John Baptist Ashe was born in New Hanover County, North Carolina in 1748. A lieutenant in the New Hanover Regiment of the North Carolina Militia during the War of Regulation, Ashe was captured by Regulators along with Captain John Walker just prior to the Battle of Alamance. While a prisoner Ashe was tied to a tree and severely beaten before the militia freed him. A Patriot during the American Revolution, Ashe served throughout almost the entire duration of the war, eventually reaching the rank of lt. colonel. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1790 to 1793. He died in Halifax County, North Carolina on 27 November 1802. John Baptist Ashe is not to be confused with his uncle of the same name, John Ashe (1725-1781).