Many Hoosier Patriots served far from the spotlight, and Andrew Ice was one of them. His war was fought in blockhouses and forts in the wilderness, and his service was recorded years later only through sworn recollections. Nearly two centuries after his death, though, his name resurfaced! Carried forward by descendants and preserved by the Daughters of the American Revolution, it was ultimately etched into public memory here near home.
To mark the United States’ 250th birthday, the Daughters of the American Revolution has joined forces with America250, the nationwide commemoration of our country’s semiquincentennial, to pay tribute to Revolutionary War Patriots. As part of the celebration, I’ll be sharing the stories of those laid to rest in Delaware County, with help from Kathi Hirons Kesterson -the regent of the Paul Revere Chapter of Muncie’s DAR– over the next several Fridays.
Andrew Ice was born in 1758 in Hampshire County, Virginia, but grew up in Monongalia County1. As the Revolution reached the backcountry around 1779 or 1780, Ice volunteered by enlisting under Lieutenant Morgan Morgan and Captain Owen Davy2. Before long, Ice and his fellow soldiers were on the move, marching from Prickett’s Fort to the headwaters of Buffalo Creek. There, they built a blockhouse in the wilderness and spent months ranging the surrounding country on scouting duty. Ice remained in the service for about six months, until Captain Davy issued his discharge3.
Ice wasn’t finished with the war: later that same year, he volunteered a second time at Prickett’s Ford in Monongalia County. Once again, he served under Lieutenant Morgan, but this time under Captain Jacob Prickett. After two months in the field, Prickett formally discharged him. Ice was sent back to the frontier he had helped defend.
Andrew Ice’s third tour began at Rogers Fort in Monongalia County, where he once again answered the call to serve. This time, Ice enlisted under Ensign Philip Waters, Lieutenant Lewis Rogers, and Captain James Brinton, embarking on a demanding march across the western frontier. His route carried him to Catfish Fort in Washington County, Pennsylvania, on to Montour’s Bottom along the Ohio River, and then to Big Beaver, also on the river, before he was finally stationed at Fort McIntosh4.
At Fort McIntosh, Ice joined a regiment commanded by Colonel John Evans and served under Major Zadix Spriner and General Lachlan McIntosh. From there, he marched west into what’s now Tuscarawas County, Ohio, before returning once more to the fort. After six months of continuous service on this far edge of the Revolution, Colonel Evans discharged him, closing out Ice’s longest and furthest-reaching term in uniform.
When the fighting finally ended, Andrew Ice returned to Monongalia County, Virginia. He lived there for decades in the aftermath of the Revolution, until April of 1832, when he headed west to Henry County, Indiana. By then, the war had long since faded into memory. Unfortunately, so, too, had the paperwork that once proved his service.
“I received a discharge each time,” Ice explained when he applied for his pension in Hentry County in 1832. “…the first was given by Owen Davy, the second by Capt Jacob Prickett, and the third by Col John Evans though they are all lost and mislaid5.” Like so many veterans of the frontier war, Ice carried his service forward in recollection alone.
Fortunately, Ice’s testimony was backed up by some of his contemporaries, including Jesse McClintic and Jacob Hickman, whose statements were attested before Probate Judge Isaac N. White of Henry County6. In 1833, another veteran, William Daugherty, came before Delaware County Circuit Court Clerk William VanMatre to say that he could “perfectly well recollect and distinctly remember that Andrew Ice served six months as a volunteer soldier, as follows, to wit, they rendezvoused at the place where Washington, Pennsylvania now stands then called Cat Fishes Fort7.”
Ultimately, Andrew Ice was granted his pension as a resident of Henry County. He died on March 13, 1848, at ninety, and was laid to rest on land owned by his son, Frederick8. Where, exactly, that resting place lies is still something of a mystery, though: Frederick Ice held property in both Washington Township in Delaware County9 and Prairie Township in Henry County10, leaving Andrew’s burial site frustratingly uncertain. The balance of the evidence, however, suggests that his grave was most likely in Henry County11.
Today, at least, that mystery has been put to rest. In 1906, the Daughters of the American Revolution petitioned to have Andrew Ice reinterred beneath a marker at Mt. Summit Cemetery in Henry County. The request was approved, and on June 14, 1907, his new headstone was formally unveiled12. Standing among those in attendance was seven-year-old Virginia Ice, Andrew’s great-great-great granddaughter, who had the honor of revealing her ancestor’s marker13. Nearly 120 years later, Andrew Ice still rests at Mt. Summit Cemetery. His service and story have finally been given a permanent place of remembrance.
Aside from his son’s ties -and those of later descendants- to Delaware County, Andrew Ice himself doesn’t appear to have had much direct connection to the place. So why honor him here? The answer lies in remembrance rather than residency: it was Muncie’s Paul Revere Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution that ensured Ice received a proper marker more than a century ago, and it was descendants from both Delaware and Henry Counties who gathered to recognize his Revolutionary War service.
Whether Andrew Ice ever truly called Delaware County home or not, his name is etched in bronze on a plaque in the Delaware County Building in downtown Muncie. His service is remembered here, and, in the end, it wasn’t where he lived that mattered most, but that he served. Ice’s marker at Mt. Summit Cemetery is a reminder that the Revolution was won not only by famous generals, but by ordinary men whose sacrifices still deserve to be named, remembered, and honored.
Sources Cited
1 Something About Andrew Ice, Whose Memory Is Honored Today By The D.A.R. (1907, June 14). The Muncie Press. p. 5.
2 Andrew Ice, Revolutionary War pension file, S.32336; U .S . Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, NARA microfilm publication M804, roll 1389; Record Group 15; digital images, Fold3 (https://www.fold3.com: accessed 11 December 2025); transcribed by Kathryn Hirons Kesterson.
3 (See footnote 2).
4 Affidavit of William Daugherty regarding the Revolutionary War service of Andrew Ice, sworn 12 August 1833; Delaware County, Indiana; in pension application of Andrew Ice (S32336), Virginia service; Case Files of Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Applications Based on Revolutionary War Service, ca. 1800-ca. 1912 (NARA microfilm publication M804, roll 1389), Record Group 16; digital images, Fold3 (https://www.fold3.com: accessed 11 December 2025); transcribed by Kathryn Hirons Kesterson.
4 Hiller, A.D. (936, January 18). [Letter from A.D. Hiller to Emma B. Hawley, 1936]. Web. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
5 (See footnote 2).
6 (See footnote 2).
7 (See footnote 4).
8 To Unveil Marker At Patriot’s Grave (1907, June 13). The Muncie Star. p. 8.
9 Sale-Cash Entry (3 Stat. 566) (1820, April 24). Ice, Frederick. Web. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
10 An illustrated historical atlas of Henry CO., Indian (1875). Higgins, Belden * Company [Chicago]. Map.
11 To Unveil Marker At Patriot’s Grave (1907, June 13). The Muncie Star. p. 8.
12 Many Descendents of Andrew Ice Present (1907, June 15). The Muncie Evening Press. p. 5.
13 Observe Flag Day (1907, June 10). The Muncie Star. p. 10.
14 (See footnote 12).
It is always interesting to see how these people traveled from the area of the original colonies out into what were then the hinterlands.