b. say 1773, d. May 1846
Birth-Say | say 1773 | William Gray was born say 1773. |
| | William's daughter Evelina indicated that her father was born in Pennsylvania on her 1880 census entry. Other sources say he was born at sea and then traveled with his family from Pennsylvania to Virginia.2,3 |
Marriage | 9 Jan 1794 | He married Mary Davis, daughter of John Davis and Mary Allison, on 9 Jan 1794 in Washington County, Virginia.4,5,6 |
Cens-1810 | 1810 | William was listed as the head of his household on the 1810 Washington County census. Although names were not assigned to individual household members, tally counts in appropriate age categories allow one to infer the presence of William, Mary, their sons John and William, and their daughters Jane, Mary, Hannah, Sarah and Elizabeth (also 2 slaves). However, this census also suggests the presence of an additional male born between 1795 and 1800.7 |
| | One source states that John and Mary had an additional son named James born in 1796. If so he appears to have died before 1846 and probably did not leave heirs.1 |
Court Record | 24 May 1817 | William and Mary were named as defendants in a lawsuit filed in 1813 by Mary's stepmother, Mary Davis, against several of her stepchildren. William gave a deposition in support of the defendants position.8 |
Will | 5 May 1846 | William wrote his will in May 1846. He left his wife Mary several slaves, a horse, 2 cows and as many sheep and hogs as she wished to keep. William also documented that he had on that same day exchanged lands with his son William so that the younger William owned the land the elder William resided on. William's will bequeathed the 125 acres he received in the exchange to his son Robert Emmett. William Sr. also left the younger William $575 as part of the exchange but stipulated that William pay each of his brothers and sisters or their heirs $142.
William's will bequeathed his daughter Jane Snoddy 130 acres in Marion Co., Tennessee. He also instructed that the remainder of his slaves be sold and the monies divided among his children (or their heirs) after each child accounted for sums already advanced to them. The children were named as: John, Jane, Polly, Hannah, Elizabeth, Rebecca, Evaline and Sarah (deceased). William appointed his sons William M. and John Gray as his executors.9 |
Death | May 1846 | William died in May 1846.9 |
Will-Recd | 25 May 1846 | His will was recorded on 25 May 1846 in Washington County.9 |