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A Son of The American Revolution
Thanks to Bev Crowe I now have a copy of Basil Llewellin's book, A SON OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION by Basil Llewellin Neal. This book is available through interlibrary loan if you'd like to get a copy to read. It is VERY interesting to see the viewpoint of a common man relating his memories of the antebellum south. Below are some excerpts from the book.
"My father,
Basil O'Neal, was born in Maryland in the year 1758, soon after his parents
came from England. He spent the first seventeen years of his
life in Maryland. At that age he moved with his parents to Virginia.
Here he spent four years, and while here he married his first wife, Miss
Ellen Briscoe, the daughter of an eminent physician of Virginia."
Note: Basil goes on to say that most of the information he has about his father was learned from his mother, Basil's 2nd wife. Does this mean that Peter Lemar O'Neale was in England?
Part of the book deals with Basil's family history. Bev transcribed this part and sent it to us.
""My mother (born 1798 died December 12, 1875) was a daughter of Captain
McKeen Green, a Revolutionary Soldier. He had two brothers in the
same war,
Major John Green and Col. Benjamin Green. It has always been
my understanding that they were related in some way to Gen. Nathanuel Green.
When She and my father were married, he was close to seventy and my mother
was about thirty. He was a well preserved man of his age, his eye
being undimmed and his hair not yet turned gray. He was close to
eighty years of age when I was born, and his last child was born when he
was eighty-five".
It was Wednesday, April 5th, 1837, at 7 o'clock in th evening, when it was noised abroad that a man-child was born, and that his name should be llewellin. I must believe that this ne-born boy was a fine-looking child, as he was named for both families-Basil Llewellin McKeen Green Neal".
Basil O'Neal/Neal was a Free Mason and a member of the Methodist Church.
