Joshua Tanner

A Patriot of the American Revolution for RHODE ISLAND with the rank of Ensign. DAR Ancestor # A112725

Marriage to Thankful Tefft 12/24/1775 circa.

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Tanner-2359

Joshua Tanner (1757 - 1807)

Joshua Tanner

Born 27 Jul 1757 in South Kingstown, Kings County, Rhode Island

Son of Francis Tanner and Elizabeth (Sheldon) Tanner

Brother of Amey (Tanner) Peterson [half], Josias Tanner [half], Isaac Tanner [half], Dorcas Tanner [half], Susannah (Tanner) Brown [half] and William Tanner

Husband of Thankful (Tefft) Tanner — married 24 Dec 1775 in Hopkinton, Washington, Rhode Island

Father of Mary (Tanner) Baker, John Tanner, Thankful Tefft (Tanner) Barber, Susanna Tanner, Elizabeth (Tanner) Perkins, Esther Tanner, Pardon Tanner, Francis Tanner, Joshua Tanner and William Tefft Tanner

Died 12 Sep 1807 at age 50 in Washington County, New York, USA

Profile last modified 21 Dec 2021 | Created 27 Oct 2015

Biography

Joshua was born 27 July 1757 in South Kingstown, Kings County, Rhode Island.[1][2][3] His birth is not documented in the Vital Record of Rhode Island.

Joshua Tanner married Thankful Tefft on December 24, 1775,[4] probably at Hopkinton or Richmond, Rhode Island.

Joshua and Thankful appear to have resided at Hopkinton for more than 15 years. The births of seven children were recorded there.[5] The 1777 Rhode Island Military Census enumerated Joshua Tanner in Hopkinton, as a man age 16 to 50 able to bear arms.[6] The 1782 Rhode Island Census recorded Joshua Tanner as head of a five-member household in Hopkinton, consisting of one male and one female age 22 to 50 (Joshua and Thankful), and one male and two females under age 16 (children Mary, John, and Thankful). [7] The 1790 U.S. Census recorded him in Hopkinton with a household of one male over age 16, seven males under age 16, and one female.[8]

Some time after 1791 (when daughter Pardon was born at Hopkinton) and before the enumeration of the 1800 U.S. Census the family removed to New York State. Descendants of John Tanner suggests that the move was not long after 1791, and indicates that they moved first to "Hoosac" (Hoosick), New York, and later to Greenwich, in Washington County, New York.[9] The 1800 census found Joshua Tanner in Argyle, Washington County, New York, with a household of nine free white persons: One male and one female age 45 and above, one female age 16 to 25, two females age 10 to 15, and four males under age 10.[10] Joshua Tanner is named on tax assessment rolls for Argyle every year from 1799 to 1803. Several other Tanner family members and members of the Tefft family also were assessed tax in Argyle in these years.[11]

Joshua and Thankful Tanner had ten children.[1] The first seven births were recorded at Hopkinton, Rhode Island and are found in the Vital Record of Rhode Island.[5] Descendants of John Tanner also lists three more children born later, all in New York state.[1] The ten children are:

Mary ("Polly"), born 10 Mar 1776
John, born 15 August 1778
Thankful, born 20 December 1780
Susannah, born 2 May 1783
Elizabeth ("Betsy"), born 25 December 1785
Esther, 10 May 1788
Pardon, 23 May 1791
Francis, born May 10, 1793
Joshua, born November 18, 1795
William T., born September 11, 1799.
Revolutionary War

Joshua Tanner served in the Rhode Island Militia during the American Revolutionary War. In May 1783 he was recorded as an Ensign serving under Captain Ichabod Paddock and Lieutenant Caleb Church in the 4th Company, from Hopkinton, 1st Regiment, Washington County Brigade, Rhode Island Militia.[12] The Washington County Brigade was commanded by Brigadier General Joseph Stanton, Jr.[2] Earlier in the war, his name appeared on a list of the 2nd Company in Hopkinton.[13]

On 2 or 3 April 1778, Quam Tanner, a slave belonging to Joshua Tanner of Hopkinton, Rhode Island, enlisted in the Continental Army.[14][15] Quam Tanner was valued at £120.[14] By enlisting for the duration of the war, Quam Tanner was obtaining his freedom from enslavement, and Joshua Tanner could expect to be compensated in the amount of £120. This arrangement had been authorized by a law passed by the Rhode Island legislature in February 1778 in response to a shortage of recruits for the army. The law provided for creation of two battalions (which were to form the 1st Rhode Island Regiment) open to "every able-bodied Negro, Mulatto, or Indian Man Slave, in [the] State," provided for them to be paid for their service at the rate authorized for all soldiers, and provided for any enslaved person who enlisted to "be immediately discharged from the Service of his Master or Mistress; and be absolutely FREE, as though he had never been encumbered with any Kind of Servitude or Slavery."[16][17][18] A negro boy named Quom is mentioned in the will of Joshua's father Francis Turner, and Quam Tanner is assumed to be the black male under age 16 who the 1774 Rhode Island Census recorded in the Hopkinton household of Joshua's father "Frances" Tanner.[19] Quam's enlistment may have reduced Joshua's obligation to support the war effort, and the payment of £120 probably was substantial income for Joshua's young family.

Death and Probate

Joshua died on 12 September 1807 in Washington County, New York, USA.[1][20][21][2][22] He is said to be buried in William Hartshorn Farm Cemetery, North Greenwich, Washington County, New York.[20]

Joshua did not leave a will. The estate of Joshua Tanner, late of Greenwich, Washington County, New York, entered probate on October 10, 1807, when administration was granted to Thankful Tanner and John Tanner.[23]

Research Notes

A Joshua Tanner in Granville, Washington, New York in the early 1800's is a different man. He left a will indicating his wife's name is Polly. -- * Probate: "New York, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1659-1999"
Probate Records; Author: New York. Surrogate's Court (Washington County); Probate Place: Washington, New York
Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 8800 #6573306 (accessed 16 December 2021)
Joshua Tanner probate.
Another Joshua Tanner was living in Albany, New York in the early 1800's. -- * Probate: "New York, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1659-1999"
Wills, Letters Testamentary, Letters of Administration, Etc., 1787-1902; Author: Albany County (New York). Surrogate's Office; Probate Place: Albany, New York
Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 8800 #892853 (accessed 16 December 2021)
Joshua Tanner probate.
There were at least three Mary Tanners born between March 1775 and March 1776 in Hopkinton, Rhode Island. Parents: 1) Joshua and Thankful (10 Mar 1776), 2) Abel and Phebe (28 Mar 1775), 3) Nathan and Elizabeth (12 May 1775).
Sources

↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Tanner, Maurice. Descendants of John Tanner: Born August 15, 1778, at Hopkintown, R.I., Died April 15, 1850, at South Cottonwood, Salt Lake County, Utah, Tanner Family Association, 1923. Accessed on Ancestry.com: Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Image (accessed 16 December 2021)
↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "U.S., Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970"
Volume: 270
Ancestry Record 2204 #1163074 (accessed 16 December 2021)
Name: Ensign Joshua Tanner [Joshua Tanner]; Birth Date: 27 Jul 1757; Birth Place: Kingston, New Jersey; Death Date: 12 Sep 1807; Death Place: Reed's Corners, Washington, New York; SAR Membership: 53959; Role: Ancestor; Spouse: Thankful Tefft; Children: Thankful Tanner.
↑ Godfrey Memorial Library, comp. "American Genealogical-Biographical Index (AGBI)," database, Ancestry (Ancestry.com)
↑ General Society of Mayflower Descendants Membership Applications, 1620-1920. (Online database: AmericanAncestors.org, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2020). Multiple applications, including Application of Virginia McBride, approved February 1959, Application of Lorena Conlee Greenwood, approved October 1959, and Application of Clifton Asel Barber, approved April 1964. Note: These documents do not indicate a place of marriage, only a date.
↑ 5.0 5.1 Arnold, James Newell. Vital Record of Rhode Island, 1636-1850 (Narragansett Historical Pub. Co. , Providence, R.I.). Vol. 5 (Washington County), 1894. Part VII: Hopkinton, page 51. Accessed on FamilySearch (accessed 16 December 2021).
↑ Rhode Island Roots. Warwick, RI: Rhode Island Genealogical Society, 1975–. (Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2018.) Vol. 8, page 59 (November 1982). Also at Ancestry Record 3571 #28865865
↑ The New England Historical and Genealogical Register. Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1847-. (Online database: AmericanAncestors.org, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2001-2018.) Vol. 128 (1974), page 303.
↑ United States Census, 1790. Enumeration sheet for Hopkinton, Washington, Rhode Island; Series: M637; Roll: 10; Page: 126; Image: 79; Family History Library Film: 0568150. Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 5058 #368127 (accessed 16 December 2021). Note: This record of household members is inconsistent with other information. Perhaps the count reported as males under age 16 was actually a count of all household members under 16.
↑ Tanner, Maurice. Descendants of John Tanner: Born August 15, 1778, at Hopkintown, R.I., Died April 15, 1850, at South Cottonwood, Salt Lake County, Utah, Tanner Family Association, 1923. Page 10.
↑ "1800 United States Federal Census," Enumeration sheet for Argyle, Washington, New York; Series: M32; Roll: 26; Page: 253; Image: 249; Family History Library Film: 193714. Database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GR8J-7TG?cc=1804228&wc... : 10 June 2015), New York > Washington > Argyle > image 12 of 18; citing NARA microfilm publication M32, (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
↑ Ancestry.com. New York, U.S., Tax Assessment Rolls of Real and Personal Estates, 1799-1804 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014. Original data: New York (State), Comptroller's Office. Tax Assessment Rolls of Real and Personal Estates, 1799–1804. Series B0950 (26 reels). Microfilm. New York State Archives, Albany, New York. 1799. Records for Argyle, Washington County. 1799: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6771/images/41761_..., 1800: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6771/images/41761_..., 1801: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6771/images/41761_... (listed as Taner or Tanor) 1802: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6771/images/41761_..., 1803: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6771/images/41761_...
↑ Smith, Joseph Jencks. Civil and Military List of Rhode Island (Preston and Rounds Co., Providence, R.I., 1900). Vol. 1 page 422.
↑ 2nd Company in Hopkinton, Regiment: Crarys Regiment, 1777-1779 (Folder 45) - Various Organizations (Folder 66). Ancestry.com. U.S., Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2007. Original data:Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M246, 138 rolls); War Department Collection of Revolutionary War Records, Record Group 93; National Archives, Washington. D.C.
↑ 14.0 14.1 "A List of Slaves Enlisted Into The Continental Army," The Narragansett Historical Register. Hamilton, Rhode Island: James N. Arnold, 1844-1927. (Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2021.) Vol. 1 (1882-3), page 313.
↑ "A List of Negro Slaves Inlisted into the Continental Battalions and to Whom They Belonged 1778," Rhode Island Roots. Warwick, RI: Rhode Island Genealogical Society, 1975–. (Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2018.) Vol. 6 (1980), page 56.
↑ McBurney, Christian M. "From Slaves to Soldiers: The 1st Rhode Island Regiment in the American Revolution" (book review). Journal of the American Revolution, 15 March 2017.
↑ From Slaves to Soldiers, Museum of the American Revolution (Philadelphia, PA, posted online 13 Feb 2019.
↑ Act creating the 1st Rhode Island Regiment, also known as the “Black Regiment,” 1778, (Primary source from the Rhode Island State Archives, C#0210 – Acts & Resolves of the General Assembly, Vol. 17 #14), Office of the Rhode Island Secretary of State, accessed 19 Dec 2021.
↑ "Rhode Island Census: Hopkinton," Rhode Island Roots. Warwick, RI: Rhode Island Genealogical Society, 1975–. (Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2018.) Vol. 30 (2004), page 28.
↑ 20.0 20.1 Find a Grave, database and images (Find A Grave: Memorial #48317335 : accessed 15 December 2021), memorial page for Joshua Tanner (27 Jul 1757–12 Sep 1807), citing William Hartshorn Farm Cemetery, North Greenwich, Washington County, New York, USA ; Maintained by peggy thornton (contributor 47079562). Note: No gravestone photo, no other indication of the data sources.
↑ Heritage Consulting. "Millennium File," database, Ancestry (Ancestry.com).
↑ West, Edmund, comp. "Family Data Collection - Deaths," online publication, Ancestry (Ancestry.com)
↑ Letters of Administration of Estates, Vol. 1, 1787-1825, page 145. Surrogate's Court, Washington County, New York. Accessed on Ancestry.com in database U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1659-1999. Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 8800 #1686131 (accessed 16 December 2021)
See also:
Tanner, Maurice. Descendants of John Tanner: Born August 15, 1778, at Hopkintown, R.I., Died April 15, 1850, at South Cottonwood, Salt Lake County, Utah, Tanner Family Association, 1923.
"Ancestry Family Trees," Online publication, Ancestry (Ancestry.com). Original data: Family Tree files submitted by Ancestry members. Ancestry Family Tree 82335052
Acknowledgements

Tanner-2359 was created by Allison Fredrickson through the import of Fredricksons-Ancestry-Export.ged on Oct 19, 2015.