On this 4th of July, I’m honoring the service of our Revolutionary War ancestors, including my great-great-great-great-grandfather Malachi Francis. He was born April 21, 1764, in Halifax Co., VA, and enlisted as a private on April 1, 1777, just before he turned 13. He joined the 4th Virginia Regiment of Foot, commanded by Colonel Thomas Elliott. He & his regiment soon marched to Pennsylvania and fought in the Battle of Brandywine, Sept 11, 1777. Among other battles, he was at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, NC, on March 15, 1781, and at the siege of Yorktown, VA, in Sept-Oct 1781. He was at Cornwallis’ surrender on Oct. 19, 1781. Malachi Francis rose to the rank of Lieutenant before he was 18. He died in Barren Co., KY on June 12, 1831.
Malachi Francis