The following is a biography provided in the History of Kalamazoo County, Michigan (1880) pp. 454-455.
“COL. Abiel Fellows“ was born in Canaan, Litchfield Co., Conn., Oct. 1, 1762. His grandfather emigrated from England, and was among the first settlers in the New England States. He left a family of five sons and three daughters. His father kept a public-house in Canaan, and married a Miss Rowe, by whom he had five children. Abiel, the youngest, received a common-school education. At the age of fifteen he went out with the Connecticut militia, who flocked to Gates’ and Schuyler’s army. He was with his uncle, who commanded a division at the battle of Freeman’s Farm, Oct. 7, 1777, and at Saratoga, October 17th, when Burgoyne surrendered. He then returned home, but shortly after re-enlisted, remaining in the service until peace was proclaimed. For his services he drew a pension of ninety-six dollars a year.
At the age of twenty-two he married Katherine Mann. Their children numbered six,--Andrus, Amanda, Ann, Almira, Abiel, and Asahel.
In 1785 he went to Luzerene Co., Pa., where he located several thousand acres of land; he sold a portion of it, retaining about one thousand acres, upon which he lived forty-four years, until 1829.
In 1803 his wife died. In 1805 he married Dorcas, daughter of Timothy Hopkins, and niece of Rev. Samuel Hopkins, of Great Barrington, Mass. Their children were Katharine, Thomas J., James M., Simon S., Timothy H., John M., Caroline, Emma, Sarah, Orville H., Milo, Elizabeth, and Lucy.
While in Pennsylvania he was county commissioner for several years, and justice of the peace eighteen years. He was colonel in the war of 1812; his regiment was with Perry in the battle on Lake Erie, Sept. 10, 1813; afterwards joined Gen. Harrison.
In 1817 he engaged in mercantile trade, and remained in the business several years. In 1820 he explored several of the Western States. He traveled on from Pennsylvania, on horseback, to Quincy, Ill., and located a land-warrant in Fulton County of that State.
Having comfortably settled his older children in Pennsylvania, he concluded to take the younger ones West and locate farms in a prairie country. Therefore in 1829, he started for Michigan in early spring, and reached Prairie Ronde in March. He staked off his claim on Gourd-neck Prairie, returned to the eastern part of the State, and wrote his sons Thomas and James to come immediately to Michigan, for he had found the Eldorado. They came, arriving some time in May. In the mean time, Joseph Frakes and father came up from Young’s Prairie, took possession of his claim and held it. He then located on the southwest side of Prairie Ronde, now section 36, T. 4 S., R. 12 W. They built a house and commenced fencing and plowing. The land not being in market, he could not secure it by purchase, and was obliged to remain on it in order to retain it. In 1831 he purchased four hundred acres in a body, in Prairie Ronde and Schoolcraft townships.
In 1830 he was appointed postmaster of Prairie Ronde, and also had the contract for carrying the mail from White Pigeon to Prairie Ronde.
The same winter he built a saw-mill on Rocky River, on section 26, Prairie Ronde, the first saw-mill in Kalamazoo County. He sold his mill to Wheeler & Crosby in 1832. He was supervisor and highway commissioner, and with Christopher Blair and Delamore Duncan laid out the first road from Prairie Ronde to Bronson (now Kalamazoo), and assessed the first tax in the county.
In 1832, the year of the Black Hawk war, when Col. Fellows was seventy years old, he carried for Lyman I. Daniels, who was acting colonel, and was also land-agent for parties in Detroit, important papers and some money to Detroit. He rode a horse, carrying the papers and money in saddle-bags, and reached Detroit in three days, a distance of one hundred and sixty-five miles, and after transacting his business made the return trip in three days. Lyman I. Daniels said he was the only man he could find with sufficient courage to undertake such a perilous journey. He was brought up a strict Presbyterian, was generous, benevolent, ambitious, courageous, and of a strong temperament.
He died on the 18th of August, 1833, in the seventy-first year of his age.”
Other References
As was mentioned above, he served in two distinct time periods during the Revolutionary War. He was first in battle as part of the Saratoga Campaign in October 1777 at Bemis Heights and Saratoga. It is likely that he wasn’t actually there for the Freeman’s Farm battle which was stated above, if the date is correctly listed.
The document below is related to his second enlistment and is from p. 570 of the Record of Service of CT men in the War of the Revolution. The list begins on page 569 as Capt. Matthew Smith’s Company. This is also documented in the DAR Ancestor record #A038829.
In Fold3.com, I found an 83 page file related to Abiel Fellow Jr’s pension to his wife Dorcas primarily for his Revolutionary War service but also mention of his service in 1812, in which he was a Colonel.
What is not included above since it was written prior to 1905, is that a DAR Chapter was begun in Three Rivers, St. Joseph County, Michigan and named the Abiel Fellows DAR Chapter in honor of the coordinating regent Lucy Fellows Andrews.
The most robust and well documented biography of Abiel Fellows Jr was found in the Wikitree.com community of Abiel Fellow Jr.
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