Biography

John Lyon was born on August 26, 1753 in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey, United States of America. He was a American Revolution Veteran.

John married Rachel Reeves on March 17, 1775. Together they had the following children:

• Mary Lyon;
• Rachel Lyon;
• Hannah Lyon.

John married Martha Babbitt on July 9, 1781 in Morristown, Morris Co., NJ. Together they had the following children:

• George Lyon;
• Aaron Lyon;
• Sally Lyon;
• John Lyon, Jr;
• Lewis Lyon;
• Harvey Lyon;
• Elizabeth Lyon.

John married Mary Smith in 1815 in Ogdensburg, St Lawrence, New York, United States. Together they had the following children:

• Stephen Smith Lyon.

He died on February 3, 1834 in Oswegatchie, St. Lawrence County, New York, United States and was buried after February 3, 1834 in Ogdensburg Cemetery, Ogdensburg, St. Lawrence County, New York, USA.

OGDENSBURG JOURNAL

Tuesday, February 19, 1963 DAR Is Closely Linked With Early History OfSt. Lawrence County The Swe-kat-si Chapter of the Daughters of American Revolution here in Ogdensburg was the erecting of a granite monument marking the site of Font La Presentation which had been erected in 1749 by Abbe Francois Picquet for the protection of his missions among the Indians of the Five Nations. This thirty ton obelisk is of' Barre, VT marble cut in twenty pieces, smooth polished squares alternating with rock faced squares, and was dedicated with ceremony in 1899.The Fort was occupied in 1760 by the British, and evacuated by them on June 1, 1796 under the provisions of the Jay Treaty. It was the first building in the present city of Ogdensburg. This monument on Commerce Street below the New York Central railroad tracks is visited by groups interested in the history of our county.Many people are familiar with the story of John Lyon and Martha (Babbitt) Lyon and their seven children (plus two by his former marriage) who made the six-week Durham boat trip up the Mohawk River from Schenectady and from there to Lake Ontario and down the St. Lawrence to Ogdensburg, Mrs. Lyon died after eight weeks here leaving some young children.Among these children several left large families many of whom became ancestors of present-day Ogdensburg families.Their daughter Elizabeth who was three at the time of the trek to Ogdensburg has been honored by the Swe-kat-si Chapter as a "true' daughter." She lived in Ogdensburg for 85 years on the corner of Caroline and Riverside Avenue, where the present Harry Wheaton, Sr., home stands.When John and Martha's youngest son Harvey (who was only a few weeks old in 1796) married, his children lived in Ogdensburg, one becoming a dentist and one a minister. Another married Richard Perry whose father was said to have arrived with Gen. Lafayette and they became parents of eleven children, living on Rt. 37 near the Lee Rd. Most of these have stayed in St. Lawrence County; and their descendants are many and the women over 18 years of age eligible to join the DAR. Mrs. Walter (Pearle) Wright, Mrs. Max (Helen) Constable, Mrs. Leo (Vivian) Lewis are among the fourth generation of this family living here. Others who have stayed in the area descended from this first white settler family are Lowery, Daniels, Perry, Brooks, Goodwin, Beggs, Wheater, and Hadlock descendants of John Lyon.Some who have stayed in Ogdensburg are Mrs. George Wright, the Van Rennen,Van Walters and Barber families who trace their lines back also to John Lyon, the Revolutionary patriot.

Ogdensburg Advance News 1940

Dedication of Plaque

Grave of John Lyon Will Be Marked At Rite

Dedication of a bronze plaque at the grave of John Lyon, Revolutionary soldier, will feature a ceremony to be conducted at Ogdensburg Cemetery tomorrow morning by Swe-Kat-si chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution. Presiding over the event, which will be held separately from the regular Memorial Day exercises to be conducted there, will be Mrs. E. N. O’Brien, chapter regent. Mrs. Harriet McGillis, chaplain, will officiate at the ritual, and Mrs. W. B. Cardinal, historian; will present a sketch of the life of John Lyon, who was the great-great-grandfather of Charles P. Lyon of this city and also an ancestor of Mrs. James Lum.

DAR members will also unveil a marker at the grave of Mrs. C. O. R. Bell, former prominent and active Swe-kat-si worker. Following is the sketch to be read by Mrs. Cardinal:

“John Lyon was born in Newark, New Jersey, Aug. 26, 1753, a descendant of Henry Lyon, Scotsman and supporter of Cromwell, who fled to the colonies at the time of the Restoration of the Stuart Dynasty.

“John Lyon served under Colonel Jacob Ford during the years 1776-1778 and 20 years later was a member of the group encouraged by Nathan Ford to leave their New Jersey homes and make new ones in the tract of land acquired by Samuel Ogden in the North Country. The story of their 30 days journey by flat boat from Schenectady to Oswegatchie, as Ogdensburg was then known, has been recorded in all its interesting detail in Hough’s History of St. Lawrence County.

“John Lyon died in 1834 having witnessed the transition of this northern outpost in the wilderness to an established community. Of his eight children, the only descendant now living in Ogdensburg bearing the family name is Charles P. Lyon, a great-great- grandson.

“Mrs. James E. Lum is a great-granddaughter of John Lyon and the family of Charlotte Lyon, wife of the late Robert Houston, is descended from this pioneer.”

Excerpts from "History of St. Lawrence County" by Samuel W. Durant.

Harvey Lyon was the son of John Lyon (b Aug 26,1753) and Martha Babbitt (b Aug 16, 1759).

John Lyon was first married to Miss Rachel Reeves, March 26, 1775, by whom he had three children: Hannah, Mary and Rachel. Upon the death of his wife (1780) he married Miss Martha Babbit, July 9, 1781, by whom he had seven children: Lewis, Aaron, Sarah, John, Stephen, Harvey and Elizabeth.

John Lyon and his family of wife and eight children came from New Jersey and settled in the locality of Ogdensburg in 1796, at first taking quarters in an old French garrison, the present site being on the south side of the Oswegatchie River. They came with Judge Nathan Ford, who was sent as land agent for Mr. Ogden, owner of the land where the city now is. Judge Ford also moved into one of the French garrisons, and some years after erected for a residence the house now used as a nunnery. At the time the Lyons family came to this locality no railroads or steamboats were known. They were six weeks on their journey, traveling mostly by means of rowboats. Upon reaching the settlement then known by the Indian name of Oswegatchie, they found three Indian chiefs (white men) who claimed to hold the land, together with many bands of native Indians, and, with these exceptions, there were no white people. Through the shrewdness and careful management of Judge Ford, the title to land claimed by the chiefs was soon abandoned, and the Ogden title firmly established. The Lyons family lived here, enduring all the privations and hardships coincident not only with pioneer life, but a life among the Indians, for some years before any more white settlers came; and, as an example of the want of modern convenience, it may be stated that the nearest grist-mill was seventy miles down the river St. Lawrence, where they went in canoes with their corn to be ground, or at times taking the alternative to pound it in a hollow stump. About eight weeks after the arrival of the family the wife and mother died - in 1796 -at the age of thirty-seven, leaving a large family of children in a new home in the wilderness to mourn her loss, - her dying words being that she committed the care of her children to God. John Lyon, in the year 1815, married his third wife, Miss Mary Smith, a native of Connecticut, who was born in 1777, and died some fifteen years after her husband. He lived on the spot where he first settled, cleared off the forest, made the land tillable, followed the occupation of farmer, and died Feb 3, 1834.

Record URL: http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?h=161&db=Genealogy-glh14...

letter from JoAnne about John Lyon Posted 08 Jan 2021 by Keri Jackson

Hey there, Thought you would like this.

Excerpts from "History of St. Lawrence County" by Samuel W. Durant.

Harvey Lyon was the son of John Lyon (b Aug 26,1753) and Martha Babbitt (b Aug 16, 1759).

John Lyon was first married to Miss Rachel Reeves, March 26, 1775, by whom he had three children: Hannah, Mary and Rachel. Upon the death of his wife (1780) he married Miss Martha Babbit, July 9, 1781, by whom he had seven children: Lewis, Aaron, Sarah, John, Stephen, Harvey and Elizabeth.

John Lyon and his family of wife and eight children came from New Jersey and settled in the locality of Ogdensburg in 1796, at first taking quarters in an old French garrison, the present site being on the south side of the Oswegatchie River. They came with Judge Nathan Ford, who was sent as land agent for Mr. Ogden, owner of the land where the city now is. Judge Ford also moved into one of the French garrisons, and some years after erected for a residence the house now used as a nunnery. At the time the Lyons family came to this locality no railroads or steamboats were known. They were six weeks on their journey, traveling mostly by means of rowboats. Upon reaching the settlement then known by the Indian name of Oswegatchie, they found three Indian chiefs (white men) who claimed to hold the land, together with many bands of native Indians, and, with these exceptions, there were no white people. Through the shrewdness and careful management of Judge Ford, the title to land claimed by the chiefs was soon abandoned, and the Ogden title firmly established. The Lyons family lived here, enduring all the privations and hardships coincident not only with pioneer life, but a life among the Indians, for some years before any more white settlers came; and, as an example of the want of modern convenience, it may be stated that the nearest grist-mill was seventy miles down the river St. Lawrence, where they went in canoes with their corn to be ground, or at times taking the alternative to pound it in a hollow stump. About eight weeks after the arrival of the family the wife and mother died - in 1796 -at the age of thirty-seven, leaving a large family of children in a new home in the wilderness to mourn her loss, - her dying words being that she committed the care of her children to God. John Lyon, in the year 1815, married his third wife, Miss Mary Smith, a native of Connecticut, who was born in 1777, and died some fifteen years after her husband. He lived on the spot where he first settled, cleared off the forest, made the land tillable, followed the occupation of farmer, and died Feb 3, 1834.

Record URL: http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?h=161&db=Genealogy-glh14...

Peace, Jo Anne

Sources

• Ancestry Family Trees Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com. Original data: Family Tree files submitted by Ancestry members. Ancestry Family Tree http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=155199807&pi...
• Ancestry Family Trees Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com. Original data: Family Tree files submitted by Ancestry members. Ancestry Family Tree http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=155199807&pi...

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• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Jan 9 2021, 8:44:57 UTC
  • Reference: Ancestry Genealogy - SmartCopy: Jan 9 2021, 9:13:02 UTC