William Lytle and Miriam Cooley
Husband William Lytle
Born: Abt 1754 - County Mayo, Ireland Christened: Died: 8 Jul 1833 - Spruce Creek, Morris Twp, Huntingdon Co, PA Buried:Marriage: 3 Dec 1781 - Goshen, Orange Co, NY
Other Spouse: [Unk] Shannon ( - ) - Aft 1811 - Centre or Huntingdon Co, PA
Wife Miriam Cooley
Born: Christened: Died: 1811 - Pine Grove Mills, Centre Co, PA Buried:
Father: Nathaniel Cooley ( - ) Mother:
Children
1 M James Lytle
Born: Bef 1786 - ? Orange Co, NY Christened: Died: Buried:
2 M William Harris Lytle 1
Born: 6 Apr 1789 - Goshen, Orange Co, NY Christened: Died: 27 Jul 1843 - Rockland Twp, Venango Co, PA Buried: - Lytle Family Farm, Rockland Twp, Venango Co, PASpouse: Ruth Everhart (1791-1848) 1 Marr: Abt 1807 - Centre or Huntingdon Co, PA
3 M John Lytle
Born: Christened: Died: Buried:
4 M Nathaniel "Than" Lytle
Born: 6 Jul 1802 - Pennsylvania Christened: Died: 30 Jul 1888 - Spruce Creek, Morris Twp, Huntingdon Co, PA Buried:Spouse: Sarah Stonebraker (Abt 1806-1889) Marr: 6 Jul 1826
5 M Benjamin C. Lytle
Born: 1804 - Centre Co, PA Christened: Died: Apr 1873 - Entriken, Huntingdon Co, PA Buried:Spouse: Lydia Plummer ( -1882) Marr: 1835 - Spruce Creek, Morris Twp, Huntingdon Co, PA
6 F Miriam Lytle
Born: 1806 - Centre Co, PA Christened: Died: Buried:Spouse: [Unk] Hagey ( - )
General Notes: Husband - William Lytle
It has been said that the Lytles are originally from Scotland, that they were a part of the Little Clan, and that their name had kept the old spelling, with the "y" in place of the "i". Branches of the Little Clan, many of them Protestants of the Presbyterian faith, eventually moved to Northern Ireland, Ireland, and the United States.
Emigrating to New York City in 1773, he moved on to Goshen, Orange County, NY, by June 1775. His occupation was linen weaver, so he was considered to be a member of the middle class because he had a trade.
On June 21, 1775, William enlisted from Goshen as a Private in the 3rd Regiment of the New York Militia, just over a month after signing the Articles of Association (a determination of loyalty to the Colonies). On a muster roll for the New York Continental Army of 7/22/1775, he was described as 5'4" tall with brown hair and "grey" eyes. In the six years between 1775 and 1781, he saw action in the battles at St. Johns and Quebec in the ill-fated Canadian expedition; in the defense of New York City, at the Battle of White Plains, New York, and in the Monmouth Courthouse campaign in New Jersey, all under George Washington; and, finally, in two of the punitive campaigns against the Iroquois Indians and the Tories in the Mohawk Valley of New York.
He and his wife migrated west in 1791, following the old Indian trail from Orange County, NY, through the Appalachian Mountains to the Wyoming Valley in Wyoming County, PA; the family showed up on the Census in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in 1800. Later, most likely by 1804, they moved to Centre County, Pennsylvania, where Miriam died in 1811. Around 1812, William moved to Huntingdon County, PA, living at Union Furnace and Spruce Creek in Morris Township. It is believed that he married the Shannon woman in either Centre or Huntingdon County some time after 1811.
William later applied for a Revolutionary War pension, at age 77, on August 15, 1832, in Huntingdon County, for his services to his nation. The process involved a lengthy question and answer process, in which a judge asked him to produce a detailed account of his Revolutionary War experiences, including dates of enlistment, officers under which he served, and campaigns and battles in which he was involved. Although it was no doubt a tortuous process for him, the transcripts of the hearing are now invaluable as a detailed record of his military career. A reverend from the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which he was a member, testified that William’s discharge papers were "long lost". The judge in the hearing reported that "William Litle is unable from bodily infirmity and weakness
to attend court." When asked his age at the hearing, he replied that he was not sure, that he thought he was born in 1754, and that there was no record of his age. William Lytle was rewarded with some land and a veteran’s pension of $80 a year until he died, at age 79, at Spruce Creek (where he may have been living with his son, William Harris Lytle), Morris Township, Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, on July 8, 1833; he was buried at Colerain Forge in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania.
At some point during the lifetime of William Lytle, he changed religions, from Presbyterian to Methodist Episcopal (or M.E. Church, now commonly known as Methodist). William and Miriam Lytle were married in a Presbyterian church, so the family most likely followed that religion, as most immigrants of Scottish background did. However, by the time William applied for his pension in 1832 in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, he belonged to the Methodist Episcopal Church. Once the Lytles changed to Methodist, that church was an extremely strong influence in their lives----at least three of William Harris Lytle’s sons were Methodist ministers, and the family was Methodist from at least that time on. The early Methodist Episcopal Church was very aggressive in its recruitment methods, especially in the frontier areas, where the Lytles lived. They sent out circuit-riding ministers to the villages and to the family cabins, preaching to the rural inhabitants; they also staged gigantic revival meetings, which attracted people from miles around. One group in particular that the M.E. Church had a large amount of success in converting was the Presbyterians of Scotch-Irish descent, which included the Lytles. [Lytle Family History, published on-line]
Notes: Marriage
They were married in the Presbyterian church in Goshen.
1
—, History of Mercer County, Pennsylvania. Its Past and Present (Chicago, IL: Brown, Runk & Co., Publishers, 1888), Pg 869.
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