Ephraim Kimberly Grant
Encyclopedia
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
that was granted to an American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
veteran by Congress late in the 18th century. It was located in the Seven Ranges
Seven Ranges
The Seven Ranges was a land tract in eastern Ohio that was the first tract to be surveyed in what became the Public Land Survey System. The tract is across the northern edge, on the western edge, with the south and east sides along the Ohio River...
along the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
.
Background
The CongressCongress of the Confederation
The Congress of the Confederation or the United States in Congress Assembled was the governing body of the United States of America that existed from March 1, 1781, to March 4, 1789. It comprised delegates appointed by the legislatures of the states. It was the immediate successor to the Second...
had little money to pay the soldiers who fought for independence. They made promises of land to induce army enlistment. By resolutions of September 16 and 18, 1776, and August 12, September 22, and October 3, 1780, they proposed to give each officer or private continuously to serve in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
army until the close of the war, or until discharged, or to the representatives of those slain by the enemy, tract sizes dependent on rank.
Capt. Ephraim Kimberly, (10-22-1738, 9-8-1795) (Company of the 2nd Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
) is recognized as a patriot by the Daughters of the American Revolution
Daughters of the American Revolution
The Daughters of the American Revolution is a lineage-based membership organization for women who are descended from a person involved in United States' independence....
Society. After the war, Kimberly squatted
Squatting
Squatting consists of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied space or building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have permission to use....
at the mouth of Indian Short Creek, now Short Creek, along the Ohio River. On April 8, 1794, Congress granted Kimberly 300 acres (1.2 km²) in an act entitled “AN ACT to authorize Ephraim Kimberly to locate the land warrant issued to him for services in the late American Army”
The Tract was surveyed by Absalom Martin, and was the first deed recorded in Jefferson County, Ohio
Jefferson County, Ohio
Jefferson County is a county located in the state of Ohio. As of 2010, the population was 69,709. Its county seat is Steubenville and is named for Thomas Jefferson, who was at the time Vice President....
, located in Warren Township
Warren Township, Jefferson County, Ohio
Warren Township is one of the fourteen townships of Jefferson County, Ohio, United States. The 2000 census found 4,499 people in the township, 2,044 of whom lived in the unincorporated portions of the township.-Geography:...
. The tract was in Township 4 of range 2 of the Old Seven Ranges. In modern times, Rayland, Ohio
Rayland, Ohio
Rayland is a village in Jefferson County, Ohio, United States, along the Ohio River. The population was 434 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Weirton–Steubenville, WV-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
lies at the mouth of Short Creek.