States; for one year before returning to Pennsylvania
• Death: 1799, Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States

Notes:

Benham, Peter; (bro. of Capt. Robert); to Ky. 1793, where he d 1799; widow to Ohio 1800, d 1805; issue-- Robert, *James, Peter, **John, Ann, wife of Thompson Lamb; Martha, wife of Nathan Smith. *James, Union Township, b Washington Co. Pa. Aug. 9, 1784 - d Aug. 13, 1869; m (1) Mary Robinson; (2) Dec. 9, 1827, Mary Russell; (3) Lydia Irvin Moore, who d Oct. 12 1847; issue-- James, Rebecca, Martha and three others; James Jr. b.

Family/Spouse: Elizabeth Ellsworth. Elizabeth was born about 1753; died in 1805 in Warren County, Ohio, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Name: James Benham
• Name: Richard James Benham
• Religion: First Presbyterian Church
• Baptism: 31 May 1759, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; Address:
  Old Tennent Church
• Military: 14 May 1779; Revolutionary War - Private

Notes:

...Baptized on May 31, 1759, with his brothers and sisters, in the Scotch Covenanter Church, the Old Tennent Church of Freehold, New Jersey. His first or middle name may have been James. Probably in 3rd Virginia Regiment of the continental Line during the Revolutionary War. (Source: Information from John Hartsock)
...According to Benjamin Van Cleve, nephew of Richard Benham, in about 1784/5 "Captain Robert Benham, my mothers brother, paid us a visit. He strongly solicited my father to remove to that county (the land west of the Monongehelah in Pennsylvania), gave him a list of the different places on the road and every necessary advice relative to his preparations and journey. The object to be surmounted. He was, however, all summer getting ready and did not commence the journey until the second day of November. It seemed hard to leave the country of our nativity, our near relatives, and almost all that was dear to us. My father's mother was living and had lived with us for many years. My mother's grandmother who had brought her up from two years old, lived within a quarter of a mile; she had never lived further off. There was a numerous connection of both sides. We were now to separate from forever. But the prospects of being better enabled in a new country of providing for a growing family preponderated. We commenced our journey on the second of November, 1785, with two wagons of my father's one carrying a set of smith's tools and the other the household goods, in the company with Cornelius Shourd and family, whose wife is my mother's sister. They were in anot
her wagon. My father and uncle and each an apprentice and a young man by the name of Tunis Voorheis, and neighbor, came with us to see the country, and my Uncle had with him likewise my Uncle Richard Benham's wife and son. We made this day near thirty miles and put up at the ferry on the Delaware River about two miles below Trenton."
..."Skipping some entries, we continued: - Dec, 6 came to James Crawford's Ferry on the Monongehela. Here we were met by Uncles, Robert and Peter Benham, with fresh horses and before night we arrived at the end of our journey on the north fork of Ten Mile Creek in Washington County Pennsylvania."
..."We lived on the Plantation of my uncle, Robert Benham, nearly opposite Wises (afterwards Wallaces) Mills during the years 1786 - 87. My father cultivated a small field and worked at his trade. In 1788 my father rented a farm."
..."On the 25th of November 1789 we sailed from Crawford's Ferry, one boat carrying the families of my father, uncle Richard Benham and some passengers, one of who was Jacob Tappan of New Jersey." The family of Amey Benham and Cornelius Shroud (her husband) remained in western Pa. The journey was made safely and the company landed at Losantiville, opposite the Licking River, on January 3, 1790. The new arrival quickly made preparations for living quarters and the care of their families. John Van Cleave, a blacksmith by trade, who had brought his tools with him, all the way from his home in New Jersey, set up a shop.
...Richard Benham's brother, Robert, followed shortly after with his family while their brother, Peter, and his family came several years later. Richard and Robert Benham soon bought property in Hamilton county, property which now is of great value, being in downtown section of Cincinnati. Their names appear on the record of distribution and sale of lots in the town of Losantiville, 1789-90. Deeds in the Hamilton county Court House attest to early ownership of land by both of them.
...Richard Benham's land became his as a "volunteer settler" on property offreed by John Cleves Symmes. A "volunteer settler" was required to improve the land and represent his section whenever required for seven years before he was granted ownership. This was called the "Rule of Sale and Settlement of Miami Lands." Should the volunteer settler not live up to his part of the contract he lost the right to claim property and someone else was allowed to apply for it. Richard Benham, according to court house records, never seems to have left Hamilton County although he lived several places in it including the old settlement of Columbia, where from deeds we know he lived in 1802. It was at this time that he became tired of clearing lots Nos. 243 and 244, at the north west corner of fifth and Race Streets in Cincinnati, and paying taxes on them, so he decided to sell them deeming them valueless. On January 4, 1802, he sold the two lots for $40.00.
...Richard Benham did not leave a will but from other sources I learned that his wife was Lydia (Last name unknown). He died intestate but the names of his children and heirs appear in a series of deeds of land recorded in Hamilton County court House, in which deeds they sold the land left them by their father. This property was located in the north west corner of Symmes township. Lydia appears as the head of the family in Symmes township in the 1820 census records of Hamilton County, as do her widowed daughter, Betsy Luther, and her sons-in-law, Henry A. Balser, Robert Hughes, and Amos Harris. The last known record of Lydia is in a deed dated November 14, 1823 in Warren County, Oh. Richard Benham built the third cabin on the present site of Cincinnati. He had ten acres there at one time. He died near Todd's Forks and at the time of his death he owned 114 acres.

Researchers Note: Cincinnati was founded in 1788 and named "Losantiville" meaning "the city opposite the mouth of the Licking River".

Richard married Lydia Robbins about 1774. Lydia was born about 1759 in New Jersey, British Colonial America; died after 1850. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events:

• Baptism: 31 May 1759, Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; Address:
  Old Tennent Church

Notes:

Catherine Benham VanCleve Thompson was the first white woman to set foot in what is now Dayton, Ohio. She and John VanCleve came to Cincinnati in 1790 when it was still called Losantiville. Within two years of their arrival, John VanCleve was killed by Indians and Catherine married a Samuel Thompson. In April of 1796, the Thompsons decided to move north to the new settlement of Dayton, Ohio, named after Jonathan Dayton, a Rev. war veteran. Three groups of people arranged to go at the same time. Since there were no wagon trails the party which included Catherine VanCleve Thompson opted to travel by flat-bottomed boat up the Great Miami River and arrived before those who traveled overland. The boat trip took about 10 days.

Catherine married John Van Cleve on 1 Aug 1771 in Monmouth County, New Jersey, British Colonial America. John was born on 16 May 1749 in New Brunswick, Middlesex County, New Jersey, British Colonial America; died on 1 Jun 1791 in Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Northwest Territory, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Catherine married Samuel Thompson on 14 Apr 1793 in Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Northwest Territory, United States. Samuel was born in 1753 in Pennsylvania, British Colonial America; died in 1817 in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Family/Spouse: Rebecca Zelling. Rebecca was born in 1780 in Pennsylvania, United States; died after 1868 in Crawford County, Indiana, United States. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]