What’s a Pacifist to do?
Sometimes life is complicated. Is it possible to be both a pacifist and a patriot? This was certainly a struggle that a Quaker such as Timothy Smith had during the American Revolutionary War. As a member of the Religious Society of Friends or Quakers, Timothy made a commitment to be a pacifist. While many Quakers were loyalists, many such as Timothy were patriots. There was definite conflict between upholding pacifist principles and feeling compelled to protect and support the colony. While some patriotic Quakers chose to fight in the Revolutionary War against the beliefs of the Quaker Church (as possibly three of Timothy’s brothers did: Anthony Jr., James, and Noah), Timothy chose to honor his religion by becoming a teamster which was a non-combatant job and transport supplies to military forces. There were no major roads and traveling over land was treacherous. “On September 15, 1779, Smith joined Captain Israel Burrows’ Team Brigade, part of the Wagon Department. Burrows’ Brigade consisted of eight four-horse wagons maintained in Trenton, N.J. In 1780, Smith enlisted again for six to nine months (Stanley, Ellen E.).”
Timothy Smith was born January 25, 1747 in Monmouth, New Jersey to Anthony and Lydia Willets Smith. Timothy’s grandparents were Thomas and Mary Allen Smith and his great grandparents, Mary’s parents, were Jedediah and Elizabeth Howland Allen. Elizabeth’s parents, Henry and Mary Howland were Pilgrims.
Timothy married Sarah who was his second cousin in 1767. They had seven children; their son Micajah was my 4th great grandfather. (Timothy Smith was the father of Micajah who was the father of Rebecca who was the mother of Susannah “Susan” who married Samuel Watkins who were the parents of John Calvin Watkins, my great grandfather.) In 1790, Timothy, Sarah, and their seven children were noted in the U.S. census as living in Franklin Township, Fayette County, Pennsylvania (another family Fayette County connection). Sarah died in 1803 and five years later Timothy married Hannah Williams. Timothy died in 1822.
***I have identified three direct ancestors who were in the American Revolutionary War: Stephen Watkins, Thomas McElroy, and Timothy Smith. Stephen fought in the war, Thomas was a wagoner, and Timothy was a teamster. (Wagoner and teamster seem to be the same thing – they were part of the essential transportation component to drive the wagons, deliver goods and supplies, and care for the horses.) My next goal is to find out the Daughters of the American Revolution requirements for documentation in order to attain membership.
Sources
“Digital Magazine Archive.” D A R Members’ – Magazine Archive, https://services.dar.org/members/magazine_archive/default.cfm.
“Quakers and the Revolution.” History of American Women, 31 May 2020, https://www.womenhistoryblog.com/2009/02/quakers-and-revolution.html.
“Quakers in the American Revolution.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 14 Mar. 2021, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quakers_in_the_American_Revolution.
Stanley, Ellen E. “Dar: Timothy Smith by Our Patriots Dar Podcast.” Our Patriots DAR Podcast, Anchor, 6 Jan. 2022, https://anchor.fm/todaysdar/episodes/DAR-Timothy-Smith-e1ch8if.
