Do you have ancestors who served in the Revolutionary War? If so, do you know which battles they fought in? While I’ve identified some of the colonies my patriot ancestors served with, I haven’t yet fully researched the specific battles they may have participated in.
That curiosity was sparked again during the 250th anniversary of Paul Revere’s ride and the Battles of Lexington and Concord. I wondered—did any of my ancestors take part in those historic events? To find out, I searched my RootsMagic database for events tied to Concord, Massachusetts. Among the results was my 4th great-grandfather, Oliver Miles, who was born in 1772 in Concord, Middlesex County. His birth date and place suggest his father, also named Oliver Miles, could have been present during the Battle of Concord in 1775.
According to the History of the Town of Concord, Oliver Miles (the elder) served under Captain Jonathan Brooks in 1757, when they marched to support Fort William Henry. The book states that Miles was captured and spent three months in captivity—an experience that confirms his service in the local militia.
Later research led me to a Sons of the American Revolution (SAR) application that listed Oliver Miles as a “minute man.” However, I’ve not been able to verify this claim in the known rosters of Concord’s militia or minute men from 1775. That said, Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War does confirm that an Oliver Miles served as a private in a Concord company that marched to Roxbury in 1776.
While I haven’t yet proven that Oliver Miles fought at Concord in April 1775, the records clearly place him among those who served during the Revolutionary War. His 1776 service to Roxbury and earlier captivity in 1757 illustrate a lifetime of dedication to the defense of his community. Like many early patriots, his story may be partially hidden in fragmented records—but each piece brings me closer to understanding the role my ancestors played in the birth of our nation.
Narrative Report for Oliver Miles
Oliver Miles was born on 11 Sep 1738 in Concord Middlesex Massachusetts. [1–2]
On 17 Aug 1757, he served in the military being wounded, taken prisoner, stripped naked and held for 3 months during the battle at Fort William Henry. [3–4]
Oliver served in the military as a private in a Concord company commanded by Lieut. Ephraim Wheeler and Col. Eleazer Brooks in 1776 in Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts Bay Colony. [8–9]
He marched to Roxbury to reinforce Continental Army near Boston in 1776 in Massachusetts Bay Colony, British Colonial America. [8]
He lived in Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts in 1800. [10]
Oliver died on 3 Nov 1820 at the age of 82 in Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts. [1,11–13]
He was buried at South Burying Place in Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts. [1]
Oliver Miles and Martha Stone were married about 1761 in of Framingham, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. [14]
Martha Stone, daughter of Joseph Stone and Lydia Parkhurst, was born in 1741.
She died in 1813 at the age of 72.
ENDNOTES:
1. Find a Grave, database and images, Find a Grave (www.findagrave.com : viewed online 24 April 2025), memorial for Oliver Miles (1738-1820), Find a Grave Memorial no. 24340714, created by Bill Boyington, citing South Burying Place, Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts; accompanying photograph by Bill Boyington, Oliver Miles.
2. “Massachusetts, Town Birth Records, 1620-1850,” database online, New England Historic Genealogical Society, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed online 24 April 2025), Oliver Miles.
3. Lemuel Shattuck, History of the Town of Concord (Boston: Russell, Odiorne and Company, 1835), 72; digitized, Archive.org, http://www.archive.org viewed online 25 April 2025.
4. Biographical Sketches of Representative Citizens, Massachusetts edition (Boston: Graves & Steinbarger, Publishers, 1901), page 341; digitized, Archive.org, http://www.archive.org viewed online 25 April 2025.
5. “Massachusetts, Town Birth Records, 1620-1850,” database online, New England Historic Genealogical Society, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed online November 2019), Oliver Miles.
6. Jonas Michael Miles, Miles Genealogy: John Miles of Concord, Massachusetts and His Descendants (Boston: C.E. Goodspeed & Company, 1920), page 12; books.google.com viewed online November 2016.
7. Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001. Film #004934223. Oliver Miles, 12 Dec 1855; Stowe: 115; 178 of 234, Digitized images, FamilySearch http://www.familysearch.org : viewed online 25 April 2025.
8. Massachusetts, Soldiers and Sailors int he Revolutionary War, Oliver Miles, 1776; digitized images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed online 24 April 2025).
9. Massachusetts Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, Soldiers and Sailors Whose Graves Have Been Designated byt he Marker of the Society (Boston: Massachusetts Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, 1901), page 17; digital image, Wikimedia, wikimedia.org viewed online 24 April 2025.
10. 1800 U.S. Census, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, population schedule, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Image 9 of 11, Oliver Miles; digital image, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed online 24 April 2025)
11. Newspaper Extractions form the Northeast, 1704-1930, Oliver Miles found in Columbian Centinel published 22 Nov 1820, 1820; database and images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed online 25 April 2025). Original Source: Nerspapers and Periodicals. American Antiquarian Society.
12. Massachusetts, Town and Vital Records 1620-1988, Oliver Miles, 1820; digitl image, Ancestry http://www.ancestry.com : viewed online 24 April 2025).
13. “Massachusetts, Town Death Records, 1620-1850,” Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : Concord, Massachusetts, viewed online (24 April 2025), Oliver Miles.
14. Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970, Charles Hobert Kinsman thru Oliver Miles, 1944; database with images, Ancestry.com (www.ancestry.com : viewed online 24 April 2025).