1 Peter Shields was born in Lanchester, England and came to the colonies as a soldier in a Red Coat, serving King George.
a. We know a Peter Shields was christened in Lanchester’s All Saints Anglican Church in 1756. This baby is commonly accepted as our Peter Shields, but we have nothing that shows why this Peter Shields is our fellow.
Left: If this Peter is our Peter Shields, he was christened in the church, All Saints in Lanchester. This is how it would have looked then. The tower was built in the middle ages. Today there is a clock set in the tower wall.
Right: People of 1760s England dressed rather like the folks in the sketch to the right.
b. Legend says that he came as a soldier with Burgoyne’s forces to put down the rebellion in the American Colonies. So far no documentation has been found that supports even his enlistment or conscription into the King’s Army. However, the circumstantial evidence causes us to believe this is most likely true. We need to research the British military records for Burgoyne’s troops in order to confirm this. Fortunately, there are many kinds of records and they are in good condition, so, when someone gets to the task it should not be unpleasant work. The records surrounding his military career should also confirm where and when he was born, who his parents were and what his father’s occupation was.
In 1984, apparently using information from the history books, Larry Shields constructed a likely scenario for Shields’ career as an English soldier.
2 Peter’s wife may have been Elizabeth Judy.
No record has been found of Elizabeth’s parents or of Peter’s and Elizabeth’s marriage, but Peter’s wife has generally been identified as Elizabeth Singleton. Dolores noticed that one reference, the Blackford County History, stated that his wife was of German heritage. She further noticed that "Singleton" is not a German name and the closest German family would have been the "Judys", according to tax records. (This is a German or Swiss name originally spelled "Tschudy" and pronounced "Judy".) Also, the person who bought Peter’s 70 acres in Hardy County was one "Jacob Judy".
The case is made stronger because there is no reason why Peter Shields would have crossed paths with the Singletons in his early years. The Singletons settled in Farquier County, several counties and a mountain range away from Hampshire/Hardy County where Peter pioneered, farmed and where he and Elizabeth raised their family. Then why might earlier researchers have thought Elizabeth might be a Singleton? Since the Singletons settled near the Shields family in Braxton County, an early family historian may have jumped to a conclusion. However, Peter and Elizabeth married and raised their family in Harrison/Hardy County decades before their move next to the Singletons in Braxton County.
a. English prisoners and deserters were not welcome in the Continental Army.
"Whereas experience hath proved that no confidence can be placed in prisoners of war or deserters from the enemy, who enlist into the Continental Army; but many losses and great mischiefs have frequently happened by them; therefore Resolved, that no prisoners of war or
deserters from the enemy be enlisted, drafted, or returned, to serve in the Continental Army."
Left: Illustration of Revolutionary War Militia in battle
b. At roughly age 50, Peter again served in the Virginia Militia. We have records which show he served in 1807 under Capt Jordan. (ref: Volunteer Soldiers, 1784-1811, transcribed by Virgil D. White 1987)
If we were to find the reason Peter Shields chose to enlist in the militia during a time of peace with the English, French and Indians, we would know a lot more about the life he lived.
4 Peter and Elizabeth settled in the North Branch of the Potomac Watershed, on West Mill Creek near the county line separating Hardy and Pendleton Counties. (Note the red dot on the above map of old Virginia.) They had 70 acres to farm in Hardy County and a 35 acre piece of land nearby in Pendleton County that may have had a saltpeter mine.
a. Hardy County
Tax records show that in 1784 Peter (in his late 20s), Elizabeth and their first two children were living in Hampshire County. (Hardy County was formed in 1786 from Hampshire County.)
About 1790, 70 acres of unimproved land in Hardy County on the west side of North Mill Creek between John Wise and John Liking was surveyed for Peter Shields. This land had originally belonged to Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Neville.
In 1811 Peter (in his 50s) and Elizabeth sold the 70 acres to Jacob Judy for 75 pounds.
FYI: How big is 70 acres?
(70 acres equals .109 square mile or the equivalent of a square about 1/3 mile on each side.) They raised their eight children there. The land acquisitions and the children’s births are well documented. The possibility that he had a saltpeter mine is very likely.
In 1805 Peter Shields purchased 35 acres of saltpeter caves in Pendleton County, a few miles south of his 70 acres in Hardy County. He sold the land to ??Hinkle in 18??.
Right: A "brush" of Saltpeter on a stone cellar wall.
FYI: What is saltpeter?
Saltpeter is potassium nitrite, KNO3: potassium, nitrogen and oxygen. Saltpeter is common in the caves along the Allegheny Mountains where it seems to grow on the rocks. It is the result of a chemical reaction It is scraped off the rocks and then purified into saltpeter. Its main use at that time was for gunpowder, which is about 75% saltpeter, 15% sulfur and 10% charcoal.
5 Peter and Elizabeth Shields moved with their family to Salt Lick, Braxton County, in the early 1800s. Their life on Salt Lick will be covered soon, in another entry.