Show american heroines by LOUISE M COI COMSTOCK ann maria lane UT of musty old records lying in 0 OUT the archives of the virginia state library at richmond has but recently been reconstructed the story of a heroine forgotten since 1808 in that year so read the molder ing records the state of virginia granted a pension to one ann uarie marle lane who fought in the garb and with the courage of a soldier in the famous engagement between the brit ish and the american revolutionary troops at germantown pa in 1777 we learn further that ann maria larla not only marched with a gun in the ranks but performed extraordinary military services and was disabled by a severe wound the known facts of this gallant woman s life are few she has been identified as the wife of john lane a sailor in the virginia navy who tools tool part in 1781 in the disaster ou ous s en counter in the james river a at t Os borne s landing when the state states s fleet six ships eight brigs five sloops and two schooners met the superior forces of the traitorous benedict ar nold just come from looting richmond the state lost its ves vessels els but few of its men in 1798 1799 we find john I 1 ane his wife and two daughters living a at it point of forks up the he james an out post against the indians in ISO w when ben the insurgent gabriel was prod ding the negroes about richmond to insurrection the lanes were returned to that city and lived at the barracks near the state capitol here it seems ann maria took to nursing the sol diers caring for as many as fifteen 9 guardsmen at one time in 1802 dr J II 11 foushee city health officer wrote to governor mon roe requesting that ann maria be a al lowed some recompense for her ices fees from his letter we learn that she was then an old woman scarcely equal to her self imposed task and lame from that wound received at ger mantoan it brought ann marle the moderate consideration of six dollars a month in addition to food and hodg ing I 1 in 1804 the state finally gave her an infirmary for her patients but in the fall of that same year judged too old and lame tor for her work ann maria marla was retired and her name dropped from the payroll in 1808 however having investigated her case governor cabell brought it to the at of the state legislature the state at that time eagerly adopt adopted ed this revolutionary heroine they granted her a pension of per year there is record that this was paid in 1808 1809 and 1810 in 1811 some clerk carelessly scrawled across the page dead pocahontas UR first american heroine was not C OUR a white gl gi 1 but an indian and she Is buried not near jamestown va with which are associated her deeds of bravery but in england in an alien land among a people who must have seemed to her very strange the register of st georges george s church gravesend Grave send contains this record here rebecca grolf fyffe of thomas john grolf gent a virginia lady borne was buried in the cha unsell 1617 in the history books rebecca grolf Is pocahontas lovely daughter of Pow powhatan batan big chief of the virginia indians who played an important part in the establishment of the first ung lish settlement in this country in 1607 a small band of colonists settled on the james river at a spot they called jamestown in honor of their king it was an unfortunate nation tion the swamps spread alse disease ise and grew little food and the dense forests pressed upon the little colony and made it easy prey for attacking in deans without the friendship of pocahontas ca hontas jamestown might never have survived the first hard bard years capt john smith leader of the col ony managed to secure tre good will of powhatan and promises of corn but powhatan was a big and temper chief liable to change of mind there were times when he refused fri ed to send more corn or to keep away his marauding braves once so the story goes he held the doughty captain prisoner and was determined to have his brains beaten out with stout war clubs and time and again pocahontas at the risk of her father fathers s anger of her tribe s ill will even of her own life proved her friendship for the white man when provisions ran low she brought grain from her fa ther s supply when treacherous am was planned she gave warn ing and as captain smith lay with his head on a pillow of rock ing his death pocahontas rushed between him and the threatening war c club lub and saved his life for all this the indian girl was rewarded as are many heroines once john smith had returned to england a new leader leader determined to make secure the food supply once and for all kid pocahontas and held her host age in jamestown for a year here jere however she was baptized into the christian church and renamed rebecca or bond of peace a and nd mar ried young john rolfe when rolfe re turned to england she accompanied him was wined and dined in it lon ion and but a little later fell ill and d ed her son thomas rolfe later re turned to virginia and Is the alcest r of richard randolph and other fa Virgini virginians tens 0 1932 western newspaper union |