SHELBY – As the 250th Anniversary of the American Revolutionary War and the Declaration of Independence from Britain comes to the year’s end, Wreaths Across America sponsorship group Oakland Heritage Connection continues to celebrate this anniversary with a dedication to Revolutionary War veteran James Gamble, founder of Gamble’s Mill, now Shelby, Ohio.
The public is invited to the ceremony at 4 p.m. on Veteran’s Day, Nov. 11 at Shelby Oakland Cemetery, 116 S. Gamble St., for a brief program to honor this Revolutionary Veteran and town founder. A park bench and white oak tree have been placed in his honor near his headstone in section F.
Gamble was a Dutchess County, New York, native and joined the cause for the Revolution in 1778 at the age of 19. He was not only a corporal in the New York Militia under Capt. Thomas Bradshaw as a Ranger and scout, but was also enlisted in Colonel Ethan Allen’s Additional Corps, under Colonel Seth Warner as a Green Mountain Boy.
Military Records show his participation in such places as Sandy Hill, Halfway Brook, Bloody Pond, as well as others, including Skeensborough.
Gamble moved to Richland County in 1823, using a land grant from the government for
his participation in the war. He and two of his sons began Gamble’s Mill, a post office, and James laid out the first 23 plats to form the foundations of the town of Shelby, Ohio, in 1834.
The public is invited to the dedication and descendants of the Gamble family will be recognized. Attendees will also be able to sponsor a wreath for another veteran in Oakland or St. Mary’s Cemeteries for $17.
For more information, email oaklandheritageconnection@gmail.com.