Dr. John Peter Ahl

John Peter Ahl was born in Berlin, Prussia,and emigrated to the American Colonies at the beginning of the Seven Year's War when he was only 8 years old. He settled in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and soon became a surgeon in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. He was wounded in service, and became a Lutheran minister after the war.

His grandson, George Washington Ahl, described John Peter's service record in his application for SAR membership, "[John Peter Ahl] entered the Revolutionary Army as Surgeon's Mate in the Legion commanded by General Armand at the commencement of the war. On the 17th of March, 1777, he was dangerously wounded at White Plains, by a sabre cut on his head from one of Tarlton's Dragoons, while in the act of assisting the wounded. After he quit the Legion of General Armand he was duly commissioned by Congress as Surgeon in a regiment under the command of General Muhlenburg, with whom he served until the 6th day of November 1783 when he was regularly discharged. He was allowed a pension."

Sources

• Filby, P. William, ed. Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s-1900s. Farmington Hills, MI, USA: Gale Research, 2010; Port Uncertain; 1756; Page 199
• Toner, Joseph M. The Medical Men of the Revolution with a Brief History of the Medical Department of the Continental Army ; Containing the Names of Nearly Twelve Hundred Physicians ; an Address before the Alumni Association of Jefferson Medical College, March 11, 1876. Philadelphia: Collins, 1876. 105+. Print.
• Names of Persons Who Took the Oath of Allegiance to the State of Pennsylvania Between the Years 1777 and 1789; Index to Names, Page 127 [listed as 'Johan Peter Ahl']
• First Census of the United States, 1790 (NARA microfilm publication M637, 12 rolls). Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29. National Archives, Washington, D.C.; Year: 1790; Census Place: , Bucks, Pennsylvania; Roll: M637_8; Page: 217; Image: 654; Family History Library Film: 0568148 [listed as 'Peter Ahl']
• The Pension Roll of 1835, Vol. IV; Index to Volumes I, II, III, IV; Page 304
• Godfrey Memorial Library. American Genealogical-Biographical Index. Middletown, CT, USA;
  • History of Cumberland and Adams Cos, Pa. Chicago, 1886. (132, 588, 516p.):447; Reference: Vol 2, Page 189;
  • Maryland Revolutionary Records; pension claims, bounty land applications, marriages of soldiers. By Harry Wright Newman. Washington, DC. 1938. (155p.):p7
• House of Representatives. Digested Summary and Alphabetical List of Private Claims Which Have Been Presented to the House of Representatives. Vol. I. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1853; Congress: 20, Session: 1, Manner Brought: Petition,
  • Journal Page: 228
  • Journal Page: 137
• Gaston, Joseph,. Portland, Oregon, its history and builders : in connection with the antecedent explorations, discoveries, and movements of the pioneers that selected the site for the great city of the Pacific. Chicago: S.J. Clarke Pub. Co., 1911
• Ancestry.com. U.S., Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Original data: Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970. Louisville, Kentucky: National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution. Microfilm, 508 rolls.
  • Volume 26; SAR Membership Number 5180.
  • Volume 306; SAR Membership Number 61069.
• Gaston, Joseph. Portland, Oregon, Its History and Builders: In Connection with the Antecedent Explorations, Discoveries, and Movements of the Pioneers That Selected the Site for the Great City of the Pacific. Chicago: S.J. Clarke Pub., 1911. Print.