Pictured is General Peter Muhlenberg, 1746- 1807.
(By Stephen Kelley from the People’s Defender 1984)
As we have written in previous columns, Adams County was created out of the Virginia Military District. The lands that now make up this area were originally reserved as bounty lands for Revolutionary War soldiers from the state of Virginia.
Much of this acreage was bought from the former soldiers by speculators who hoped to turn a profit on their investment once the Indians were subdued and settlers began moving in. One of these speculators who bought land that is now part of Adam County was Johann Gabriel Peter Muhlenberg. Born in 1746 in Trappe, Pennsylvania, Peter Muhlenberg was the son of a German immigrant. His father was the Reverend Heinrich M. Muhlenberg, founder of the Lutheran Church in America.
Peter Muhlenberg, with two brothers, attended school in Halle, Germany and returned to Pennsylvania in 1766. Two years later he was ordained as minister in the Lutheran Church. Feeling a call to preach in the colony of Virginia, Muhlenberg realized his German Lutheran background would be of little value in that area. He, therefore traveled to London in 1772 where he was accepted and ordained as a priest in the Episcopal Church. This was necessary for his recognition as a minister of the gospel under the prevailing laws of Virginia. Upon his return to America he entered the pastorate of the German Lutheran Church at the city of Woodstock, Virginia. He quickly became a leading figure in that community and was elected to serve the local population in the house of Burgesses.
Despite his connections with the British, as tensions mounted between the colonies and “John Bull”, Muhlenberg was not hesitant to side with the Americans who wanted independence. As a result of his sermons and speeches against British tyranny, Muhlenberg was elected as a representative from his county to attend the Revolutionary Convention in 1775-76. While at this assembly he was appointed colonel in the 8th Virginia Regiment.
Muhlenberg received his commission in April, 1776 and was given command of three hundred German-Americans that same month. This regiment was put under Major General Charles Lee. Their first assignment was the defense of Charleston, South Carolina during which Muhlenberg proved his military capabilities. Within months his regiment was placed under General George Washington, and he was promoted to brigadier general.
Regardless of the fact that the American forces lost the battles of Brandywine and Georgetown, in both instances, Muhlenberg’s men fought creditably and checked the enemy’s advance permitting an orderly retreat and preventing possible annihilation of Washington’s army by the British. Muhlenberg also served under Washington at Valley Forge where he worked with General Friedrich Von Steuben to reorganize and train the 11,000 demoralized men who suffered through that terrible winter of 1778. And it was Muhlenberg ‘s men who helped secure the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown when they stormed and captured a key outlying British fortification known as Redoubt Number one.
Following Yorktown, Washington appointed Muhlenberg as military commander of Virginia, and near the close of the war, he was promoted to major general. After the Revolution, he eventually moved back to Pennsylvania were he held important state offices and served six years in the U.S. House of Representatives and was selected to the U.S. Senate.
Even though he was awarded several thousand acres in the Northwest Territory for his military service, he chose to buy additional land in this area for speculative purposes. In 1802 he purchased a two-thousand-acre tract just north of present-day Winchester that stretches into Highland County. The crossroads community of Emerald is situation near the middle of this large section of land. Unfortunately, Muhlenberg died before he had the opportunity to sell his Adams County acreage. Most of it was held by his heirs until sold by them in the 1830’s.
