Ebenezer Denny

Ebenezer Denny was a soldier during the American Revolutionary War whose journal is one of the most frequently quoted accounts of the surrender of the British at the siege of Yorktown. Denny later served as the first Mayor of Pittsburgh, from 1816 to 1817.

Denny was born in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on March 11, 1761, the eldest son of William and Agnes Parker Denny. At the age ofhe was entrusted to carry dispatches across the Allegheny Mountains by the commandant at Fort Pitt. He crossed alone often to conceal his presence he hid in the woods at night. At one point he was chased into Fort Loudon by the Indians. He then entered into employment for his fathers shop in Carlisle. Upon learning that a letter of the marque, a privateer ship, was to sail from Philadelphia for the West Indies, he shipped as a volunteer. He was promoted to command the quarterdeck for his gallantry in numerous sea fights.

Source: Wikipedia