DAR #A207471

Valentine Mendel arrived in America just nine months before the Declaration of Independence. He arrived on the ship King of Prussia, sailing from Rotterdam to Philadelphia where he took the Oath of Allegiance on 9 October 1775. His whereabouts from 1776 thru 1778, are not known but he is known to have lived in Earl Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania from about 1779, through the end of the war. He enlisted in the 5th Battalion, Lancaster County, Virginia, and served under Captain Alexander McIlvain. His residence in Lancaster is documented both as a landowner, through tax rolls that listed him as a distiller, and the Lutheran church records of the birth and baptism of his three eldest sons, John, Valentine and Henry. Valentine would also appear on the militia rolls of Lancaster County.

In November of 1784 Valentine published in a German newspaper, his intention to remove from Lancaster County. His land was sold to Sebastian Stuffelbind. From that time until his death in late 1811, he appears on the tax rolls of Ohio County, Virginia, as well as Brooke County, when it is formed as part of Ohio.

Valentine had a wife, Mary, and nine children. They are named in the will that Valentine made in Brooke County, in April of 1806. His will was submitted to the Probate Court at the January 1812 session. He left a horse each, and the he held, equally to his six sons, stipulating that John, the eldest son, should receive an equal share, “should he ever return.” It is fairly certain that John never returned as he did not appear in subsequent tax rolls. His wife was to have use of the dwelling house, a horse and maintenance during her natural life. Upon her death all property would be divided equal among her children. Sons of Valentine and Mary named in the will were Valentine, Henry, Peter, George and Jacob. Daughters named were Mary, Elizabeth and Rachel. The girls received a horse each and all of his personal property save that left to his wife.

Available resources:
-"United States Revolutionary War Pension Payment Ledgers, 1818-1872," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q24Q-L6H6 : Archives and Records Administration, 1962), roll 7; FHL microfilm 1,319,387. -United States War of 1812 Index to Service Records, 1812-1815, database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q29K-2Q74 : 11 March 2016), Ezra Parker, 1812-1815; citing NARA microfilm publication M602 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); roll 159; FHL microfilm 882,677.
-"United States Census, 1840," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHYX-3Y8 : 24 August 2015), Ezra Parker, Royal Oak Township, Oakland, Michigan, United States; citing p. 90, NARA microfilm publication M704, (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 209; FHL microfilm 14,797.
-"Find A Grave Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVVD-R67N : 13 December 2015), Ezra Parker, 1842; Burial, Royal Oak, Oakland, Michigan, United States of America, Royal Oak Cemetery; citing record ID 15167043, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com. -Ancestry.com. U.S., Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.