Sanford Wesley Ransdell (September 11, 1781 – July 30, 1854) was an early American pioneer and soldier in the Battle of Tippecanoe.The Battle of Tippecanoe, Read Beard, 1897The Battle of Tippecanoe, Alfred Pirtle, J. P. Morton and Company, Louisville, Kentucky, 1900 Ransdell was born in Orange County, Virginia, on September 11, 1781. He was a descendant of Edward Ransdell, a signer of the historic Leedstown Resolutions written up in defiance of the Stamp Act.

Indiana Pioneer By 1803, Ransdell was living in Mercer Co., Kentucky. Soon he emigrated to the frontier of the Indiana Territory, where he was an early pioneer. He met and subsequently married, around 1808, Rhoda Sampson,The Mattoon Weekly Gazette, Mattoon, Illinois, July 14, 1893 the daughter of William and Sarah (Coleman) Sampson in Harrison County, Indiana. William Sampson had served in the American Revolution with the Virginia troops. Their first child Frances Laura was born on March 15, 1809.The History of Arkansas, 1913, pp. 1570–1571

Wartime service On September 6, 1811,The Battle of Tippecanoe, Alfred Pirtle, J. P. Morton and Company, Louisville, Kentucky, 1900 Ransdell enlisted as a mounted rifleman in a regiment known as the "Yellow Jackets".

At 4:45 am, November 7, 1811,The Tipton Papers, Volume 1, 1809–1827 Compiled by Glen A. Blackburn, 1942 Indiana Historical Bureau, Indianapolis, pp. 74–83 Ransdell's regiment of eighty men, under the command of Spier Spencer, took part in the Battle of Tippecanoe at Tippecanoe Creek. This company occupied the right flankJudge Isaac Naylor's Account where according to General William Henry Harrison the fighting was, "excessively severe", and that the men of Ransdell's company, "bravely maintained their posts". Despite "having suffered so severely, and having originally maintained their posts".Official Dispatch, Wiliam Henry Harrison, November 18, 1811

During the fierce fighting two horses were shot dead from under Ransdell and his left thumb was shot off.History of Vigo and Parke Counties, Together with Historic Notes on the Wabash Valley, H. W. Beckwith, 1880 pp. 449–450 The captain of the regiment, Spier Spencer, the first lieutenant Richard McMahan and the second lieutenant Thomas Berry were all killed in action. Ransdell was eventually mustered out at Corydon on November 24, 1811.The Battle of Tippecanoe, Alfred Pirtle, J. P. Morton and Company, Louisville, Kentucky, 1900

In a message sent to the U.S. House of Representatives, General Harrison had this to say about Ransdell's company: "With equal pride and pleasure, then, do I pronounce that, notwithstanding the regular troops behaved as well as men ever did, many of the militia companies were in no wise inferior to them. Of this number were the mounted riflemen, commanded by Captain Spencer. To them was committed the charge of defending the right flank of the army. That it could not have been committed to better hands, their keeping their ground (indeed gaining upon the enemy) for an hour and a half with unequal arms against superior numbers, and amid a carnage that might have made veterans tremble, is sufficient evidence."

A year later Ransdell participated in the War of 1812 and served as a first sergeant in the 5th Regiment Indiana Militia in Captain Jacob Zenor's Company from October 20 to November 18, 1812. For his actions on November 7, 1811, and his wartime service he would be awarded of land.

Noah Beauchamp Affair The Ransdells moved to Floyd County, Indiana,The Mattoon Weekly Gazette, Mattoon, Illinois, July 14, 1893 by 1820 and again later to Vigo County, Indiana. On March 15, 1827, their daughter Frances married Noah Beauchamp Jr., the son of the blacksmith Noah Beauchamp.The History of Arkansas, 1913, pp. 1570–1571History of Vigo and Parke Counties, Together with Historic Notes on the Wabash Valley, H. W. Beckwith, 1880 pp. 449–450

In 1840, Noah Beauchamp Sr. stabbed his neighbor George Mickelberry to death over a dispute.Wabash Courier, September 10, 1842Wabash Express, September 28, 1842History of Vigo County, Indiana, S. B. Nelson & Co., Chicago, 1891 This famous incident culminated in a prolonged manhunt and trial that dragged both Ransdell and Rhoda into the witness box.Noah Beauchamp Indictment, Parke County, Indiana, 1841

Ransdell witnessed the coroner's inquest regarding Mickelberry's death and was called to testify for the defense. Rhoda was also called to testify at the trial to verify that Mrs. Mickeberry had changed her story. Mrs. Mickelberry had previously stated various details to Rhoda and Elizabeth implying that if it had not been for Mickelberry's daughter Delilah Decker, by a previous marriage, the killing would not have taken place.Noah Beauchamp Indictment, Parke County, Indiana, 1841

Ultimately, their testimony in favor of their daughter's father-in-law proved fruitless: Noah Beauchamp Sr., was hanged on December 30, 1842.History of Vigo County, Indiana, S. B. Nelson & Co., Chicago, 1891 The family continued to live in Vigo County with the notorious incident hanging about them for over a decade before eventually moving away to Cumberland County, Illinois.

Last Years The Ransdells had a total of nine children the last one Daniel was born in 1835 and would serve as a private in Company A. 7th Regiment of Illinois during the Civil War.

In 1854 both Sanford Ransdell and Rhoda died, Rhoda from an epidemic and Sanford, according to the coroner's jury, "came to his death by intoxication and oppressive heat from the sun", Sanford Ransdell died in Cumberland County, Illinois, on July 30, 1854. The two were buried side by side at Berry Cemetery in Toledo, Illinois.

References

External links Roll of Captain Spier Spencer's Company of Mounted Rifleman of the Indiana Militia