Robert Gardner (b. circa ? - d. circa 1828)
MSA SC 5496-050716
War of 1812 Claimant, Queen Anne's County, Maryland

Biography:

Robert Gardner and his wife, Fanny, lived on Kent Island in Queen Anne's County. Census records show that Robert owned nine slaves in 1800 and ten slaves in 1810.¹ In August 1813, British forces took the slaves Milcah Luddy and Charlotte Dunn from Gardner's farm² during the British invasion and occupation of Kent Island.

Under Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren's orders, Major General Sir Sidney Beckwith had invaded Kent Island on August 6, 1813.³ On August 23^rd, Admiral Warren wrote to the Admiralty that he "was glad to obtain possession of this valuable & beauty [sic] Island ... a central Point between Annapolis, Baltimore, Washington, and the Eastern Ports..., with the further view of ... receiving Cattle, Stock & Vegetables, which this Fertile and well Cultivated Spot furnished in the greatest abundance."⁴ At the time, Admiral Warren had anchored his ship, the San Domingo, off the southern coast of the island.

Luddy and Dunn were not the only slaves from Gardner's farm involved with the British. Sometime in February 1814, Gardner's slave Nathan was imprisoned on the suspicion of piloting the British to Queenstown. However, he had escaped by February 15th.⁵

Following the war, Robert Gardner owned two slaves in 1820, with the census also listing four free blacks working in his household that year.⁶ In 1827, an enslaved woman named Sarah applied to Thomas Charles, the Register of Wills for Queen Anne's County, for a certificate of freedom. The certificate stated that her liberty would "commence at the decease of the said Robert Gardner."⁷

Gardner died around 1828.⁸ Gardner's son Richard (b. 1793) inherited ninety acres of land, including “Coney Hall” and “Barnstable Hill." Richard also inherited “Gardners Landship,” where he was living at the time of his father's death.⁹ Robert Gardner's other children were Robert, William (b. circa 1810), John, Ann (b. circa 1794), Elizabeth (b. circa 1790)  and Martha.¹⁰ Robert had also served as the guardian for Jane E. Gardner, the daughter of John Gardner, who had died sometime between 1809 and 1812.¹¹ In his will, Robert Gardner bequeathed twelve slaves to his children, including the women Patt, Mint, Hannah, Poll, and Maria, the men John and Temp, and the children Benjamin, Charles, Samuel, Bill, and Eliza. He also verified Sarah's manumission.¹²

Gardner appeared on J.G. Stong's 1866 map of Kent Island as "R. Gardner," at the location of "Barnstable Hill."¹³ He had died by 1870, since he did not appear in that year's census. The remains of the Gardner family cemetery stand near or in the "Barnstable Hill" tract. Unfortunately, many of the gravestones are sunken or destroyed.¹⁴
 

1.     U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for Robert Gardner, 1800, Queen Anne's County, district not stated, Page 16, Line 16 [MSA SM61-35, M 2056-5].
3.     U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for Robert Gardner, 1810, Queen Anne's County, district not stated, Page 20b, Line 9 [MSA SM61-55, M 2061-2].

2.     Queen Anne's County, Queen Anne's County, Register of Wills, (Wills, Original), 1789-1849, [MSA C1496-24]. Robert Gardner, July 29, 1825. Probated August 30, 1830.

3.     Paul Harris Nicolas, Historical Record of the Royal Marine Forces, Vol. 2 (London, UK: Thomas and William Boone, 1845) 249-250.

4.     Qtd. in William S. Dudley, ed., The Naval War of 1812: A Documentary History, Vol. 2 (Washington, D.C.: Naval History Center, 1992) 382.

5.     "Broke Gaol." Republican Star 3 May 1814. Courtesy of Margaret Mary Revell Goodwin.
5.     Frederic Emory, Queen Anne's County, Maryland, Its Early History and Development (Baltimore, MD: Maryland Historical Society, 1950) 434.

6.     U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for Robert Gardener, 1820, Queen Anne's County, District 3, Page 1, 4th line from bottom [MSA SM61-75, M 2067-1].

7.     QUEEN ANNE'S COUNTY REGISTER OF WILLS, (Certificates of Freedom), 1807-1848, Liber TCE 1, Folio 118, [MSA C1366-1]. Sarah, June 20, 1827.

8.     Claim of Robert Gardner. Case Files, compiled ca. 1827 - ca. 1828, documenting the period ca. 1814 - ca. 1828. *ARC Identifier 1174160 / MLR Number PI 177 190*. National Archives, College Park.

9.     Queen Anne's County, Queen Anne's County, Register of Wills, (Wills, Original), 1789-1849, [MSA C1496-24]. Robert Gardner, July 29, 1825. Probated August 30, 1830.

10.   Queen Anne's County, Queen Anne's County, Register of Wills, (Wills, Original), 1789-1849, [MSA C1496-24]. Robert Gardner, July 29, 1825. Probated August 30, 1830.
10.   QUEEN ANNE'S COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT, (Marriage Licenses), [MSA T1702-1]. Henry Williams and Elizabeth Gardiner, September 7, 1824.
10.   U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for Anna Tolson, 1850, Queen Anne's County, District 4, Page 5, Line 36.
10.   U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for William Gardner, 1850, Queen Anne's County, District 4, Page 6, Line 3.
10.   U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for Elizabeth Williams, 1850, Queen Anne's County, District 3, Page 51, Line 4 [].

11.   Queen Anne's County, Queen Anne's County, Register of Wills, (Wills, Original), 1789-1849, [MSA C1496-24]. Robert Gardner, July 29, 1825. Probated August 30, 1830.
11.   QUEEN ANNE'S COUNTY REGISTER OF WILLS, (Wills), 1889-1897, Liber FR 1, Folio 75, Film Reel: CR 57-2, [MSA CM869-18]. Jane E. Wright, January 24, 1893.
11.   U.S. Census Bureau (Census Record, MD) for Jane E. Wright, 1880, Queen Anne's County, Kent Island, District 62, Line 1 [MSA SM61-327, M 4750-2].
11.   QUEEN ANNE'S COUNTY COURT, (Land Records), 1828-1831, Liber TM 5, Folio 582, [MSA CE 143-35], Benjamin and William Richardson to Jane Gardner, April 6, 1831.
11.   QUEEN ANNE'S COUNTY COURT, (Land Records), 1807-1810, Liber STW 10, Folio 351, [MSA CE 143-28]. Thomas Richardson to John Gardner, June 10, 1809.

12.   Ibid.
        QUEEN ANNE'S COUNTY REGISTER OF WILLS, (Certificates of Freedom), 1807-1848, Liber TCE 1, Folio 118, [MSA C1366-1]. Sarah, June 20, 1827.

13.   Queen Anne's County District 4, J. G. Stong's Map of Queen Anne's County, 1866, [MSA SC 5080-1]. Courtesy of the Queen Anne's County Historical Society.
13.   “Barnstable Hill, Lowery Farm.” QA-524. Maryland Historical Trust, Inventory of Historic Properties. www.mdihp.net.

14.   Upper Shore Genealogical Society of Maryland, Tombstones of Queen Anne's County, Maryland, Vol. 1 (Easton, MD: The Upper Shore Genealogical Society, 1994) 15.
3.     Diana Horney Gabler, "Gardner Family Cemetery: The Destruction of a Family Cemetery," RootsWeb, 2003. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~chesapeake/cemetery/cemetery_photos/queen_annes_county/gardnercem/gardner_cemetery.html.
 

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