Navigating Revolutionary War Pensions

A very good question was asked on our Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrants page by Cathy:

My ancestor served with a Pennsylvania Militia unit and after the war, moved to Virginia (modern day West Virginia) where he died in 1810. Would he (or his widow or children) received a pension from Pennsylvania or the US government? Or should I check both places?

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Cathy, for someone who served in a Pennsylvania militia unit during the Revolutionary War and died in Virginia (now West Virginia) in 1810, the short answer is: you’ll want to check both Pennsylvania state records and federal records, but with the understanding that the rules for who could receive a pension were very restrictive until decades after the war.

1. Federal Government Pensions

The U.S. government did not start giving pensions to most Revolutionary War veterans until well after 1810.

• 1776–1789: Pensions were primarily for Continental Army soldiers (not state militia) who were disabled due to service. These were need-based and disability-based, not service-based.
• 1818 Pension Act: First major federal service-based pension, but only for Continental Line veterans who served at least 9 months and were in financial need. Militia members generally did not qualify unless they had also served in the Continental Line.
• 1832 Pension Act: Finally extended to most veterans who could prove 6 months or more of service — this is when many militia veterans’ widows and children finally got pensions.

Your ancestor’s situation:

• If he died in 1810, he could only have received a federal pension if he was disabled from wartime service and could prove it before then.
• His widow or children could not receive a federal pension until much later — and only if they applied after Congress loosened the rules (e.g., 1836, 1838 acts for widows).

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2. Pennsylvania State Pensions

Some states (including Pennsylvania) provided limited pensions or relief to disabled veterans of their state’s forces, separate from federal pensions.

• Pennsylvania had state-level payments for indigent or disabled soldiers as early as the 1780s.
• These were usually administered by county officials and recorded in state treasury records or legislative petitions.
• If your ancestor left Pennsylvania soon after the war, he may not have qualified unless he applied before moving.

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3. Virginia / (West) Virginia Records

Even though West Virginia didn’t exist until 1863, the area was part of Virginia in your ancestor’s lifetime.

• Virginia occasionally gave aid to indigent veterans who resided there, even if they had served in another state’s militia — but this was uncommon and often required legislative approval.
• If his widow was living there decades later (1830s–1840s), she might have applied under federal law while living in Virginia. In that case, you’d find her application among federal pension files, not state ones.

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4. Where to Search

• Federal pensions: NARA’s Revolutionary War pension files (some are digitized on Ancestry, Fold3, and FamilySearch). Search under both veteran and widow’s name. This page does a good job of detailing how to search for these for free: Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrants
• Pennsylvania Archives: Series 3, Series 5, and Series 6 include militia rolls, land warrants, and/or payment records. State pension recipients are individually mentioned in some volumes also.
• Virginia state records: Check legislative petitions (Library of Virginia) for individual aid requests.
• County court records (both in PA and VA) sometimes have mentions of veteran’s relief payments.

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If your ancestor served only in the Pennsylvania militia, Cathy, and died in 1810, a federal pension during his lifetime was highly unlikely unless he was disabled from service. His widow or children would not have been eligible for federal benefits until decades later, but they could have applied from Virginia when laws changed. You should check both Pennsylvania state archives for early relief records and federal pension files for later widow/children applications, but Virginia state records are worth checking only as a long-shot.

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