The Chautauqua County chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution will be hosting a dedication of a sign for two Revolutionary War soldiers buried at Panama Union Cemetery on Sunday. P-J photo by Sara Holthouse

PANAMA — Chautauqua County’s chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution will be dedicating a historical sign noting the resting places of two Revolutionary War soldiers at Panama Union Cemetery.

The dedication is set for 1 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 8. Located on Main Street in Panama across from the Panama Methodist Church, Panama Union Cemetery is home to two soldiers, Thomas Card and Isaac Osborn.

Card was born on July 20, 1762, and died Dec. 16, 1850. He married his wife, Rebecca Briggs, in March 1787 and they had six children.

Osborn was born in Massachusetts in 1760 and died 1843. He married Anna Osborn in 1782.

SAR member Frank Stow said the organization holds dedications in cemeteries — first because it will soon be the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, and second because they are focused on reminding people what the soldiers back then went through.

“More people died of disease on prison ships in New York City and on the battlefield was the second most and the wounded were the third,” Stow said. “These soldiers didn’t get a lot of money and the banks had no money to pay them so they might get their pay once every month.”

Stow added that it was a tough time for Revolutionary War soldiers, and that they had to leave their families and leave their wives to take care of their farms so they could go fight. Because of their salaries, soldiers sometimes tried to get a pension; in order to do that they had to go before a pension board.

“This area was not even settled back then,” Stow said. “It was first settled in the 1800s, so most people who are buried around here from that time came to start their own farm or to live with their families because they couldn’t take care of themselves because of the low salary.”

Stow said the public is welcome to attend Sunday’s sign dedication.

“We did the one in Ashville a few months ago and my great, great, great, great, great grandfather is a soldier buried there,” Stow said. “I was proud of him and of these soldiers that thought enough of everybody to run the British out of here.”

Signs dedicated at local cemeteries are financed by grants from the William C. Pomeroy Foundation.