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by Nancy Cioch |
Memorial Dedication Service for Colonel Peter Bellinger
There will be a memorial dedication service held for Revolutionary War Colonel Peter Bellinger. This will be held October 15, 2005 from 1-3 p.m. at Fort Herkimer Church, Route 5S, Mohawk, NY.
Colonel Peter Bellinger fought with General Nicholas Herkimer at the Battle of Oriskany, August 6, 1777. He was made commander of the German Flatts and Kingsland Militia. He is credited with holding the frontier through the remainder of the Revolutionary War.
Peter Bellinger was married to Delia Herkimer, sister of General Nicholas Herkimer. He had property on Fall Hill, Little Falls and provided the carry around the falls. He and his brother-in-law built the carry around the falls. He was a supporter of the Fort Herkimer Church. This fortified church was a safe haven for the local residents in times of attack. Colonel Bellinger chose the area around Ft. Herkimer Church to muster the militia – the troops under his command. His district of defense covered from the falls, (what is now Little Falls) west to Ft. Stanwix, north to the Canadian border, and south to the Pennsylvania line.
After the war, he returned to his farm on Fall Hill, where he died at the age of 87. As per Reverend Spinner’s records, his grave is on the northeast corner of the Fort Herkimer Church. Since there was no stone marker, it was decided by some descendants that this omission should be rectified. A stone was applied for through the Veterans Administration and was delivered to the cemetery.
Plans for the dedication are arranged with invitations going to local Daughters of the American Revolution, Sons of the American Revolution, Children of the American Revolution chapters and historical societies. The Militia Re-enactors have been invited and members of the Northern Frontier Project. All Bellinger descendants are invited as well as the general public.
