Freeman Family Burials
Also Known As - Freeman Cemetery
(Town of Ledyard, NY)  Cemetery #93

The following is a 2024 update from Jessica Armstrong:

The Northwest corner of 1600 Sherwood Road, Ledyard; about 2500 feet west of the town line and 4000 feet west from the intersection of Route 34B and Sherwood Road.

The arrow refers to the northwest corner of the above marked "Site," about 175 feet south of the road. From Phyllis Stanton, Town of Venice Historian: "The cemetery on Sherwood Road near Dixon Road is cemetery #93 Freeman Family (town of Ledyard). The gravestones are in the hedgerow between the two fields. Someone cleaned the area out a few years ago before things start growing in the spring you can see the stones."

Email to Jessica Armstrong, Research Aide, Cayuga County Historian's Office, on June 14, 2024.

The 1960's Inventory of Cayuga County, NY Cemeteries
compiled by local historians and the Owasco Chapter of the DAR
cites the following for this burial site cemetery:
This cemetery is located about 100 feet south of the Sherwood Road , just west of the Marshall Dugan boundry fence , nearly opposite the Engat Farm residence . Area is about 15' by 30' . Only two gravestones were found. The larger one was half buried in the ground. Plot covered with brush.

FREEMAN , EUNICE		D. JULY 23 , 1833 AE 82 YRS. per 1960s inventory 
				(prob should be D. Jan. 29, 1833 ae 82 yrs per headstone)

FREEMAN , G. ( GIDEON ) *	D. NO DATES per 1960s inventory
				(Prob. should be D. Apr. 25, 1809 ae. 64 yrs per headstone)

The following information on the "Gideon & Eunice Freeman" is provided by Bob Hodges.
I visited the family grave site of my great great great great grandparents, Mr. & Mrs. Gideon Freeman, Sr. in Ledyard. Their granddaughter Roby Archer, who married David Hodges (1), was my great great grandmother.  The site, not visible from Sherwood Rd., is not easy to find. I was led to the site by Joyce Tice of Marathon, NY, also a descendant of Eunice & Gideon.  Joyce had located the burial site previously, based on the directions posted on this web site and on her intuition.  I can report that it is located 3.3 miles west of Route 90 in Aurora, about 103 feet directly behind a telephone pole on the south side of Sherwood Rd.  The pole is the nearest one to a silo with a green & white checkered top, across the road.  It is on Great Lot No. 36 of the Military Tract.  Knowing both headstones were down, an unacceptable condition for a Revolutionary War veteran and his wife, I went prepared with boards, a shovel and cleaning materials to correct that.  After hours of work, both headstones were righted and leaned against trees at a sufficient angle that the swaying of the trees in the wind would not tip them over.  The surfaces were thoroughly scrubbed and cleaned.  A photograph of each appears above.  His headstone reads, "Gideon Freeman, Died April 25, 1809; In the 64 year of his age" and hers, "Eunice Freeman, Died Jany. 29, 1833; In the 82 year of her age."  

Gideon's service in the Revolutionary War has been analyzed and discussed in detail in my newsletter.' In summary, Gideon served as a private in Col. Cornelius Van Veghten's 13th Regiment of the Albany County, NY Militia. He was paid a total of 4 pounds, I shilling, 9 pence for his service during 5 different periods.  Since his dates of service were lost in the 1911 fire in Albany, one is forced to deduce when he served.  Because of when the 13th Reg't was active, it is evident that Gideon served in the Battles of Saratoga.  All of the 'NY Militia units were brigaded under Brig. General Abraham Ten Broeck2. Since his participation in the Battle of Saratoga is known, the presence of Gideon Freeman is thereby presumably known. Gen. Ten Broeck's assembled 2nd through 17th Reg'ts. of 1,800 men were in the field for the Battle of Freeman's Farm in Stillwater, NY, but were held in reserve to the south and west of General Gates' headquarters during the action. But Gen. Ten Broeck's troops did see action during the second phase of the Battle of Saratoga', the Battle of Bemis Heights. His troops were initially kept in reserve, but when the enemy was engaged in Barbour's wheat field, Gen. Gates' Aide-de-camp, Maj. James Wilkinson saw the need for the reserves and left the wheat field to call Gen. Ten Broeck and his regiments forward.

They arrived toward the end of that action as the British were in full retreat. The impressive numbers of the NY Militia pouring onto the battlefield further dispirited the fleeing enemy troops. But then, Maj. Gen. Benedict Arnold led an all-out attack against the British in the Balcarres Redoubt with all available American troops, including those of Gen. Ten Broeck. Thus it can be deduced that Gideon Freeman was involved in the attack on the Balcarres Redoubt.  The enemy fire proved too intense to overwhelm the redoubt, so the Americans fell back and continued to shoot from behind trees and depressions in the ground.  This fire from the NY Militia and other troops provided cover for Gen. Arnold to fearlessly cross over and lead the successful attack with other American troops against the nearby Breymann Redoubt, leading to the surrender of the Germans inside.

The conclusion can be drawn, based upon the preponderance of evidence, that Gideon Freeman contributed to this American victory at the Battle of Saratoga, which was the turning point of the American Revolution. His head- stone, as well as his wife's, in Ledyard, Cayuga Co. is now upright and clean, as befitting a patriotic American. Robert J. Hodges RJHodgesA@AOL.com 1 Hodges-Archer Family History Newsletter, Vol. 4, No. 1, pp. 14 - 17, dated 7 August 1999. 2 According to Ranger Joe Craig, at the Saratoga National Historic Park, National Park Service. 3 "Saratoga, Turning Point of America's Revolutionary War, 1775 - 1781" by Richard M. Ketchum, Pub. by Da Capo Press, NY, 1995.

* Possible Correction cited per attached letter below as follows: 



			Box 5261 Trailer Estates 
			Bradenton , Fl 34281 
			March 8 , 1991 



Historians Office
Cayuga Co. 
Auburn , NY 13021 

Dear Sir , 

I have corresponded with your office in the past as a researcher of the FREEMAN family. Recently

viewing the LDS Microfilm of Cayuga Co NY Cem Records , I found Ledyard p 37 Freeman Family 

Burials ; Freeman , Eunice d 23 July 1833

                   "       ,  G.      (no dates)



Perhaps you would like to make note that G is GIDEON , my g-g-g-g-grandfather who was married to

Eunice (FORD) Freeman and who was , also in the Rev War serving as a Sgt. in the 13th Regt of the 

Albany Militia. Gideon was b 17 Sep 1749 Norwich New London Ct & married Eunice , who was b.

3 Oct 1751 Nine Partners Dutchess NY , at Stillwater Saratoga NY 12 Dec 1771. In the 1790 Census

they are living at Easton Albany NY , but by the 1800 Census have settled at Cayuga Co NY. Several 

of his children including Reuben ( buried in Devine Cem ) , Gideon & Lucy who marr Elijah Shaw 

14 Nov 1811 in Scipio settled with him.



                                                       Gideon  d. 25 Apr 1809 Scipio Cayuga NY



Incidently I noted a typographical error in the Cemetry Index which could mislead searchers. On the

Summary page following the section on Ledyard , the Cemetry listing is TREEMAN BURIALS instead

of Freeman.

I am always happy to correspond with any of this family's researchers who may contact your office. 

Don J Badger of Santa Rosa CA is preparing a genealogy of the Descendants of Gideon & his brothers

James , Stephen , Elijah , & Elisha who served in the Rev. War & fought in the Battle of Saratoga 

including the Freeman Family Farm.



                                                                                     Sincerely ,

         

                                                                                   Marcia Miller

                                                                                 ( Mrs. Norman ) 

Thanks to Linda Brinkman for transcribing the information on this page into a digital format.