Have you ever seen that TV show Who Do You Think You Are? on TLC?
Or spent a few hours doing research on Ancestry.com? Chris and Mischelle Davis have been checking out their family tree and uncovering some unexpected information. Below are just a few of the remarkable things they have learned about just a few of their ancestors.
Joseph Wheaton
Chris Davis is a descendant of Joseph Wheaton. Wheaton holds the honor of being the first Sergeant at Arms of the United States House of Representatives. He served from 1789 to 1809 for the First through the Tenth United States Congresses. But Wheaton’s place in history was secured long before.
Wheaton was an officer during the Revolutionary War supporting the cause of American freedom. He was a key figure in pre-war encounters with the British during the period just prior to the Revolutionary War. In May of 1775, Wheaton and some 20 other men armed with pitchforks and axes captured the British sloop the Margaretta. It was Wheaton who captured the British flag in what many consider to be the first naval battle of the revolution. Although his father and brothers were British Loyalists and commissioned British officers, Wheaton joined the Continental Army in 1775 and was wounded in action suffering a saber wound to his head. Although his father and brothers were British Loyalists and commissioned British officers, Wheaton joined the Continental Army in 1775 and was wounded in action suffering a saber wound to his head. Wheaton’s rebellion angered his father who disowned his for having fought “for the damned Yankee rebels,” and “and consequently cut you off without a shilling.”