Maxwell Altman
“I bet I’ll be the only one in the whole school who can say he’s done this!” a proud and happy Maxwell Altman said Saturday, after uncovering a new grave marker for Revolutionary War hero Pvt. Oakey Lefferson.
Altman, who came with his family from Berkeley Heights, is a ninth generation relative of the Private who served in the 1st Regiment of the Monmouth Militia under Co. Asher Holmes. As such, Lefferson, who was a tailor before the Revolution, guarded the shores of Middletown.
Both Lefferson and his wife Sarah Schenck are buried in the Old Brick Reformed Church in Marlboro, and his grave marker was one of the five dedicated yesterday by the Middletown Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. The DAR is replacing all, markers where needed on the 17 known patriots buried at Old Brick Reformed Church.
Altman, a fourth-grade student said seeing the musical “Hamilton” gave him a love for Revolutionary War history and the founding of the United States as a nation. Since then he has been learning a lot more about that era, knows all the music from Hamilton and is eagerly looking forward to seeing 1776, a popular play on Broadway many years ago as well as a film.
