Bucks County Militia Exemption Returns, 1802–1813 — Five Signed Documents, Including a War of 1812–Dated Return

Bucks County Militia Exemption Returns, 1802–1813 — Five Signed Documents, Including a War of 1812–Dated Return

$895.00
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Bucks County Militia Exemption Returns, 1802–1813 — Five Signed Documents, Including a War of 1812–Dated Return
  • Bucks County Militia Exemption Returns, 1802–1813 — Five Signed Documents, Including a War of 1812–Dated Return
  • Bucks County Militia Exemption Returns, 1802–1813 — Five Signed Documents, Including a War of 1812–Dated Return
  • Bucks County Militia Exemption Returns, 1802–1813 — Five Signed Documents, Including a War of 1812–Dated Return
  • Bucks County Militia Exemption Returns, 1802–1813 — Five Signed Documents, Including a War of 1812–Dated Return
  • Bucks County Militia Exemption Returns, 1802–1813 — Five Signed Documents, Including a War of 1812–Dated Return
  • Bucks County Militia Exemption Returns, 1802–1813 — Five Signed Documents, Including a War of 1812–Dated Return
  • Bucks County Militia Exemption Returns, 1802–1813 — Five Signed Documents, Including a War of 1812–Dated Return
  • Bucks County Militia Exemption Returns, 1802–1813 — Five Signed Documents, Including a War of 1812–Dated Return
Bucks County Militia Exemption Returns, 1802–1813 — Five Signed Documents, Including a War of 1812–Dated Return

Bucks County Militia Exemption Returns, 1802–1813 — Five Signed Documents, Including a War of 1812–Dated Return

$895.00

Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Five documents. Offered at $895.

An attractive group of five original printed-and-manuscript militia exemption returns documenting residents of Upper Makefield, Lower Makefield, and Middletown Township between 1802 and 1813.

Completed in period ink, the returns preserve numerous local names, often accompanied by ages and assignments to eight numbered militia classes. They include two returns signed by Captain Peter D. Cattell, dated 1802 and 1803; a Lower Makefield return dated 1809; Captain John Larue’s Middletown return of 1810; and a second Middletown return dated May 12, 1813, during the War of 1812.

The forms illustrate the detailed administration of Pennsylvania’s citizen militia. The men were recorded as “exempts,” a category associated with exemption from ordinary militia training and related financial obligations. Such status did not necessarily remove liability for actual service when called.

The documents also offer valuable genealogical evidence, preserving familiar Bucks County surnames such as Cadwallader, Yardley, Buckman, Balderston, Wiggins, Satterthwaite, Hulme, and Richardson. Several names recur across the returns, inviting further research into local families and communities.

Four sheets use tall tabular formats, while the 1802 return employs a broadside layout with separate sections for the eight classes. Officers’ certifications, signatures, handwritten totals, and reverse filing endorsements enhance their historical and visual interest.

Condition: Generally good overall, with age toning, scattered spotting, old folds, and occasional small holes, edge tears, and fold separations. Some ink is faded, particularly on the 1809 return, but the documents remain substantially legible. The 1813 form has an incompletely filled heading.

A cohesive collection spanning the early republic and the War of 1812, with particular appeal to collectors of Pennsylvania history, militia records, early printing, and Bucks County genealogy.