Pensioner: Alexander Sheppard, 16th Light Dragoons

Our previous installment dealt with a soldier of the 4th Regiment who stole a horse and was chased by a trooper of the 16th Light Dragoons, Alexander Sheppard. We are fortunate to have details on Sheppard's long career as a horse soldier.

Sheppard was born in about 1736 in Manchester, England, and pursued the trade of a calendar man. This was one of many skills in the highly-developed British textile industry, involving using a hot press to make a smooth finish on cloth. At the age of 26, however, he changed careers and joined the army; September 1776 found him disembarking in America with the 16th (Queen's) Light Dragoons. His experience as a sentry on the night after the Battle of Germantown is described in the previous installment; note that he was 42 years old when he successfully chased down a British light infantryman. When the British army evacuated Philadelphia in June 1778, Sheppard and his regiment returned to New York.

The following year, the 16th Light Dragoons were ordered back to Great Britain. In typical fashion, all of the men who were still fit for foreign service were drafted into other regiments serving in America. 94 men were drafted into the only other British regular cavalry regiment in America, the 17th Light Dragoons; Alexander Sheppard was among them. Soon after, he was in the detachment of the regiment sent on the expedition to Charleston, South Carolina.

We don't know the circumstances, but some time in 1780 Sheppard was injured in such a way as to lose the use of his right hand. On the muster rolls prepared on 4 February 1781, he is listed as having been "Invalided gone to England." Once there, his infirmity along with his long service earned him an out-pension, granted on 10 April 1781 at the age of 45 after 19 years as a soldier.

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Died in America: John Wilkins, 4th Regiment of Foot

John Wilkins was a seasoned soldier in the 4th (King's Own) Regiment of Foot. He was a private soldier in the regiment when it arrived in Boston in 1774, and at the end of 1776 was among those selected for the regiment's light infantry company. This company was formed of experienced troops who were limber, quick and well suited for rapid movement and open-order skirmishing. The 4th's light company was among those that fought on the opening day of hostilities on 19 April 1775, and then suffered terribly in the abortive flanking movement at Bunker Hill the following June. Brought up to strength by transferring experienced soldiers from the regiment's eight battalion companies, the lights became part of the 1st Battalion of Light Infantry, a corps that was in the forefront of the spectacularly successful campaign around New York and into New Jersey in the fall of 1776. Although repeatedly victorious, the companies in the battalion had suffered numerous casualties in their roll at the vanguard of the army. They were replenished again at the end of 1776, with John Wilkins among the replacements.

The battalion remained active throughout 1777, first during campaigning in New Jersey and then during the aggressive campaign to Philadelphia in August and September. The battalion almost met with disaster when their encampment was suprised by an overwhelming American force at Germantown outside of Philadelphia on 4 October 1777. The American attack fell into confusion and the arrival of substantial British reinforcements turned the tide, prevent a rout of the light infantry. The 4th's light company suffered three men killed and several wounded in the fight. It was on the night after this famous action that John Wilkins was shot and killed, but the circumstances were quite different than we might expect from finding him listed as "died" on the regiment's muster rolls.

At midnight on the night of 4-5 October, trooper Alexander Sheppard of the 16th (Queen's) Light Dragoons was posted sentry over the troops horses that were tied on a picket line in Germantown. About a half hour later one of the horses got loose, and Sheppard quickly went to secure it. As he was doing so, someone came towards him in the darkness and said, "You bougre, are you sentry over those horses?"

Sheppard replied that he was. The stranger then said, "If I can get to you, I'll give you a good licking."

Sheppard told the man to go about his business, as he had nothing to say to him. Sheppard then secured the horse, took it to the line and tied it up. As he was doing so, the man who'd accosted him untied the leftmost horse in the line and made off with it. After Sheppard tied up the loose horse he went along the line to see that the rest were secure. When he found that the end horse was missing, he saw the stranger running off with it and called to him. The stranger responded, "Kiss my arse, you bougre," and continued leading the horse away.

Sheppard guessed that the man was a rebel prisoner who had gotten loose and wanted the horse to speed his escape. He quickly woke the corporal of the guard, Roger Thorne; Thorne suggested that the thief was "the foolish man called Billy the Ram," apparently referring to a colorful local character who bore this common sobriquet. Sheppard said that Billy the Ram would not have used such language, and told Thorne to get a carbine or pistol and follow him after the fleeing stranger.

Sheppard then gave chase, calling for the horse thief to stop. The thief continued to respond with abusive language. They ran along the road out of town and up a hill, then turned into an orchard were Sheppard managed to catch the thief and began to struggle with him. As they struggled, Corporal Thorne arrived, having himself grabbed one of his pistols and given chase. Thorne had a particular interest in recovering the horse; some time before, when he was a Lance Corporal (a private soldier doing a corporal's duty) he had been tried by a regimental court martial because a horse had gotten loose from some sentries that he commanded. This time he was determined not to be humiliated. Rather than join the struggle between Sheppard and the thief, he told Sheppard to back off and then shot the thief in the chest from about six feet away.

The thief staggered backwards and began saying "I ask you pardon," then fell. Having more interest in recovering a lost horse than in assisting an escaped rebel prisoner turned horse thief, Thorne and Sheppard left him there. Thorne went to report the incident to the serjeant-major of the regiment, but the serjeant-major had not stayed in his usual lodgings that night and Thorne could not find him. Instead Thorne gave his report first thing in the morning. In the mean time, Sheppard had gone back to the orchard during the night and seen that the thief had died.

The dead man was not an escaped prisoner, nor was it Billy the Ram. It was John Wilkins, private soldier in the light infantry company of the 4th Regiment of Foot. On Monday, 6 October, Corporal Thorne was tried by a general court martial for the murder of a fellow soldier.

At the trial, Alexander Sheppard gave his account of the events. The court asked if he could see Wilkins' uniform, but Sheppard testified that it was too dark. The serjeant-major explained that both Sheppard and Thorne had been sober when paraded for guard on the evening of 4 October, and also that the following morning several people told him that Thorne had been trying to find him the night before. He also noted that Thorne was not prone to quarrels or disputes, and so he was particularly surprised to hear that he had been involved in the shooting. An officer of the regiment testified that Thorne had been in the regiment for four years and was "a sober quiet man, and of an unexceptionable character"; he noted that the Major of the regiment would also have testified to Thorne's good character but was unable to attend the trial.

There was no indication in the trial of what might have caused John Wilkins' unusual behavior. The court judged that Corporal Roger Thorne had acted in accordance with his duty, and acquitted him.

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Escapee and Pensioner: Stewart Mason, 40th Regiment

When the 40th Regiment of Foot embarked at Cork, Ireland in May 1775, included in its ranks was a young corporal named Stewart Mason. Born in the little parish of North Leith outside of Edinburgh, he had joined the army in 1768 at just 15 years of age. Such a young enlistment was not common but certainly not unprecedented. His quick rise to a non-commissioned rank shows that he was a good soldier, probably able to read and write, and clearly prepared for a career in the army.

Mason ran into some misfortune in America. In the closing stages of the battle of Princeton on 3 January 1777, Mason was among 77 men of the 40th taken prisoner. He may have been among those who surrendered at Nassau Hall, the central building of what would become Princeton University. Because he spent the next year in captivity he missed the October 1777 battle of Germantown where part of the 40th again found itself holed up in a building, this time with quite different results.

The Princeton prisoners were set to confinement in Connecticut. Typical of British prisoners of war throughout the American Revolution, they escaped in considerable numbers; several were advertised in newspapers throughout 1777. Stewart Mason did not make his break until April 1778, as evidenced by an ad placed by an American commissary of prisoners:

Made his escape from Windsor, one Stuart Mason a British prisoner, he is about 23 years of age small of Stature, fair complexion, a large scar under his chin. Whoever will bring said fellow to the goal in Hartford shall have a handsome reward and necessary charges paid by Ezek. Williams Com. Prisoners.

[Connecticut Courant, 14 April 1778]

Mason made a clean getaway, probably into New York. On the 40th Regiment's muster rolls for the first half of 1778 he no longer appears as "prisoner with the rebels" and is once again a corporal.

The 40th Regiment was one of several sent to the West Indies at the end of 1778. The next rolls for the 40th were prepared on the island of Antigua in 1780. By this time Mason had become a serjeant, and he remained in this capacity when the regiment returned to New York for the final years of the war in 1781. He served in the regiment until 1795 when he was discharged and received a pension for 27 years of service. A career military man, however, he went back into the army on the staff of a barracks in Great Britain. He was finally discharged from that post and returned to the pension rolls in 1805.

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Luke Murphy, William Gibbs, and Servants in the 38th Regiment

Each officer in a regiment was allowed to retain a soldier as his personal servant. A senior officer might retain a second soldier to care for his horse in a role called a bat-man (from the French term bat, a pack saddle). The servant performed tasks such as maintaining his officer’s clothing, shaving him and helping him dress, packing and unpacking baggage, setting up a tent while on campaign, caring for his horse (if the officer could not retain a bat-man), running all manner of errands from delivering messages to purchasing necessities, and any other chores required by a busy officer and gentleman. In return, the soldier typically received a shilling per week from the officer, a sum that not only increased his overall pay by about 35% but which was not subject to the withholdings imposed on his base pay. Bennett Cuthbertson, author of one of the most popular military texts of the era, A System for the Compleat Interior Management and Œconomy of a Battalion of Infantry, wrote several paragraphs on servants and bat-men:

It being an indulgence granted to the Infantry, for the officers to have Servants and Bat-men, from the Company they belong to, care should be taken, that they are always chose from the Centre-rank, as being employed for any time in that capacity, often hurts them as Soldiers, from the unavoidable indulgence by that means shewn them; it therefore must be an injury to the appearance of a Battalion, to hazard such a chance with Men, whose size and figure are an ornament to it.

The Wages given to Servants and Bat-men, should be the same, from the Colonel to the Subaltern, and never ought to exceed one shilling -per- Week, by which means, the discontent and insolence, that are often experienced in those, who perhaps may have smaller wages than others, might be in a great measure be restrained, and the Ensign be served with as great attention as the Field-officer.

It ought always to be a fixed rule, that when a Servant or Bat-man quits the Service of an Officer, for misbehaviour, no other Officer in the Regiment should ever take him; and least such and event, might in the course of years, be subject to oblivion, by changes and removals in a Corps, it should be particularly marked down, in a registry to be kept for that purpose, in the Regimental Book of casualties, by which method, the conduct of those Men must in general be more satisfactory, and a greater Number of good Servants be thereby found, than are usually so in most Regiments.

It is highly improper to take a Recruit for a Servant or Bat-man, until he has been long enough in the Regiment, to encourage an Officer to place so high a confidence in him; at ant rate, it should never be allowed, until he is perfectly informed of every part of his Duty as a Soldier, otherwise he will probably never be thoroughly confirmed in it.

It being impossible for Soldiers, who are Servants or Bat-men, to keep their Regimentals clean and in proper order, if obliged to do the work required from them, in that dress; and as their being dirtier in the Ranks, than other Soldiers can never be admitted, it should be expected, that every Officer provided some kind of frock for his Servant, to prevent so great an inconvenience.

That the Duty may be as little severe as possible, upon the other Soldiers, by having both Servants and Bat-men taken from the Companies, the former should always mount guard, and go on Commands, whenever their Masters do; but as to the others, it will be impossible to spare them, from the care of the Horses they attend, in which they will find sufficient employment, if they perform it as they ought.

Unless on some very particular occasions, the Officers Servants should never be excused from Exercise, or weekly reviews of Arms and neccessaries, that they may not entirely forget their Duty in the ranks, and to remind them of their being Soldiers; the remembrance of which will be found to contribute very much to their good behaviour as Servants, and prevent them from contracting many saucy habits, which might otherwise be the case.

Notice the explicit direction to provide “some kind of frock” so that the regimentals would not be worn out. References to British soldier-servants wearing non-regimental garb are scattered throughout the literature, including two cases pertaining to the 38th Regiment in Boston which mention similar clothing worn by two different servants.

At around midnight on the night of 1st and 2nd August 1774, a sentry belonging to the 43rd Regiment challenged a man who approached his post between the encampments of the 38th and 43rd regiments. The man, dressed in a light brown frock coat and cut round hat, answered that he was a friend but was unable to give the countersign. The sentry called the serjeant of the guard and they detained the man, who protested that he was on his way to his master, Captain Fox of the 38th, in town. The guards took their prisoner to the quarter guard of the 38th Regiment, where a serjeant identified him as Luke Murphy, a private soldier in Captain Norman’s company. The quarter guard serjeant noted Murphy’s non-uniform coat and hat, but discerned that he was wearing regimental breeches and also that he was quite drunk. Murphy was then taken to the officer of the guard, Lt. Sutherland of the 38th. Sutherland questioned Murphy about his intentions, and Murphy asserted that his actions were due solely to the effects of liquor and not any intention to desert. Sutherland nonetheless confined Murphy to the guard tent with a sentry posted over him.

When tried by a general court a few days later, Murphy offered a detailed and lucid response that strongly suggests a well-educated and reasonable man, in spite of prior drunkenness. Murphy testified that after being “dismissed from the Drill” he and a comrade went to visit a friend in the 5th Regiment where they “drank pretty freely.” When they returned to their own tent Murphy’s tent mate “ask'd me for Liquor for helping me to clean my Arms.” Murphy had no liquor and knew he would not be allowed out of camp to get some, but asked others who had more freedom of movement – first an officer’s servant, then a soldier’s wife, both of whom refused. He even asked the woman’s husband to implore her to go, but to no avail. Determined to have his liquor, Murphy made a plan. Murphy was a tailor, and Lt. Dutton’s servant had left him a brown coat to be mended. Murphy donned the coat, a hat that “was my own which I used to wear on board Ship,” and put his “Canteen Bottle” in the coat pocket. He then tried to pass the sentry.

Deponents in the trial noted interesting details. Murphy was not, nor had ever been a servant. He was wearing all of his regimentals except for the coat and hat. Although he characterized himself as a recruit, a serjeant testified that it was unusual for Murphy to wear “colour’d clothing” since he had received his regimentals – confirming that recruits did wear civilian clothing until they received regimental uniforms. A fellow soldier who “frequently assisted the Prisoner in Cleaning his Arms and Accoutrements” told the court that when the regiment was in Ireland prior to coming to America, Murphy had declared that he would never “follow the Example of his Countrymen” by deserting and that he fully understood his enlistment obligations and was determined to fulfill them. He also clearly understood that servants had more freedom of movement than other soldiers, and knew how to dress like a servant.

Cases like this left the court with a dilemma: there was no question that Murphy was drunk, disorderly and trying to leave camp without permission and in disguise. But he was on trial for desertion, which clearly was not his intention. They acquitted the young soldier of desertion but nonetheless sentenced him to receive 100 lashes for his conduct. Whether this punishment was carried out or not is unknown, but the sentencing seems to have had an effect on Murphy. He deserted on 4 January 1775, never to return.

After Murphy’s trial, but before his desertion, a advertisement appeared in the Boston Post Boy of 5 December 1774 for another deserter from the 38th Regiment:

Five Guineas Reward.

Run away from my Service, and robbed me of two Pieces of fine Linen, besides sundry Articles of wearing Apparel, Will Gibbs, about 5 Feet 7 Inches high, and of a fair Complexion; had on when he went away a brown Coat, turned up with blue, blue Waistcoat and Breeches, and a round Hat. Whoever secures said Runaway, shall receive the above Reward from me, Charles Norman, Capt. 38th Regt.

Though the ad does not make it obvious that Gibbs was a soldier, he appears on the muster rolls of the 38th as a private soldier who deserted on 24 November 1774. He was with the regiment at least from the time of their embarkation in Ireland for America. The wording of the ad suggests that he was a young man kept by an officer until he was old enough to serve in the ranks, but this is only speculation. The blue breeches and waistcoat could be holdovers from civilian dress or livery provided by the officer. There is no evidence that Gibbs ever returned to the 38th Regiment.

The fact that William Gibbs was dressed in a similar manner to Luke Murphy’s servant disguise suggests that the look was a common one. If every officer in a regiment of foot had one servant, and a few also had a bat-man, then three or four men in each company or nearly 10% of the regiment’s typical strength might be employed in this role at any given time. These soldiers in non-regimental clothing were surely a familiar sight.

Several years later, a new officer in the 38th Regiment recorded an amusing anecdote about his servant. Lieutenant George Augustus Wyvill arrived in America too late to participate in any major hostilities. He had only recently joined the regiment in New York when they went on service on the lines at King's Bridge north of the city at the beginning of 1782. Wyvill had a hut built for himself, but then spent the month of March doing guard duty on one of the prison ships in New York harbor. He wrote the following passage about his return from this duty:

On my return, as a great treat, I purchased a fine round of beef, which cost me three pounds. In the evening, returning to my hut, sooner, than expected, I surprised my Servant busily employed eating away, on my expensive beef; with all the luxuries of Mustard &c &c which I had provided for my own supper. I took the liberty, he being quite drunk, of tying him to a Gun. The fellow made me laugh, for, at intervals, he kept exclaiming, "‘Tis too bad, too bad, what, tyed to the Breech, when I never feared to face the Muzzle."

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Died in America: John Corrigan, 40th Regiment of Foot

Carrigan of Ct Duffs Compy was stabb’d by Northington – being got upon his Wife – died in ½ hour. NB Northington after stabbing Carrigan stabb’d his wife & then stabb’d himself & attempted to throw himself again on his bayonet (he wounded himself & wife slightly).

This 15 July 1776 entry in the diary of Captain William Bamford of the 40th Regiment of Foot sounds like the tragic result of a love triangle. The actual story, revealed in testimony at the murder trial that resulted, is quite different.

John Corrigan was a private soldier in the 40th when that regiment embarked in Ireland in May 1775. We have no remarkable information about his service with the regiment while in Boston in 1775 and 1776. The British army evacuated Boston in March and spent the next three months Halifax, Nova Scotia where it regrouped and began preparations for a campaign. During the time in Halifax a party of recruits joined the 40th including William Norrington.

Norrington’s had married a woman named Sarah Flaherty in the village of Killala in County Mayo, Ireland, and she accompanied her soldier husband to America. With the rest of Captain James Duff’s company they sailed from Halifax to New York and landed on Staten Island early in July.

On the night of 15 July 1776, while her husband was on duty as a sentry, Sarah Norrington got very drunk and fell asleep near the back door of a house in which an Lieutenant John Moore of the regiment was quartered. Lt. Moore, concerned for her safety, went to Norrington and suggested that he take her away from the quarters as soon as he came off duty. Since, however, Norrington was due to be relieved in only 15 minutes or so, the Lt. Moore chose to leave him on duty and returned to his quarters. The officer’s concern for the well being of this soldier and his wife is interesting but unfortunately did not prevent the ensuing events.

In the mean time, John Corrigan and some other soldiers were in the barn smoking pipes when they ran out of tobacco. Corrigan and Michael Connolly decided to go to the house for more. Finding that the front door had just been closed for the night when Lt. Moore had returned. Going around to the back of the house, they noticed Sarah Norrington asleep by an outdoor oven on the gable end of the house, sheltered by some boards but in plain view. Corrington recognized her as Norrington’s wife and told Connolly that he was going to go and lay with her.

Connolly chose to look away, but within a minute or two William Norrington came in search of his wife. Seeing Corrigan forcing himself upon her (but not fully understanding the situation) he shouted, “Sally Sally, is that the way you serve me?” He drew his bayonet and stabbed Corrigan in the back below the left shoulder, but the wounded man was able to get up and flee, pulling up his trousers as he ran. Sarah Norrington, still very much in a drunken stupor, rolled onto her side and arranged her petticoats; her husband stabbed her in the side with the bayonet, then attempted to thrust the bayonet into his own stomach. Although he managed to give himself a small wound, his cartridge box apparently deflected the blow and he dropped the bayonet.

At this time Michael Connolly came up and found Norrington in a state of great agitation. Norrington said that he himself was wounded, so Connolly took off Norrington’s cartridge box, which apparently was of the style worn on a belt around the waist which also held a bayonet scabbard. Connolly noticed the bayonet was missing, found it on the ground, and returned it to the scabbard. Norrington asked where the bayonet was, and when Connolly said it was in the scabbard. Norrington seized it, pulled his shirt open, and was about to fall on the bayonet when Connolly prevented him from doing so, pushing the bayonet away.

Corrigan, in the mean time, had run to a few fellow soldiers who also happened to have witnessed the event and walked with them for a few yards before mentioning that he was wounded. The soldiers took him to the house and knocked on the front door. Lt. Moore admitted them, and called for a doctor as soon as it was clear to him that Corrigan was wounded. The surgeon’s mate of the 40th Regiment arrived within a few minutes, but the wound was fatal and John Corrigan died while the surgeon was probing and assessing the wound.

Lt. Moore, hearing some continued noise outside the house, went out and found William and Sarah Norrington both lying wounded. He had them both brought into the house and directed the surgeon’s mate to examine Sarah’s serious wound. The officer asked Norrington who had wounded them, and Norrington replied that he would not implicate anyone else; that he had stabbed Corrigan and Sarah, intending to kill them both, and had intended to kill himself as well. He was confined for murder.

Sarah Norrington’s wound was not life threatening, and William Norrington’s was only superficial. Put on trial for murder a month later, William Norrington was found innocent and acquitted by a general court martial. The court considered the stabbing to be a crime of passion occasioned by the provocation of the scene that he came upon, and therefore even though death resulted it did not “amount to that species of homicide deemed Murder.” Norrington produced his marriage certificate to the court, which he kept in a pocket book; it had been among his baggage still on board a transport ship, and he was allowed to send for it after he was confined.

Unaccountably, William Norrington disappears from the muster rolls of the 40th Regiment of Foot after the trial, leaving no indication of what became of him or his wife. There is no record of him having been discharged from the army, but also no further record of his service in the army. We can only wonder about the fate of this recruit in the 40th Regiment.

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Flank companies, 38th Regiment, 19 April 1775

Most British regiments serving in America were composed of 10 companies. At the beginning of the war, the established strength of each company consisted of 38 private soldiers, two serjeants (using the period spelling), three corporals, one drummer and three commissioned officers. During the course of the war this establishment was increased twice, then reduced again in the closing years, but when hostilities broke out in earnest on 19 April 1775, this was the established or 'paper' strength of a British company.

Two companies of each regiment were composed of men selected for their experience and fitness. The grenadier company was supposed to contain men suited for vigorous assaults, retaining the traditional name from a bygone era when they hurled grenades over the walls of enemy fortifications; although grenades has long since been set aside, their uniforms retained some vestiges of this honorable service and tall men were preferred for this company. The light infantry company was new to the regimental establishment, having been warranted in 1771 to provide each regiment with a corps of skirmishers; as such, men selected for it tended to be fit and agile, and their uniforms were adapted to their specialized roll. When a regiment formed on parade these companies formed on the right and left flanks, for which reason they were collectively called flank companies.

Men were put into flank companies only after they had mastered the basic duties of a soldier, generally after at least a year of service with their regiment. The requirement for both fitness and experience meant that they consisted mostly of men in their late twenties to early forties. It also meant that men were frequently transferred out of these companies due to illness, wounds, or other conditions that limited their activity; replacements were selected from the regiment's eight battalion companies.

Operationally, the flank companies of British regiments were generally detached and put together into composite grenadier and light infantry battalions. These flank battalions, which varied in size and composition throughout the war depending upon which regiments were in which locations, formed the tactical spearhead on most British campaigns in America. Their first use was on 19 April 1775, when the grenadier and light infantry companies of regiments in Boston were sent to destroy military stores in Concord.

In this installment, we look at two of these companies, the grenadier company and the light infantry company of the 38th Regiment of Foot. The muster rolls of the 38th show us exactly which men were in these companies on 19 April, but it is not possible to determine whether every single man was on the expedition that day. It is also possible, using the muster rolls, to trace their subsequent service. The tables below list the men in the flank companies of the 38th, most of whom were witness to the opening shots of the war, and trace them to the ends of their careers. This information was compiled quickly and is not as complete as it could be - a few men seem to disappear from the rolls, and some transferred to other regiments after which we lose track of them. We were able to make only a limited search of pension records; probably a few more men eventually received pensions than are listed here. Regardless of these shortcomings, it is interesting to get a sense of what became of these selected soldiers who experienced the first battle of a long war.

Grenadier Company, 38th Regiment, 19 April 1775

Last Name	First Name	Rank (if not pvt)	Other information
Adcock	John	Corporal	From battalion and appointed corporal 15 Apr 1775; deserted 8 Jun 1779; joined from desertion 23 Apr 1783; discharged 27 May 1783
Barratt	John		Killed 17 June 1775
Broom	John		To battalion 24 Jan 1779; died 25 Feb 1779
Brunton	Richard		Deserted 6 Jun 1779 from Verplanck's point; born 1749, engraver in Birmingham before enlisting, became an engraver in America
Bruphy	Thomas		Discharged 5 Oct 1778; pension 27 Apr 1780 at age 32, 10 years service - wounded in the hand; born at Blessington co Wicklow, butcher
Bulkley	James		To Grenadiers 15 Apr 1775; died 16 Feb 1783
Burke	John		Died 27 Jul 1775
Cairns	Neil		To corporal, no date (first indicated on 6 Feb 1776 roll); to serjeant 17 Nov 1775; died 16 Jan 1780
Clarke	Robert		Pension from Guernsey Invalids 1791
Cole	Joseph		To corporal 24 Jun 1777; to battalion as corporal 16 Dec 1778; discharged 24 Jun 1782; pension
Collier	Robert		From battalion 15 Apr 1775; discharged 10 Jun 1785
Cook	John		Died of wounds 9 Jul 1775
Craddock	Corneleas		Discharged 9 Feb 1784; pension
Cross	Charles	Corporal	Appointed 11 Aug 1774; killed 17 Jun 1775
Dowling	Owen		Died 10 May 1775
Drake	Hugh		Joined from desertion 21 May 1775 (no indication of when he had deserted); killed 17 Jun 1775
Finney	William		Discharged 24 Jan 1785; pension
Gardiner	Charles	Fifer	To battalion and to drummer 17 Nov 1775; discharged 1787 age 38 after 28 years service; pension - born Limerick city, also served in 59th, 60th and 93rd regiments;
Gladhill	William		Disappears from rolls after transfer to battalion, 1780
Hammell	James		Died 14 Sep 1777
Hammond	John		Discharged 1 Mar 1778; pension 13 May 1778 at age 29, 14 years service - a white swelling in his knee; born at Worcester, labourer,
Hills	Thomas		From battalion 15 Apr 1775; pension 1789 age 43 after 25 years service - born Durham
Hopkinson	John		To corporal 17 Nov 1775; discharged 29 Apr 1786
Irwin	James		Deserted 28 Dec 1777
Johnston	John	Drummer	From battalion 15 Apr 1775; reduced to private 12 Apr 1777; died 28 Jan 1779
Leighton	John	Corporal	Killed 17 Jun 1775
Love	John		Discharged 9 Apr 1787; pension 1796 age 54 after 30 years service including 2 other regiments
Marsden	George		Died 3 Aug 1775
Mathews	Thomas		From battalion 5 Jun 1775; taken prisoner by the rebels 26 Oct 1776; deserted 3 Jun 1779
McDonald	William		Prisoner with the enemy (apparently taken on 19 April); to battalion 16 May 1776, no longer indicated as prisoner 12 Jul 1776 rolls; discharged 23 Feb 1777; pension 3 Oct 1777 at age 32, 12 years service - shot through the foot; born near Inverness, labourer
McGilvray	Andrew	Corporal	To Serjeant 4 Jul 1775; deserted 18 Nov 1783
McLean	Alexander	Fifer	To battalion 17 Nov 1775 as a drummer; discharged 8 Jul 1783; pension 1796 age 54 after 31 years service - born St. Mary's, Kilkenny; pensioned again 1804 after service in the Louth militia
McLeod	Angus		To corporal, no date (first indicated on 6 Feb 1776 roll); disappears after reduction from serjeant and transfer to battalion, 1780
Nealiss	George		Pension 1787 age 36 after 13 years service - born Arragale, county Tyrone, pensioned again 1791 after service in an invalid corps
Neill	John		Discharged 5 Dec 1775; Pension 6 Jun 1776 at age 44, 20 years service - wounded in the left arm; born at Durrow; laborer
Peell	William		Discharged 23 Feb 1783; pension
Rogers	Daniel		Died of wounds 19 Aug 1775
Ross	Francis		From battalion 15 Apr 1775; died of wounds 10 Jul 1775
Sutherland	Kenneth	Serjeant	Died 30 Jul 1775
Sutherland	William		Discharged 24 Oct 1783 to take land grant in Canada
Sutherwood	David		Discharged 24 Aug 1783
Talliss	William		Killed 19 Apr 1775
Vass	Jonathan		To battalion 9 Feb 1779; died 16 Mar 1782
Watkins	George		Discharged 3 Mar 1784
Whitehead	Thomas		To battalion 9 Jan 1779; discharged 24 Jun 1785
Whitehead	William		To corporal 17 Nov 1775; to serjeant 24 Jun 1777; to 7th Regiment 2 Aug 1779
Wilson	Patrick	Serjeant	Discharged 24 Jun 1777; pension 17 Jul 1777 at age 49, 27 years service - Worn out; born near Newry, labourer

Light Infantry Company, 38th Regiment, 19 April 1775

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Last Name	First Name	Rank (if not pvt)	Other information
Alsop	Thomas		Killed 19 Apr 1775
Armson	William		Discharged 1789, pension
Asher	John		From battalion 16 Jul 1774; killed 17 Jun 1775
Bates	Edward		To corporal 11 Sep 1775; reduced 30 Oct 1776; discharged 24 Jun 1785, pension
Beatson	Isaac		To corporal 12 Oct 1775; to serjeant 17 Nov 1775; discharged 12 Feb 1784, pension
Bell	Ralph		From battalion 31 Jul 1774; deserted 24 May 1780
Brookings	John		Killed 17 Jun 1775
Brown	Joseph		From battalion 8 Apr 1775; killed 7 Dec 1777
Cameron	Angus	Corporal	To serjeant 21 Jan 1775; reduced and to battalion 14 Jun 1775; to serjeant 17 Nov 1775; reduced 8 Jul 1776; to Light Infantry 24 Jul 1778; discharged 24 Oct 1783 to take land grant in Canada
Carter	Walter		Discharged 24 Apr 1777; pension 3 Oct 1777 at age 26, 8 years service - shot through the heel; born at ?cester, labourer; served in Plymouth Invalids for 8 years until 1791
Cox	Samuel		Died 31 Aug 1776
Dixon	Thomas		Discharged 24 Apr 1779
Edwards	John		To battalion 15 Sep 1775, sick; to corporal 4 Aug 1776; reduced 11 Mar 1779; pension 1795 age 42 after 24 years service including 6th regiment - born Tembury, Worcestershire
Fogg	Thomas		From battalion 15 Apr 1775; died of wounds 22 Aug 1775
Frazier	Alexander		From battalion 15 Apr 1775; died 14 Oct 1776
Gallagher	Patrick		To battalion 19 Jul 1778; to grenadiers 9 Dec 1779; died 16 Dec 1779
Golden	James		To battalion date unknown (before12 Jul 1776); to Light Infantry 24 Nov 1776; died 7 Jan 1779
Gunn	Aeneas	Serjeant	Killed 17 Jun 1775
Hendon	George		To battalion 12 Jun 1775; to Light Infantry 13 May 1776; to battalion 23 Dec 1778; deserted 25 Nov 1781
Jones	Thomas		From battalion 27 Jan 1775; killed 17 Jun 1775
Jurd	Lincy		From battalion 15 Apr 1775; to battalion 24 May 1776; to Light Infantry 28 Jul 1778; discharged 27 Jan 1786; served in 55th Foot, Middlesex Militia and Portsmouth Invalids; pension 1799
Long	William		From battalion 27 Jan 1775; discharged 24 Dec 1783, pension
Love	John		To battalion 26 Jul 1778;discharged 24 Aug 1783, pension
Marshall	William		Died 3 May 1776
Mason	John		To battalion 24 May 1776; discharged 24 Oct 1783 to take land grant in Canada
McDonald	John		To battalion 26 May 1775; discharged 30 Jan 1782
McInalty	James	Drummer	Deserted 15 May 1783
McKay	Hugh		From battalion 15 Apr 1775; pension 5 Dec 1780 at age 28, 8 years service - lost the use of both hands; born at Dornock Co. Sutherland, labourer
Pickup	Samuel	Corporal	Private on 12 Jul 1776 roll; discharged 24 Apr 1783
Powell	Thomas		From battalion 15 Apr 1775; discharged 23 Feb 1783; pension - 1789 age 59 after 23 years service including 35th Regiment
Powis	Thomas		Killed 17 Jun 1775
Pritchard	Paul		To battalion 14 Jun 1775; killed 17 Jun 1775
Roberts	William		Discharged 24 Aug 1782, pension
Roe	William		Killed 17 Jun 1775
Skinner	Henry		To battalion 8 Jun 1775; to corporal 17 Nov 1775; to serjeant 27 Feb 1779; discharged 12 Jun 1786, pension
Smith	William		Killed 17 Jun 1775
Sutherland	O'Sulivan	Corporal	To serjeant 8 Apr 1775; discharged 11 Nov 1780
Sutherland	Donald		To corporal 21 Jan 1775; died of wounds 5 Sep 1775
Terry	Joseph		To battalion 14 Jun 1775 sick; Died 20 Jan 1776
Tisdale	John		To battalion 31 May 1775; discharged and recommended for pension 18 Aug 1775
Tone	John		To battalion 31 May 1775; discharged 17 Mar 1784, pension
Tyrell	Charles		Killed 19 Apr 1775
Yeacott	William		Pension 1785 age 45 after 16 years service

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