| Obituary |
Obit., Republican (Baltimore, MD), 24 Jan. 1803:
Wednesday morning, the 19th inst., terminated the existence of major Thomas Lansdale of Queen Ann, Prince George's county. - In the death of major Lansdale society has to deplore the loss of a truly honorable man--as rich in principle, hospitality, and good neighbourhood as he was in pecuniary acquirement. |
| Notes |
- Lansdale, Thomas (Md). 1st Lieutenant Maryland Battalion of the Flying Camp, July to December, 1776; Captain 4th Maryland, 10th December, 1776; Major, 3d Maryland, 19th February, 1781; retained in Maryland Battalion, April, 1783, and served to 15th November, 1783; also appears to have been a prisoner in March, 1780, but when and where taken, not stated. The tradition is that he died because of trauma inflicted upon him as a prisoner.
One history which has direct reference to his service is Louise Joyner Hienton, Prince George's Heritage (Baltimore: Maryland Historical Society, 1972). He was in Colonel (later General) Smallwood's command. This command participated "in the Battle of Harlem Heights on September 16 [1776], the Battle of White Plains on October 27, the surrender of Fort Washington on November 16, and the surrender of Fort Lee on November 20. Captain John H. Lowe was wounded at Harlem Heights; Lieutentant John Sprigg Belt and Lieutenant Thomas Lansdale were taken prisoners at Fort Washington" (181). He was promoted to Captain in the late winter or Spring of 1777.
He apparently was living in Montgomery Co. in the 1780s, but moved to Prince George's Co. by 1800. He is buried on the Claggett Farm in Mitchellsville, Prince George's Co.
His will was dated Nov. 13th, 1802, and admitted to probate on Jan 27th, 1803. He mentions his 5 children in it. The Prince George's County Genealogical Society Journal has a copy of this in one of its early volumes.
A miniature portrait of him was painted by Charles Wilson Peale in 1781; in 1952 it was owned by Mrs. Harold Berry of Portland, Maine. 1781 is the same year he was made a Major. Peale apparently mentions in his diary that he met Major Lansdale at Valley Forge.
For an abstract of his will, see the Prince George's Co. Genealogical Soc. Bulletin, somewhere in vols. 1-4. He had real estate "in and about the Town of Queen Anne" when he died which he left to his wife. The will says it was "dated November 13th, 1802, admitted to probate Jan. 27th, 1803." He also mentions the year "eighteen hundred and four" in the will. Is the typical death date for him in 1805 wrong, or did he live longer than expected?
Note this collection at the Maryland Archives:
Paul Guzzi Collection, MSA SC 1049
Collection Dates: 1779-1780
Collection Description: "Petty Accounts against Soldiers of the Fourth Maryland Regiment Commanded by Colonel Josias Carvil Hall for the month of June 1779," and a ledger of accounts possibly kept by John Hamilton, paymaster, 4th Maryland Regiment, June 1779-January 1780. Names of commanding officers include Captain Thomas Lansdale, Captain Jonathan Sellman, Captain Edward Oldham, Captain Reily, Captain John Sprigg Belt, Captain Edward Spurrier.
Medium: Original, microfilm
Restrictions: RESTRICTED: Circulate microfilm copy only. Use of original requires permission of State Archivist
Storage: 00/09/13/02
Film No.: M 1553
Inventories: Microfilm Inventory
A gravesite was dedicated to him on Dec. 8, 2007, across Rt. 197 from the new town center in Bowie, Md, by members of the Masonic Collington Lodge. Here is part of the dedication (from this page: http://www.collingtonmasoniclodge.org/ ):
“Friends and brethren, we who are Masons have assembled on this occasion to honor a man who proved himself to be a true American hero. Bro. Thomas Lancaster Lansdale entered Free Masonry on December 20, 1771 at the Lodge of Sincerity in the village of Rotherhithe, now a suburb of London. And as we now know, a few years later, he joined with his fellow Marylanders to fight the British during the Revolutionary War. [. . .]” [5]
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1748 - 1805 (56 years)
