8. | William TILLER was born in 1757 in Probably Essex County, Virgnia (son of Thomas TILLER and Elizabeth UNK); died on 12 Oct 1821 in Russell County, Virginia. Notes:
WFT #2385 -
In 1770, following the death of his father, William chose Samuel Landrum as his guardian.
In March 1776, he enlisted for service in the Revolutionary Was as a private. He was discharged in
March of 1778 and re-enlisted on April 9, 1778 as a corporal.
Contained within William's Revolutionary War pension application are 8 pages of material written by
William detailing his service as a Revolutionary War soldier. During his time of service, he served at the
Battle of Stoney Point, and at the Siege of Charleston. During the Siege of Charleston, William received
two wounds. "...I received two wounds by bombshells that I shall carry to my grave one in my butt and
one in my secret parts." William also recounts that two others with whom he served were killed after he
was wounded, "when sergeant Hundly was killed and Richard Spenler was killed one was taking [care]
of me when he was killed and the other close to me a few days after colonel Parker was killed by a
cannon ball."
On May 12, 1780, the Siege of Charleston ended with William and hundreds of others being taken
captive. They were held captive for approximately 14 months. On July 8, 1781, after being released
through a prisoner exchange program, William was discharged from service.
Until June 15, 1793, little else is known about William's whereabouts. However, it appears that he spent
at least some of that time in North Carolina. One June 15, 1793, William took possession of land in
Montgomery County, Virgina. He sold that land on May 12, 1804. By 1807, William was residing in Giles
County, Virginia, where he stayed until 1810. In 1810, William was living in Cabell County, Virginia and
remained there through part of 1815. In 1850, he moved to Russell County, Virginia. There he remained
until he died on October 12, 1821.
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