Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Battle of Bunker Hill, Boston, Mass., 17 June 1775



Zera Pulsipher was very proud of his heritage, and rightly so.  His father and grandfather fought in the Revelationary War, and fought in the battle of Bunker Hill. This is taken from  the first part of  Zera Pulsipher's journal.
But when the Revolutionary War commenced, my father John Pulsipher, was very young, and being away from home one day he heard that the British army had destroyed some military stores at Concord, New Hampshire.  Being fired with indignation, he sought for a recruiting officer and enlisted for one campaign.  When he returned home and informed his father, David Pulsipher, of the circumstances, the old gentleman told him that he was too young and that he would enlist and go with him.  Accordingly he did, and they both went to Boston, Massachusetts.  In the memorable battle of Bunker Hill, the 17th of June 1775, there they stood side by side and fought with about 13 Americans against 3000 of the British for about two hours.  When the enemy, after firing Charleston and wending around under [page 2] the smoke, had nearly surrounded that wing of their own army, they saw but a small gap to retreat through, which was then continually plowing ground with balls from the shipping.  But while they were going out, my grandfather saw one of our men wounded and crawling away on his hands and knees.  In the meantime a British soldier ran him through with a bayonet.  Being filled with indignation at such rank breach of the laws of all civilized nations he immediately stopped, and amid scenes of death and carnage, loaded his gun and shot that man down before he left the ground and then obtained a safe retreat.  I speak of this to let my posterity know that our ancestors were clothed with that steady unshaken determination in time of the most imminent dangers that are incident to human life.

In a few weeks after this my grandfather died with cramp rheumatism (probably a heart attack) in his breast.  My father served his time out and returned home and attended to the cares of a family, married Elizabeth Dutton and raised a family of seven sons and three daughters