State of Tennessee
Smith County}

On this tenth day of february 1837 personally appeared before me Reason Barrow one of the acting Justices of the peace in and for the county aforesaid Lydia Ray a resident of the county and State aforesaid aged eighty five years old on the fourth of next april who being first duly sworn according to law doth on her oath make the following declaration in order to obtain the benefit of the provision made by the act of Congress passed July the 4th 1836 That she is the widow of Joseph Ray who was a private soldier in the army of the revolution he was drafted in the month of September 1780 under Captain George Hodge ^to serve a tour of six months^ She and her husband lived at this time in Orange County Grant State of North Carolina about Seven miles form Hillsborough they had been married ten years before that time by Captain Robert Lytle a Justice of the peace they had four ^three^ children when he entered the service. In august before Colonel Armand was stationed in the neighborhood with his troop of light horse she thinks that they had to suport and fed thirty men and thirty horse for a short time in order to recruit them when Col Armand left he gave her husband a tickett on the Government which was never paid In September as above State her husband entered the Service. In two or three months after he entered the service her oldest child James Ray sickened and died and s[he] wrote her husband a letter as the army was not far off. Her husband returned home after this time on a furlow from his commanding officer and rather than leave his family in a forlorn situation he went back to ^made an arrangement with^ his captain and gave him one thousand dollars in the currency of that time which was continental paper money that the Captain received for the purpose of having a susbstitute for the ballance of the time he received it and hired a substitute who served out the ballance of the time of her husbands services ^which was six months in all^. It was in the february following as well as she recolects that the battle of Guilford was fought. The Brittish army marchs before this—passed in one half mile of where she lived she was then a widow her husband having after his return from the army as above state an verry soon after his return sickened a was sick when he returned and died: Doctor Gillett attended him until his death—left in this Situation with three small children to take care of the Brittish army as above Stated camped close by and the consequence was knowing that her husband though dead still had a substitute in the American army they took every thing that suited them her flour meal corn and fodder oats a large number of cattle She had 14 milch cows the sumer before but they stripted her of every one except one cow which was out of their reach her husbands clothing and the most valuable of her and her childrens She put into her [illegible] chest and then put it into the Stable and burried it there but it was all in vain for they found & took it. Another circumstance tended greatly to add to her distresses and hurried her husband to make the arrangement with his commanding officer was her State of Pregnancy but she was not confined nor was her youngest child born until after her husbands death for she recolects distinctly her helpless situation when the Brittish army stripped her of almost every thing she had

She further declares that she was married on the 21st day of March 1771 to the said Joseph R[ay] and that her husband the aforesaid Joseph Ray decd on the 2d day of January 1781 and that She had remained a widow ever since that period as will more fully appear by reference to the proof here to annexed. Sworn to and subscribed before me on the day and year above written & she has no documentary evidence to prove the above facts

Lydia Ray

Test
R Barrow
Justice of the Peace

State of Tennessee
Smith County}
I Reason Barrow one of the acting Justices of the peace in and for the county and State aforesaid do hereby certify that I am well aquainted with Lyda Ray the widow of Joseph Ray that full faith and credit are due to her Statements I further certify that I am well aquainted with Andrew G Ford That full faith and credit are due to his Statements and I hereby certify the Same

RBarrow JP
Justice of the peace

State of Tennessee Smith County
I John J Burnett Clerk of the County Court for said Smith County the [hereof] certify that Reason Barrow, whose name appears to the foregoing affidavits and certificates was at the time of signing the same and now is one of the acting Justices of the peace, in and for said County of Smith and that the Signatures purporting to be his are genuine.

In Testimony whereof I have hereto set my hand and affixed my seal of office at office in Carthage, this 13th day of February 1837 in the 61st year of American Independence
John J Burnett clerk
of Smith County Court

379
Lydia Ray
Tennessee