Ebenezer Battelle

Ebenezer Battelle
Born	1754 Dedham, Massachusetts
Died	1815
Occupation(s)	Bookseller, Military officer, Pioneer settler
Years active	1775–1787 (bookselling and military service)
Known for	Veteran of the American Revolutionary War; bookseller in Boston; pioneering settler of Marietta, Ohio

Ebenezer Battelle (1754–1815) was a veteran of the American Revolutionary War, a bookseller based in Boston, Massachusetts, and among the pioneering settlers of Marietta, Ohio during the late 1700s.

Life in Dedham

Ebenezer Battelle was born in 1754 in Dedham, Massachusetts to parents Ebenezer Battle and Prudence Draper. He pursued higher education at Harvard College, graduating with the class of 1775 alongside distinguished contemporaries such as Fisher Ames and Benjamin Bourne. In Dedham, he was actively involved with groups like the Sons of Liberty and Free Brothers.

Starting in 1778, Battelle held the position of town clerk for a two-year period and was also elected to serve two terms as a selectman during that same year. In collaboration with Nathaniel Ames and Abijah Draper, he contributed to the construction of the Pillar of Liberty in Dedham in 1766, commemorating the repeal of the Stamp Act.

Military

Battelle took part as a volunteer in the Lexington battle and participated in several military actions throughout the Revolutionary War. His service record includes nineteen days stationed at Castle Island in 1776, involvement in an expedition to Providence, Rhode Island in 1777, and reenlistment in 1778. That year, he received a captain’s commission for the Eighth Company within the Suffolk Regiment, was elevated to major by 1780, and advanced to colonel of the Boston regiment by 1784. In 1786, he became a member of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts.

Bookseller

Following his military career, Battelle ran a bookstore located on State Street in Boston from approximately 1783 to 1785 before relocating his business to Marlboro Street around 1785 until about 1787. His stock featured both imported works from London and American publications such as Isaiah Thomas' Almanack and Noah Webster's Grammatical Institutes, demonstrating a deliberate emphasis on serving both domestic and international readers.

Personal life

Ebenezer Battelle married Anna Durant, and they had children including Ebenezer (born 1778) and Thomas (born 1781). Around 1789, the family moved to Marietta, Ohio, seeking new prospects on the western frontier.

In 1783, Battelle engaged in commercial dealings involving settlements for merchandise like beaver skin hats, reflecting his active participation in trade during the post-war period.

See also

• List of booksellers in Boston

Further reading

• Battelle family. In: History of Ohio: the rise and progress of an American state, Volume 6. Century History Co., 1912.