Jeremiah Olney
| Jeremiah Olney | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1749 Rhode Island |
| Died | 10 November 1812 Providence, Rhode Island |
| Allegiance |
 United States
|
| Service/branch |
 Continental Army
|
| Years of service | 1775–1783 |
| Rank | Colonel |
| Battles/wars |
|
| Other work | Society of the Cincinnati |
Jeremiah Olney (1749 – 10 November 1812) was born into an old family from Rhode Island. He formed a company of infantry from that state at the start of the American Revolutionary War. After serving as captain in 1776, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel at the beginning of 1777. As second-in-command of the 2nd Rhode Island Regiment, he fought at Red Bank. After its commander was wounded early in the action, he led Varnum's brigade in bitter fighting at Monmouth in June 1778.
In 1780 he married the governor's daughter, Sarah Cooke. Later that year he led his regiment in action at Springfield. He moved south in 1781 to lead the Rhode Island Regiment at Yorktown. After the war he helped found the Rhode Island chapter of the Society of the Cincinnati. He supported the Federalist Party and held various civil offices. After helping to establish the Providence Theater, he defended it against accusations of immorality. He also invested in farms, turnpikes, shipping, and other business ventures.
Olney was born in 1749 at Providence, Rhode Island to parents Joseph Olney (1706–1777) and Elizabeth T. Mawney (b. 1714). He was one of Joseph's 12 children and was sibling to a twin named Marcy. Olney descended from Thomas Olney, a minister of the First Baptist Church in America and one of the founders of the Rhode Island colony. Olney at first declined a captain's commission in the Rhode Island Army of Observation. Later he assumed command of a company of infantry in Colonel Daniel Hitchcock's Rhode Island Regiment. He held a captain's commission in the regiment beginning on 3 May 1775. He remained a captain during the entire year of 1776 when the unit was called the 11th Continental Regiment.
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