Abram Penn, also known as "Abraham Penn" (December 27, 1743 in

Caroline County, Virginia Caroline County is a county (United States), United States county located in the eastern part of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. The northern boundary of the county borders on the Rappahannock River, notably at the hist ...

– 1801 in

Patrick County, Virginia Patrick County is a county located on the central southern border of the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 17,608. Its county seat is Stuart. It is located within both the rolling hills and valleys of the Pi ...

) was a noted landowner and Revolutionary War officer from Virginia.

Family life

Poplar Grove home of Col Abram Penn Patrick County Virginia

He married Ruth Stovall (1743- 1800?), and they had seven sons. Their children were: 1. George Penn, married Miss Gordon and moved to New Orleans. 2. Lucinda Penn, married Samuel Staples. 3. Gabriel Penn, married Jinsy Clark, of Patrick Co., VA. 4. Horatio Penn, born in Patrick County, Virginia on November 14, 1775 and died on September 27, 1838. He married Nancy Parr and moved to Missouri. They are buried at the Penn Cemetery in Ralls County, Missouri (8 miles East of New London). 5. Polly Penn, married Charles Foster, of Patrick Co., VA. 6. George Greensville (or Green) Penn, married 1st Miss Leath, of Manchester, VA; 2nd Martha Reed of Bedford Co., VA. 7. Thomas Jefferson Penn, married 1st Frances Leath of Manchester, VA; 2nd Mary Christian Kennerly, of Amherst Co., VA. 8. Abram Penn, married Sally Critz and moved to Tennessee. 9. James Penn, married 1st Miss Leath, of Manchester, VA; 2nd Mary Shelton, d/o William & Pattie (Dillard) Shelton. 10. Luvenia Penn, died young. 11. Edmund Penn, married Pollie Ferris of Patrick Co., VA. and moved to Kentucky. 12. Phillip Penn, born in March 1792 and married Louise Briscoe of Bedford Co., VA. They made their home at "Poplar Grove" plantation in Patrick County, Virginia. The plantation is no longer standing, although the grave of Colonel Penn is still in the family cemetery on this site.

Lord Dunmore's War

Abram Penn served with General

Andrew Lewis (soldier) Andrew Lewis (October 9, 1720 – September 26, 1781) was an Irish-born American pioneer, surveyor, military officer and politician in Colonial Virginia and during the American Revolutionary War. A colonel of militia during the French and In ...

at the Battle of Point Pleasant in Lord

Dunmore's War Lord Dunmore's War—or Dunmore's War—was a 1774 conflict between the Colony of Virginia and the Shawnee and Mingo American Indian nations. The Governor of Virginia during the conflict was John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore—Lord Dunmore. H ...

, 1774. "Abram Penn served Virginia as Captain of the Militia in Dunmores Campaign against the

Shawnee The Shawnee are an Algonquian-speaking indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands. In the 17th century they lived in Pennsylvania, and in the 18th century they were in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, with some bands in Kentucky a ...

Indians. He commanded a fort at Culbertson's Bottom and a company in the Battle of Point Pleasant, in which the Indians were defeated October 10th 1774."

Political life

He lived as a landowner in

Pittsylvania County, Virginia Pittsylvania County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 60,501. Chatham is the county seat. Pittsylvania County is included in the Danville, VA Micropolitan Statistical A ...

(later formed into

Henry County, Virginia Henry County is a county located in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 50,948. The county seat is usually identified as Martinsville; however, the administration building (where county offices are located an ...

, where he served on the

Committees of safety (American Revolution) In the American Revolution, committees of correspondence, committees of inspection (also known as committees of observation), and committees of safety were different local committees of Patriots that became a shadow government; they took control ...

in both counties and as delegate to the

Virginia House of Burgesses The House of Burgesses was the elected representative element of the Virginia General Assembly, the legislative body of the Colony of Virginia. With the creation of the House of Burgesses in 1642, the General Assembly, which had been established ...

from Henry County, along with

Robert Hairston Robert Hairston (1717August 3, 1791) was an 18th-century gentleman planter, politician, and military officer in the Virginia Colony. He was an elected representative in both the House of Burgesses and the Virginia House of Delegates. Family li ...

. Commissioned by the Governor, he administered State and Federal oaths to the officers of Patrick County at its first court, June 1791. In the early years of the county, Abram Penn and seven of his sons served as "Gentlemen Justices."

Revolutionary War soldier

He formed a militia company in the county and was made Captain in 1779. During the Revolutionary War, Penn advanced to the rank of Colonel and in the winter of 1780-1781, organized the only body of Revolutionary troops from Henry and adjoining counties. He led his regiment to join General

Nathanael Greene Nathanael Greene (June 19, 1786, sometimes misspelled Nathaniel) was a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. He emerged from the war with a reputation as General George Washington's most talented and dependab ...

in North Carolina, March 1781, but arrived a day late and met the retreating forces heading back home. Later he and his troops joined General Greene in defense of the Carolinas, fought in the

Battle of Eutaw Springs The Battle of Eutaw Springs was a battle of the American Revolutionary War, and was the last major engagement of the war in the Carolinas. Both sides claimed victory. Background In early 1781, Major General Nathanael Greene, commander of the ...

, and continued in service through the surrender of Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown. His service in the American Revolution is summed up by a local historian: "He was a man of resolute purpose, magnetic, with a vigorous intellect and a commanding presence. When one considers how he gathered up men from this section drilled them into soldiers, and fought them like veterans against the British, he is in a class by himself, and should be forever honored as the highest type of patriot in the wilds of the forest primeval. He died in 1801, and was buried at Poplar Grove in Patrick. To his descendants, he left his sword brought back from Yorktown, and a name that will be cherished by his countrymen through the ages." The Daughters of the American Revolution have given him the Ancestor Number: A088474 in recognition of his service.

Legacy

There is a historical marker placed by the Virginia Department of Historical Resources at Patrick Springs, Virginia. It reads: "Col. Abram Penn, 1743-1801. 200 yards south is "Poplar Grove," Penn's old home and burial place. At age 21 he "won his spurs" leading a company under General Lewis at Point Pleasant. During 1780-81 he organized the first Revolutionary troops from Henry and adjoining counties, and led his regiment to aid General Greene in the Battle of Guilford Court House and the

. He helped organize Patrick County." The Patrick County chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution in

Stuart, Virginia Stuart is a town in Patrick County, Virginia, where it is the county seat. The population was 1,408 at the 2010 census. The town of Stuart was named after Confederate Gen. J.E.B. Stuart, of nearby Ararat, Virginia. History Incorporation (1753� ...

, is named in his honor. The unincorporated community of Penn's Store is named for Col. Penn and his descendants.The professor and novelist

Robert Penn Warren Robert Penn Warren (April 24, 1905 – September 15, 1989) was an American poet, novelist, and literary critic and was one of the founders of New Criticism. He was also a charter member of the Fellowship of Southern Writers. He founded the liter ...

is a descendant of Col. Abraham Penn. The Abram Penn Highway in Patrick County is also named for Col. Penn, who died in 1801.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Penn, Abram 1743 births 1801 deaths Virginia colonial people House of Burgesses members People of Virginia in the French and Indian War People of Virginia in the American Revolution American planters People from Caroline County, Virginia People from Patrick County, Virginia