THE WILLIAM GRAYS IN SALEM IN 1797. BY EDWARD GRAY. WILLIAM GRAY (Benjamin, Benjamin, Joseph, Robert of Salem), was the son of Benjamin and Sarah (Cash); he born at Salem, Oct. 26, 1727, and was a painter. His marriage intention is recorded at Salem, Nov. 18, 1749, to Sarah Mattoon of Newmarket, N. H. He lived in Ward 2 in 1797 ; and died at Salem, Dec. 24, 1805, aged seventy-eight years.2 In his will, dated May 8, 1801, and proved Jan. 14, 1806, he mentions his two sons William Jr. Gray and John Gray, and three grandchildren, the chil- dren of his son Richard Mattoon Gray, deceased ; sons William and John, executors, who call themselves Wil- liam Gray, jr., gentleman, and John Gray, schoolmaster, on their bond. WILLIAM GRAY, JR. (Abraham, William of Lynn), was son of Abraham and Lydia (Calley) ; he was born at Lynn, June 27, 1750, and moved to Salem, with his parents, in 1761. He was the Salem merchant familiarly known as "Billy" Gray, and was known as William Gray, tertius, until 1786,a when he became William Gray, jr. after 'Essex Institute Historical Collections, IV: 263; Essex County Deeds, 115: 188. Salem Gazette, Dec. 27, 1805. 'Essex County Deeds, 145: 219. 'William Gray, jr. and Margaret Cook, both of Salem, were mar- ried March 16, 1760. (Rev. Dudley Leavitt's marriages in Vital Records manuscripts, Essex Institute.) He may have been the son of Robert, jr. and Ruth, baptized at Salem, Oct. 16, 1737, and probably died in 1786 (cf. William Gray, jr. in the text), until which time he was probably William Gray, jr. William Gray of Middleton, yeo- man, who married Sarah Smith of Salem, and Samuel Gray, jr. of Salem, cordwainer (1765-1850), who married Ruth Ropes, were brothers (Wheatland papers, Essex Institute), and were probably his sons, as the latter had a daughter named Margaret Cook Gray. Samuel's son, Samuel, was killed by lightning, July 5, 1804, while fishing in Salem bay. (Samuel Gray [sr.] of Salem, merchant (1760- 1816), was the son of Abraham and Lydia (Calley), and brother of William Gray, jr., in the text. He married, first, Anna Orne, and second, Mary Brooks.) (145) thete Historical Collection. 56 (April 1920). Google 146 THE WILLIAM GRAYS IN SALEM IN 1797 the death of the above William Gray, in 1805, he be- came William Gray. He married at Salem, March 28 or 29, 1782, Elizabeth Chipman, and lived in Ward 2 in 1797. He moved to Boston in 1809 was Lieutenant- Governor of Massachusetts in 1810 and 1811 ; and died at Boston, Nov. 3, 1825. After examining the Essex County wills and deeds, the writer feels sure that this Lynn Gray family was not connected with the Salem Gray family. WILLIAM GRAY 3RD (William, Benjamin, Benjamin, Joseph, Robert of Salem), was the son of William and Sarah (Mattoon); he was born at Salem, July 5, 1750, and was a painter.1 He was known as William Gray, 4th, until 1786 (cf. the record of his first marriage also William Gray, jr., above named), when he became William Grny, 3rd. After the death of his father, William Gray, in 1805, he became William Gray, jr. He was of Ports- mouth, N. H., in 1800,2 and of Salem again in 1807.8 He married first, at Salem, Nov. 5, 1772, Susannah Shepard, who died April 25, 1796; and second, at Salem, Oct. 2, 1796, widow Hannah (Ashby) Young, and lived in Ward 1 in 1797. He died at Salem Nov. 16, 1819, aged sixty- nine years. WILLIAM GRAY, 4TH, married at Salem, Oct. 17, 1790, Hannah Bushnell, and lived in Ward 2 in 1797. The writer cannot find anything in the Essex County wills or deeds which shows the identity of this William Gray. WILLIAMGRaY,5TH(William,William, Benjamin, Ben- jamin, Joseph, Robert of Salem), was the son of William, 3rd, and Susannah (Shepard); he was born at Salem, July 30, 1773, and changed his name by an act of Legislature, William Gray (Jeremiah, William of Lynn), was the son of Jere- miah and Theodate (Hood); he was born about 1745, and died in 1781. He married at Lynn, Jan. 23, 1771, Alice Breed; was a cord- wainer, and lived in Boston and Salem. On April 10, 1781, William Gray of Salem, cordwainer, sells to brother, Winthrop Gray of Bos- ton, innholder, land bequeathed by father, Jeremiah Gray of Lynn. Essex County Deeds, 138: 198.) 'Essex County Deeds, 148: 226. 'Essex County Deeds, 167: 81. 'Essex County Deeds, 181: 15. Google THE WILLIAM GRAYS IN SALEM IN 1797 147 in 1798, to William Shepard Gray.1 He lived in Ward 2, Salem, in 1797, and married at Newburyport, Nov. 8, 1798, Ann Knight Morland. Later in life he was cashier of the Essex Bank, Salem, and died at Cambridge, May 27, 1824.2 'Laws and Resolves of Massachusetts, Feb. 5, 1796, chap. 37. "William Gay, the fifth, of Salem, in the county of Essex, son of William Gray, the third, of said Salem, be empowered to take tho name of William Shepard Gray." Captain William Gray, of Salem, died Nov. 18, 1785, aged forty- one years. (Salem Gazette, Nov. 22, 1785.) Lydia Gray, widow of Captain William Gray, died;Sept. -, 1795. Wheatland papers, Essex Institute.) William Gray married at Salem, June 19, 1771, Lydia Croel. Robert Gray and Benjamin Gray, both of Salem, mariners, chil- dren of William Gray, late of Salem, mariner, sell land and dwell- ing house of said William Gray, our late father, &c., to Caleb Cook for $283.33, on April 19, 1805. This lot was on St. Peter St. (Essex County Deeds, 175: 250.) Captain William Gray, jr. of Salem, mariner, died intestate, and John Watson was appointed administrator of his estate on Jan. 15, 1805. His mansion house and land on St. Peter St. were sold at public auction for $1,700. Google 7/15/2019 Full text of "William Gray, of Salem, merchant : a biographical sketch" COPYRIGHT, 1914, BY EDWARD GRAY ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Published July 1Q14 FIVE HUNDRED COPIES PRINTED AT THE RIVERSIDE PRESS, CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U. S. A. NO. .>>. FOREWORD WHEN I undertook to write a life of William Gray, I knew that all his papers with the ex- ception of one letter-book, from which many of my ideas of his commercial transactions are taken, were destroyed in the Boston fire of 1872, and that I should have to rely on contemporary notices in the newspapers and in diaries of individuals for facts ; but I little realized what else was in store for me. In 1782 there were three William Grays in Salem. The one here discussed was known as William Gray, Tertius, and not to be confounded with William Gray, the sea captain, who made a brilliant record as captain of privateers during the Revolution. In 1798, at which date our William Gray was known as William Gray, Jr., , the confusion is even worse. There were then at least five William Grays in Salem. I find in the Laws and Resolves of Massachusetts, February 5, 1798, chapter 37, that "William Gray the fifth of Salem in the county of Essex, son of William Gray the third of said Salem, be empowered to take the name of William Shep- ardGray"; also in 1802, June 23, chapter 14, "that William Gray, a minor, son of William Gray Junior of Salem be 7/15/2019 Full text of "William Gray, of Salem, merchant : a biographical sketch" allowed to take the name of William Rufus Gray." In writing this sketch, I have tried to err always on the safe side, and not credit my subject with anything which re- fers to a William Gray about whose identity I am at all doubtful. The portrait of Mr. Gray reproduced here was painted by vi Foreword by Gilbert Stuart in 1807, and his signature is taken from a letter to Mr. John Quincy Adams dated August 4, 1 809, in the Adams Papers. My thanks are due to all who have so kindly assisted me, and particularly to Mr. George Francis Dow, of the Essex Institute, Mr. Worthington C. Ford, of the Massachusetts Historical Society, and Mr. John Chipman Gray. E. G. Groton, Massachusetts, 19 13. ILLUSTRATIONS William Gray Frontispiece From a portrait by Gilbert Stuart, 1807. In possession of Miss Isa E. Gray. Mrs. William Gray (Elizabeth Chipman) 8 7/15/2019 Full text of "William Gray, of Salem, merchant : a biographical sketch" From a portrait by Gilbert Stuart, i 807. In possession of John Chipman Gray, Esq. A Letter of William Gray 24 From the original in possession of the Peabody Academy of Science. William Gray's House, Salem 30 Drawn by Ralph W. Gray, Esq., from a lithograph of it (Lafayette Coffee House), and a photograph taken at a later date (Essex House). . William Gray Homestead, Cambridge 48 The property of John Chipman Gray, Esq. William Gray 80 From a bust by Dexter. In possession of the Peabody Academy of Science. Ship Fanny, William Gray, owner; Captain Kinsman, MASTER q8 From the copy of the painting by M. Corne, 1801. In possession of the Peabody Academy of Science. Ship Ulysses, William Gray, owner; William Mug- ford, MASTER IOO From a water-color - by Anton Roux, painted at Marseilles, 1804, showing the temporary rudder, by means of which the ship safely reached that port, about to be put in place. In possession of the Peabody Academy of Science. viii Illustrations 7/15/2019 Full text of "William Gray, of Salem, merchant : a biographical sketch" Letter of marque, Brig Grand Turk of 14 guns, William Gray, owner; William Austin, com- mander, saluting Marseilles 106 From a water-color by Anton Roux, painted at Marseilles, 1815. In possession of the Peabody Academy of Science. WILLIAM GRAY OF SALEM MERCHANT WILLIAM GRAY of Salem, Merchant CHAPTER I 1750- i 800 WILLIAM GRAY, or, as he was often called, "Billy" Gray, was the oldest son of Abraham Gray, of Lynn, Massachusetts, and Lydia Calley, daughter of Francis Calley, of Marblehead. He was born in Lynn on June 27, 1750, old style, equal to July 8, new style, 1 in a gambrel-roofed wooden house which stood until quite recently on Marion Street, near the Boston Road. William Gray, his grandfather, for whom he was named, I find mentioned in the Essex County deeds as husbandman and cordwainer, and he is said to have ini- tiated the manufacture of shoes by operatives in Lynn. 2 Our William's father, Abraham Gray, seems to have fol- lowed along the same lines, being one of the first shoe manufacturers in Lynn who employed journeymen and apprentices. 3 When William was still a small boy, 1 I have the above dates in Mr. Gray's handwriting. - Author. 2 Lynn Weekly Reporter, July 2, 1864. 7/15/2019 Full text of "William Gray, of Salem, merchant : a biographical sketch" 3 Alonzo Lewis, History of Lynn (second edition), p. 243. Abraham William Gray Abraham Gray moved to Salem ; he took this step some- time between 1760 and 1763, as the Lynn records show that his son, Samuel, was baptized in Lynn, August 10, 1 760, and the records of the First Church in Salem that "Francis Cawley [Calley], infant son of Mr. Abraham Gray," was baptized December 29, 1762. 1 After taking up his residence in Salem, Abraham Gray continued for many years to be Deacon of the First Church - until his death in 1791. He was buried in the Charter Street Burying-Ground, his tomb standing among those near the entrance. of William Gray's youth little is known, except that he was apprenticed at an early age to Samuel Gardner, Esq., of Salem, and later entered the counting-house of Richard Derby, Esq. of the same port. He seems to have stepped from the counting-house to mercantile life, as I can find no record whatever of his going to sea, and he be- gan business for himself when he was about twenty-eight years old. At this period, there were three William Grays in V Salem: Captain William Gray, who made a brilliant record as master of letters of marque during the Revo- Z lution; William Gray, Jr. (of another family) and Wil- 3 liam Gray, Tertius, our William, who, though he was the son of Abraham Gray, and only a distant relative, if any, of the other two, seems to have been called "Tertius" because he was the third in point of seniority. Any one 7/15/2019 Full text of "William Gray, of Salem, merchant : a biographical sketch" 1 Essex Institute Historical Collections, vol. vm, p. 212. In the Essex County Deeds, 107 : 273, Abraham Gray is called " of Lynn " on February 21, 1761, and "of Salem," February 26, 1762. who of Salem, Merchant who wishes to compare the signatures of " Wm. Gray Ten," as bonder of letters of marque, 1 or as signed to the pe- titions to the Governor of Massachusetts for the appoint- - ment of masters to the said letters of marque, 2 with the later signatures of our William Gray, can assure himself of the fact that our William Gray was William Gray, Tertius. He is also called "Tertius" in his marriage notice in the Salem "Gazette," which I have printed in full a few pages later on His grandson, William Gray, of Boston, writes of him as follows: "He was rather below the medium height, and his manners were singularly simple and genial, his only peculiarity of dress being the plaited queue much worn in his day." His portrait, painted by Gilbert Stuart in 1807, when Mr. Gray was fifty-seven years old, shows a pleasant-looking man, not at all handsome, with sandy hair parted in the middle and worn in a queue, a broad forehead and high cheek- bones, deep-blue eyes, and a ruddy complexion. The gen- eral effect of the face is determination of purpose and a certain kindly sense of humor. In the troublous times prior to the Revolution, William Gray joined the militia in Salem. When hostilities broke out, his company, under Colonel Timothy Pickering, made a forced march to Lexington, arriving, however, only in time to exchange a few shots with the retreating British. 3 After the battle, the Continental Congress deemed it wise 1 Papers of the Continental Congress, Library of Congress, no. 196, vol. 7/15/2019 Full text of "William Gray, of Salem, merchant : a biographical sketch" 3> PP- 7 X > 74 5 vol. 7, pp. 40, 53; vol. 8, p. 31 ; vol. 15, pp. 39,81,9 8. 2 Massachusetts Archives, vol. 172, pp. 63, 220, 229, 263, 270. 3 Lynn Weekly Reporter, July 2, 1864 ; also a letter written by Colonel Samuel Swett, June 11, 1864. to William Gray to send word of the engagement as well as of the general state of affairs in this country to England, so that another side of the question might be presented to the British pub- lic than that shown in the official report sent from Boston. As it was of utmost importance that their report should reach England before the official report, the Quero, a fast-sailing ship, belonging to Richard Derby, Esq., of Salem, was selected to carry the news. In the bill rendered to the Province of Massachusetts Bay, and paid August I, 1775,1 find that William Gray contributed ^ 10 sterling toward the outfit of the vessel. 1 This ^"io from William Gray and the pay of John Derby, as captain of the ex- pedition, who, in the bill rendered, modestly estimated the value of his time and services at " o," were the only con- tributions made by individual citizens toward the expenses of the voyage. The following April (1776) the 3d Company of the First Regiment of Essex Militia elected as officers : Rich- ard Ward, captain; Miles Greenwood, 1st lieutenant; William Gray, 3d, 2d lieutenant, 2 and I find in " Massa- 1 I have compared very carefully the signatures of William Gray, Ter- tius, with the handwriting of the bill rendered for the Quero in 1775 (Massachusetts Archives, vol. 206, p. 94), and have come to the con- Epp, Ronald From: Robert M. Gray [gray@eemail.stanford.edu] Sent: Sunday, July 17, 2005 12:20 AM To: Epp, Ronald Cc: Robert Gray Subject: Re: Amy Heard & Dorr's I slipped up, I am out of practice reading geneologies. Mary was the granddaughter, not the daughter, of Samuel. Her mother Lydia was the daughter of Samuel. Samuel also had a daughter named Mary, but that is the wrong Mary. Samuel (and Billy) also had a sister Mary. Samuel also had a sister Lydia. They liked to recycle names. From William Gray of Lynn, Massachusetts, and some of his descendants by Edward Gray (Essex Institute, 1916) : Samuel Gray was a brother of William (Old Billy) Gray of Salem. He was baptized in Salem and moved to Medford in 1811 (Diary of William Bently) His first wive was Anna Orne, who died in Salem 1797. One of his children by his first wife was Lydia, bapt. Aug. 4 1788. Lydia married Thomas Wren Ward, son of William and Martha Anne (Proctor) Ward, in 1810. (Information in the Ward and Pickering genologies.) One of their children was Mary Gray Ward, baptized June 24, 1821, married June 4, 1850, Charles Hazen Dorr, son of Samuel and Susan (Brown) of Boston. Two children, etc. The had an earlier daughter of the same name who died as child. So your information from the Ward geneologies is consistent. My error, sorry. Bob 1 Gray Gray son Edward in 1680 removed to Tiverton in infancy. In the summer of 1806, while on a voy- igram- Rhode Island where Robert Gray was born. As age to Charleston, S. C., Gray died of yellow calling a young man he took an active part in the naval fever. It is believed that he was buried at sea. During service of the Revolutionary War and at its close [House Report 456, 29 Cong., I Sess. House Report aff on was recognized as a competent navigator. A lit- 502, 30 Cong., I Sess. Senate Doc. 335, 32 Cong., I J. B. Sess. New England Mag., June 1892 F. W. Howay, tle later six energetic citizens of Boston and vi- "Captains Gray and Kendrick The Barrell Letters," writer; cinity resolved to link the China trade with the Wash. Hist. Quart., Oct. 1921 "John Boit's Log of the Blade Columbia" and "Remnant of Official Log of the Co- nascent fur-trade of the Northwest coast of lumbia," Quart. of the Ore. Hist. Soc., Dec. 1921; ; Wil- America. In pursuance of this plan the ship Co- "Letters Relating to the Second Voyage of the Colum- pisco- lumbia under Captain John Kendrick [q.v.], who bia," Ibid., June 1923; S. E. Morison, The Maritime umor- Hist. of Mass., 1783-1860 (1921) M. D. Raymond, also commanded the expedition, and the sloop Gray Geneal. (1887). Manuscript sources include Robt. ater a Lady Washington under Robert Gray sailed Haswell's logs of the first and second voyages of the d art- Columbia, in the Bancroft Library, Berkeley, Cal., and from Boston in September 1787. Throughout the John Hoskins's log of the second voyage of the Co- lopted voyage Gray was the driving force. By his en- lumbia in the library of the Mass. Hist. Soc.] ile on F. W.H. ergy, determination, and daring, the little nine- ty-ton sloop gathered the cargo of sea-otter skins GRAY, WILLIAM (June 27, 1750, .s.-Nov. veland with which the Columbia, to whose command he 3, 1825), merchant, lieutenant-governor of sition had been transferred, began her return voyage, Massachusetts, father of Francis Calley Gray efusal July 30, 1789, from the Northwest coast by way [q.v.], was born in Lynn, Mass., the oldest son of 1 1858 of China. On Aug. IO, 1790, with a salute of Abraham and Lydia (Calley) Gray. When he Demo- thirteen guns, the ship dropped anchor in Boston was a small boy, his father, a shoemaker in hum- arles- Harbor, having sailed almost forty-two thousand ble circumstances, moved to Salem, where the c par- miles and carried the American flag for the first lad was apprenticed to Samuel Gardner. Later en A. time around the world. She had shown to Bos- he entered the counting-house of Richard Derby presi- ton a new source of wealth, even though her voy- and at the age of twenty-eight started business f the age had not been remunerative. for himself. At this period he signed his name work After being refitted, the Columbia left Boston "William Gray, Tertius," to distinguish himself rring in September 1790 and arrived at Vancouver from several other William Grays in Salem. In litics, Island in June 1791. Gray was in command and 1775, as a member of the Salem militia, he made Civil was also a part owner in the venture. After the a forced march with his company to Lexington, Doug- season's trade to the northward he wintered in arriving too late for the battle. On June 6 of the He Clayoquot Sound, where he built the Adventure, following year he was commissioned second lieu- f the the second vessel launched on the Northwest tenant, but there is no record that he had any f the coast. The following spring, while seeking trade further Revolutionary service. His business rican to the southward, he made his discoveries of ventures proved to be highly profitable, and he ntro- Gray's Harbor and the Columbia River. Prior was the owner of a number of privateers during tele- to that time the so-called "River of the West" or the Revolution. He was one of the first New e in- "River Oregan" of Jonathan Carver had been England merchants to enter the trade with Rus- o in merely a name upon the maps. Spanish and Eng- sia, India, and China. Timothy Pickering, writ- nal- lish navigators-Heceta, Meares, and Vancou- ing on Nov. 29, 1799, said of him, "William Gray 1 his ver-had/glanced at its "sortie" and passed on; of Salem is a man of unspotted character and for rine but on May II, 1792, Gray sailed his vessel mercantile talents and extent of business, the ugh- through the line of foaming water and seething first merchant in the United States." From 1801 breakers that guarded the long-sought river. The to 1807, when Salem's prosperity was at its the season's trading completed, he sailed for China, height, he employed annually about 300 seamen, ex- homeward bound; and on July 20, 1793, after and before 1815 he had owned at least II3 ves- 862, Ohio another world-encircling voyage, the Columbia sels. When he moved to Boston in 1809, he was The anchored off Long Wharf, Boston, to a salute of the owner of fifteen ships, seven barks, thirteen II, . Y. eleven guns. Little did he realize that his dis- brigs, and one schooner, and his estate was esti- M. covery would give to his country the foundation mated at $3,000,000. of a claim to Old Oregon and would make his Like most of the able and well-to-do people of avi- ship, Columbia, as well known as the Constitu- New England at that period, Gray had originally ded tion. On Feb. 3, 1794, Gray was married to Mar- been a Federalist. For some years he was a ssel tha Atkins of Boston, and settled down to a selectman and in 1788 he was a delegate to the ably quieter life as the master of coasting vessels op- state convention held to consider the Federal tled erating out of that port. They had five children, Constitution and voted for ratification. In 1792 e of four daughters and one son; but the son died in he was an unsuccessful candidate for state sena- lose 523 Graydon Graydon tor, and in 1804, when the Jeffersonians were chant and lawyer, and a figure in the coffee- who gaining strength, he was defeated as a candidate houses. Young Alexander was first sent to the con for representative, but in 1807 he was chosen as school conducted by David James Dove [q.v.] the a Federalist senator from Essex County and was and at the age of eight entered the College and Fol reelected in the following year. In June 1808, Academy of Philadelphia. In his youth he ac- his however, although the Embargo was vigorously quired a veneration of truth and justice that af- syla opposed by the New England merchants, Gray terwards "prevented his becoming a patriot, in cas came out openly in its favor, thus incurring the the modern acceptation of the word" (Memoirs, Ch enmity of his associates and bringing upon him- p. 29). For a time he sighed for the ladies and Th self social ostracism. He published a vindication aspired with some success to be a rake. At the wit of his conduct in the Salem Gazette (Aug. 12, age of sixteen he reluctantly began the study of in 1808), but party spirit was running so high that law, a profession for which he was unfitted by yea he felt it wise to move to Boston, where he re- his indolence, his dislike for litigation, and his Ph sided during the remainder of his life. indifference to worldly gain. Having dissipated lish Having deserted the Federalists, Gray was in- himself in poetry, metaphysics, and wine, Gray- Th duced in 1810 to run for lieutenant-governor on don went to York to recuperate. After six months int the Republican ticket, with Elbridge Gerry, and he returned to Philadelphia improved in health for was elected by a small plurality. During the though unaltered in disposition. He "still af- ane campaign "all the virulence of invective" was fected the man of pleasure and dissipation and opi heaped upon him. He was reèlected in 1811 but had a sovereign contempt for matrimony" (Ibid., ha because of ill health declined a nomination in p. 107). Although he became an accomplished mo 1812. During the war with England he con- fencer and a great frequenter of taverns, he in- sistently supported the Madison administration, dulged in no excesses of wine or debts. er ris subscribing with extraordinary liberality to all At the outbreak of the Revolution he joined his the government loans. He was defeated as Re- the volunteers in Philadelphia, but was revolted (P publican candidate for lieutenant-governor in by the persecution of the Loyalists, Doctor Kears- Mo (P 1814 and 1815 and declined a nomination for the ley and Isaac Hunt [qq.v.] Congress commis- governorship in 1816. He was also badly beaten sioned him a captain on Jan. 6, 1776, and he spent G for senator from Suffolk County in 1818, 1819, the winter recruiting and drilling his battalion. 17 and 1820, but was chosen as a delegate to the con- In May he was sent with a sum of money in Co stitutional convention of I820. In 1816 he had specie to General Schuyler at Lake George and bo been unanimously elected president of the Bos- returned in time to join in the movement of the Be ton branch of the Bank of the United States and army to New York His regiment assisted in St served for the six following years. His last pub- covering the retreat of the army from Long an lic appearance was as chairman of a public din- Island to New York. He was later stationed at th ner in Faneuil Hall, Mar. 4, 1825, to celebrate Fort Washington and was taken prisoner at the PI the election of John Quincy Adams to the presi- Battle of Harlem Heights. The British treated va dency. He died not long afterward, leaving an him well and sent him to New York whence he sit estate of more than a million dollars. He was was removed in January 1777 to Long Island. do married, Mar. 29, 1782, to Elizabeth Chipman, After a captivity of eight months he was paroled F the daughter of Hon. John Chipman and Eliza- and returned to Philadelphia. He was officially 88 beth (Brown) Chipman, of Marblehead. They exchanged in the spring of 1778 and married a th had ten children of whom six survived their Miss Wood/ of Berks County. Though he did not R parents. Gray was a man of simple tastes, in- actively participate in politics, Graydon was la defatigably industrious, scrupulously honest, and elected prothonotary of the newly formed coun- CO very generous. His portrait by Gilbert Stuart, ty of Dauphin in 1785 and moved to Harrisburg. ca painted in 1807, shows a rugged, plain face, He was one of the earliest and most conspicuous J marked by determination and good nature. advocates in Pennsylvania of the adoption of the Is [Edward Gray, Wm. Gray, of Salem, Merchant Federal Constitution and was elected a member to (1914) is the best account of Gray. See also S. E. of the state convention. Graydon, to whom the h Morison, The Maritime Hist. of Mass. (1921).] C.M.F. principles of Gallic republicanism and the new V GRAYDON, ALEXANDER (Apr. IO, 1752- democracy were repugnant, supported the Fed- o May 2, 1818), author, born at Bristol, Pa., was eralists and was dismissed from office in the pro- a the son of Alexander Graydon by his second scription that followed the election of Gov. g wife, Rachel Marks, of German and Scotch de- Thomas McKean [q.v.]. n scent. In 1730 his father had emigrated from He then retired to his small farm near Harris- Ireland to Philadelphia where he became a mer- burg with his second wife, Theodosia Pettit, 524 WebVoyage Record View 1 Page 1 of 2 MASSACHUSETTS ABIGAIL: MHS Online Catalog Search Headings Titles History Help ABIGAIL Home Database Name: Massachusetts Historical Society Search Request: Author = gray william Search Results: Displaying 1 of 3 entries Previous Next Bibliographic Holdings Table of Contents MARC Format Boston Bank papers, Database: Massachusetts Historical Society Format: Manuscripts Call number(s): Ms. S-534 - Creator: Boston Bank. Title: Boston Bank papers, 1796-1826. Description: 1 folder. Scope: Correspondence and miscellaneous papers of the Boston Bank. Correspondents include bank President John T. Apthorp, cashier Joseph Chapman, U.S. treasurers Albert Gallatin and William Harris Crawford, William Gray of the U.S. Branch Bank in Boston, and businessman Harrison Gray Otis. Local notes: Formerly cataloged as "Boston Bank" Subject(s): Banks and banking--Massachusetts--Boston Other Author(s): Apthorp, John T. Chapman, Joseph. Crawford, William Harris, 1772-1834. Gallatin Albert. 1761-1849. Gray, William, 1750-1825 Otis, Harrison Gray, 1765-1848. /Pwebrecon.cgi?vl=1&ti=1,1&Search_Arg=gray+william&Search_Code=NAME_&PID=5315/31/2004 WebVoyage Record View 1 Page 1 of 2 MASSACHUSETTS ABIGAIL: MHS Online Catalog Search Headings Titles History Help ABIGAIL Home Database Name: Massachusetts Historical Society Search Request: Author = gray william Search Results: Displaying 2 of 3 entries Previous Next Bibliographic Holdings Table of Contents MARC Format Frances Elizabeth Gray papers, Database: Massachusetts Historical Society Format: Manuscripts Call number(s): F.E. Gray Creator: Gray, Frances Elizabeth. Title: Frances Elizabeth Gray papers, 1810-1868. Description: 1 box. Scope: Correspondence, diaries, and accounts of the family of William Gray (1750- 1825), Boston merchant, including papers relating to his estate, letters from his son Henry to his children, chiefly Frances Elizabeth Gray, concerning family matters and a claim of the Gray estate to lands in Texas, and diaries of Miss Gray. Finding aids available: Unpublished guide. Notes: In part, photocopies of originals located in Harvard University, Graduate School of Business Administration, Baker Library. Subject(s): Merchants--Massachusetts--Boston. Real property--Texas. Other Author(s): Gray, Henry, 1816-1851. Gray, William, 1750-1825. /Pwebrecon.cgi?v1=2&ti=1,2&Search_Arg=gray+william&Search_Code=NAME_&PID=53'5/31/2004 7/15/2019 William R. Gray (1750-1825) Papers :: Phillips Library Manuscript Finding Aids PEM Peabody Essex Museum Phillips Library Digital Collections All Digital Collections Home Browse All Philcat, Online Library Catalog Blog Follow Us on Twitter C Search Search Advanced Search Home Phillips Library Manuscript Finding Aids William R. Gray (1750-1825) Papers Share William R. Gray (1750-1825) Papers William R. Gray (1750-1825) Papers 1 of 2 Next Cont View Description Open Finding Aid Download Willi (175 search this item Willi 182 WILLIAM R. GRAY (1750-1825) PAPERS, 1781-1840 Con Collection Summary Repository: The Phillips Library at the Peabody Essex Museum 132 Essex Street Salem, MA 01970 Phone: 978-745-9500 Fax: 978-531-1516 Creator: Gray, William, 1750-1825 Title: William R. Gray (1750-1825) Papers Dates: 1781/1840 Quantity: 0.75 linear feet (1 box, 1 volume) Abstract: The William R. Gray papers contain one box of correspondence, legal, financial, and shipping papers for the Salem, Massachusetts, and Boston merchant. Collection Number: MSS 115 Object Description Call Number MSS 115 Title William R. Gray (1750-1825) Papers Creator Gray, William, 1750-1825 Date 1781/1840 Restrictions This collection is open for research use. Publisher The Phillips Library at the Peabody Essex Museum Description The William R. Gray papers contain one box of correspondence, legal, financial, and shipping papers for the Salem, Massachusetts, and Boston merchant. Subject Essex Bank (Salem, Mass.); Essex Fire & Marine Insurance Company (Salem, Mass.); American Hero (Ship); Antelope (Vessel); Betsy (Vessel): Caspian (Brig); Charles (Brig); Choral (Ship); Commerce (Brig); Commerce (Ship); Delphos (Ship); Eliza (Brigantine); Enterprize (Vessel); Fox (Brig); Laurel (Ship); Mentor (Brigantine); Minerva (Vessel); Polly (Schooner): Salem (Brigantine); Serpent (Ship); Trent (Ship): Ulysses (Ship): Vengeance (Brig); William (Ship); Boston (Mass.); Salem (Mass.); Barker, George; Gray, Horace, 1800-1873; Gray, John Chipman, 1793-1881; Gray, Samuel Calley; Gray, William Rufus, 1783-1831: Kinsman, Nathaniel, 1775-1808; Mugford, William: Silsbee, Nathaniel, 1773-1850; Silsbee, William, 1779-1833; Merchants--Massachusetts--Boston; Merchants--Massachusetts--Salem; Shinning.Furone 7/15/2019 William R. Gray (1750-1825) Papers :: Phillips Library Manuscript Finding Aids Publication Rights Requests for permission to publish material from the collection must be submitted in writing to the Manuscript Librarian in the Phillips Library at the Peabody Essex Museum. Type Finding Aid Description Title William R. Gray (1750-1825) Papers Provenance The William Gray Papers are an integration of miscellaneous manuscript folders the bulk of which are from an unknown source. However, the Aurelia and Concord account book was a 1916 gift of Mrs. C.A. Cooper and the William Rufus Gray letterbook was a 1954 gift of Hope Gray. Back to top All Digital Collections Home Browse All Philcat, Online Library Catalog Blog Follow Us on Twitter Co 12/19/2020 William Gray (Massachusetts politician) - Wikipedia WIKIPEDIA 6BO + Gray Fairly William Gray (Mass: Henruitta Gry politician) daughter of Wm. Gray, married Signatous William Gray (June 27, 1750 (old style; surgent, parents of July 8, 1750 new style) - November 4, 1825) Charles S. Sargent. was a Massachusetts merchant and politician. Born into a lower-class family in Later years th Sat-Club Lynn, Massachusetts, he managed to build 0.286 his own business and rise through the state's political ranks, becoming the richest man in New England, and in the eyes of many the richest man in all of America. Prior to the War of 1812, William Gray had the largest private fleet in the United States with 60 square-rigged vessels. [1] Gray first served as a state senator, before becoming the ninth Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, serving from 1810 to 1812. He married Elizabeth Chipman (May, 1756 - September 24, 1823) in 1782. Elizabeth 9th Lieutenant Governor of was a pioneer in philanthropy, volunteering Massachusetts a significant portion of her time to helping In office the poorest citizens of Boston. 1810-1812 In 1820, he was elected a member of the Governor Elbridge Gerry American Antiquarian Society{2] Preceded by David Cobb He owned Gray's Wharf in Charlestown. [3] Succeeded by William Phillips, Jr. In Boston "he lived on Summer Street, in Member of the the mansion previously occupied by Massachusetts State Senate Governor Sullivan. " [4] for Suffolk County In office Elizabeth and William had three sons and January 12, 1812 - March 1813 one daughter: Preceded by Benjamin Gorham https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Gray_(Massachusetts_politician) 1/3 12/19/2020 William Gray (Massachusetts politician) - Wikipedia William Rufus Gray (1783-1831), a Member of the merchant. Massachusetts House of Representatives Henry Gray, a merchant. (1784-1854) for Essex County Lucia Gray Swett (1788-1844) In office Francis (1790-1856), a politician, writer, 1785-1785 orator, art collector. Personal details John Chipman Gray, (1793-1881) a politician Born June 27, 1750 (old Horace (1801-1873), father of Supreme style; July 8, 1750 Court of the United States associate new style) justice, Horace Gray, and of Harvard Lynn, Law School professor, John Chipman Massachusetts Gray [5] Died November 4, 1825 (aged 75) References Boston, Massachusetts 1. Horace Gray: Father of the Boston Public Garden (http://www.bahistory.or Resting place Mount Auburn g/HoraceGray.html) Cemetery 2. American Antiquarian Society Members Political party Democratic- Directory (http://www.americanantiquari Republican an.org/memberlistg) 3. Timothy Thompson Sawyer. Old Spouse(s) Elizabeth Chipman Charlestown: historical, biographical, Profession Merchant reminiscent. J.H. West Co., 1902 Signature 4. Drake. Old landmarks and historic Mongray personages of Boston. 1872. ; p. .201 5. "Horace Gray" (https://www.findagrave. com/memorial/136771321/horace-gray). findagrave.com Retrieved December 31, 2018. Further reading Gray, Edward.: William Gray, of Salem, merchant: a biographical sketch (.1914) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Gray_(Massachusetts_politician) 2/3 12/19/2020 William Gray (Massachusetts politician) - Wikipedia Political offices Lieutenant Governor of Preceded by Succeeded by Massachusetts David Cobb William Phillips, Jr. 1810-1812 Massachusetts State Preceded by Senator Succeeded by Benjamin Gorham January 12, 1812-March 1813 Member of the Massachusetts House of Preceded by Succeeded by Representatives 1785-1785 Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php? title=William_Gray_(Massachusetts_politician)&oldid=989229840" This page was last edited on 17 November 2020, at 20:00 (UTC). Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Gray_(Massachusetts_politician) 3/3 Pagelof.,3. 214 2/detail 12/19/2020 Peabody Essex Museum - Explore Art On View Barbara Weld Putnam Gallery.GALF.WALL Gilbert Stuart (American, 1755-1828) Portrait of Captain William Gray, about 1800 Oil on canvas Boston, Massachusetts, United States H: 41 in, W: 35 in Museum purchase with partial funds donated in honor of Roland Gray, Jr., 2010 2010.38.2 INSCRIPTION Label on back reads, "G. Stuart; portrait B. Gray." DESCRIPTION This is a portrait of Captain William Gray in a 2/3 pose, wearing a black jacket and high collared white ruffled shirt, holding a letter in his hands. He is seated in a red-upholstered chair and looking straight ahead with a closed smile. Further Remarks: The portrait was painted by Stuart for Captain William Ward (1761-1827) of Salem, captain of a number of William Gray's vessels, and also Mrs. William Gray's brother-in-law. It was bequeathed to Ward's son, Thomas Wren Ward, of Boston, Massachusetts in 1827. It was then bequeathed to his widow in 1862 and bequeathed to her son, Samuel Gray Ward, of New York and Washington in 1827. He bequeathed to his son, Thomas Wren Ward, of New York, Boston and Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts in 1908. It was then sold by Thomas Wren Ward to Roland Gray, Esq., of Boston, great- grandson of William Gray in 1921. The portrait is in it's original frame, made by John Doggett (1780-1857), of Roxbury, Massachusetts. EXHIBITION HISTORY Upcoming Exhibition, Peabody Essex Museum; 2015 through Present explore-art.pem.org/object/american-decorative-arts/2010_38_2/deta 3/4 12/19/2020 Peabody Essex Museum -Explore - Art page 3 of 3 American Decorative Arts exhibition, Peabody Essex Museum; June 03, 2003 through Present Order and Elegance: Masterpieces of Federal Furniture from Coastal Massachusetts, Peabody Essex Museum; January 04, 1997 through January 11, 1999 1 Home Themes Tour Search © 2001-2013 All rights reserved. The Peabody Essex Museum, East India Square (161 Essex St) Salem, Massachusetts 01970. main website: www.pem.org | email: pem_collection@pem.org explore-art.pem.org/object/american-decorative-arts/2010_38_2/deta 4/4 William Gray, tertius Samuel Gray Abraham Gray, Jr. were sons of Abraham Gray of Lynn, Mass., and Lydia Calley, daughter of Francis Calley of Marblehead. William Gray, the oldest son, was born in Lynn on June 27, 1750, old style; July 8, new style. He was named for his grandfather, William Gray, husbandman and cordwainer, who is said (Alonzo Lewis' History of Lynn, 2nd Edition, page 243) to have initiated the manufac- ture of shoes by operatives in Lynn. His son Abraham Gray, father of William and Samuel "seems to have fol- lowed along the same lines," being one of the first shoe manufacturers in Lynn who employed journeymen and took apprentices. Abraham moved to Salem when William, the oldest son, was still a young boy; his son Samuel, my great- great grandfather, being baptized in Lynn on August 10th, 1760. A fourth son, Francis Calley Gray, named for his maternal grandfather, was baptized in the First Church in Salem, December 29, 1762. (Note: Whether Francis Calley or Abraham was the oldest is not stated). 2. Abraham Gray, after taking up his residence in Salem, was for many years Deacon of the First Church there, so being when he died in 1791. He was buried in the Charles Street Burying Ground, his tomb stand- ing among those near the entrance. William Gray was apprenticed at an early age to Samuel Gardner, Esq. of Salem, and later entered the Counting House of Richard Derby, Esq. He began business for himself when about 28 years old, ie about 1778. Copy from William Gray book, page 7, what is said concerning Letters of Marque. COPY Owing to our almost entire lack of a navy during the Revolution, the Continental Congress issued privateer licenses and "letters of marque' " to individuals, in order to supply the deficiency in fighting ships. A letter-of-Marque vessel carried a cargo to a destined port or ports, taking prizes if they came in her way, and defending herself against the enemy as a regularly commissioned private ship of war under heavy bonds to her government to obey the rules of warfare, thus combining commerce and War. 1865 The Library Again Suffers from Inadequate Book Funds William Gray's $5,000 per year for five years, beginning in 1859, was not spent evenly, SO it continued to affect the book budget up through 1864-65. But by 1865-66, the Gray money was totally gone, and the budget for books had dropped down to $1,134. This con- trasted with the Boston Public Library, which spent in 1865 $13,030 for books, and with the Boston Athenaeum, which had nearly $7,000 for books. Harvard's library crisis was not over. Indeed, the Harvard Advocate, plus such national journals as the Nation and Appleton's Journal, began to point out the shortage of book funds. Appleton's wrote in its 5 March 1870 issue that the Library could no longer compete with the Library of Congress or the Astor Library and that it was surpassed as well in excellence of management and service. Again, individuals came forward, and by the end of the 1870s the Library had received nearly $125,000 in new book funds; this time they were endowed. The first of them, the bequest of $60,000 by Charles Minot in 1870, was specifically for "new books." The fol- lowing decade saw another increment of nearly $70,000. In addition, endowed funds for the general purposes of the Library increased by over $500,000 during the 1870s and 1880s. The struggle for adequate book funds had been long. The first general appeal resulted in the Donation Fund of 1842. Once spent, fifteen years of dearth followed. The next general appeal, begun in 1857, resulted in $25,000 from William Gray and over $6,000 from the alumni at large. Once Gray's gift was spent, five or six years of relative dearth then followed. The struggle was ended by the estab- lishment of permanent book funds, endowed by individuals who recognized that the Library could effectively serve students and scholars only if it could rely on a steady income for regular purchases. 98 350th Anacus. 1982-83 ? Harvard University - Houghton Library / Harvard University. Harvard Library bulletin. Cambridge. Mass., Harvard University Library. FirstSearch: WorldCat Detailed Record Page 1 of 2 FirstSearch SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE UNIV WorldCat Detailed Record Click on a checkbox to mark a record to be e-mailed or printed in Marked Records. Home Databases Staff View Options Comments Exit Searching Results Hide tips List of Records Detailed Record Marked Records Go to page WorldCat results for: (su= "Gray, WorldCat Subjects Libraries E-mail Print Export Help William,") and su= "1750-1825.". Record 5 of 6. 5 Mark: Prev Next Papers, Benjamin Hitchings 1816-1821 English Archival Material 28 items. Chiefly papers relating to the last voyage of Hitchings who died at sea, including orders of William Gray (1750-1825), of Boston and Salem, Mass., merchant and owner of ship Clay; materials pertaining to dealings with port officials in England and Antwerp, Belgium, where Hitchings picked up silver money for East Indian trade; record (1816) of accounts in Calcutta, India; and information concerning the ship Union GET THIS ITEM Availability: Check the catalogs in your library. Libraries worldwide that own item: 1 FIND RELATED More Like This: Search for versions with same title and author I Advanced options Title: Papers, 1816-1821. Author(s): Hitchings, Benjamin, 1783-1822? Year: 1816-1821 Description: 28 items. Language: English Standard No: LCCN: 92-797546 Abstract: Chiefly papers relating to the last voyage of Hitchings who died at sea, including orders of William Gray (1750-1825), of Boston and Salem, Mass., merchant and owner of ship denlings officiale in England http://firstsearch.oclc.org/WebZ/FSFETCH?fetchtype=fullrecord:sessionid=sp07...:numrecs= 5/28/2004 FirstSearch: WorldCat Detailed Record Page 2 of 2 viay, pertaining utalinings WILL Belgium, where Hitchings picked up silver money for East Indian trade; record (1816) of accounts in Calcutta, India; and information concerning the ship Union. Persons represented include fellow ship captains, Enoch Baldwin and Eleazer Gray. SUBJECT(S) Descriptor: International trade. Shipping -- Massachusetts. Ships -- Massachusetts. Silver coins. Named Person: Baldwin, Enoch. Gray, Eleazer. Gray, William, 1750-1825. Named Corp: Union (Ship) Clay (Ship) Geographic: Massachusetts -- Business, industries, and trades -- Shipping. Boston (Mass.) -- Business, industries, and trades -- Shipping. Massachusetts -- Transportation -- Ships. Boston (Mass.) -- Transportation -- Ships. United States -- Commerce. Great Britain -- Commerce -- United States. East Indies -- Commerce -- United States. Belgium -- Commerce -- United States. Antwerp (Belgium) -- Commerce. Salem (Mass.) -- Business, industries, and trades -- Shipping. Note(s): Bio/History: Ship captain, sailing out of Boston, Mass. General Info: Finding aid in the repository./ Source unknown./ Occupation: Ship captains/ Massachusetts. Entry: 19920303 Update: 20020418 Document Type: Archival Material Accession No: OCLC: 28413930 Database: WorldCat WorldCat results for: (su= "Gray, WorldCat Subjects Libraries E-mail Print Export Help William,") and su= "1750-1825.". Record 5 of 6. English Español Français Options Comments Exit © 1992-2004 OCLC oc Terms & Conditions http://firstsearch.oclc.org/WebZ/FSFETCH?fetchtype=fullrecord:sessionid=sp07. numrecs= 5/28/2004 Lynn Massachusetts, 1890 Page 1 of 4 Lynn Massachusetts, 1890 LYNN is a manufacturing town on the seaboard in the extreme southern part of Essex County, 11 miles northeast of Boston, with which it is connected by a street railway, and by the Boston, Revere Beach and Lynn Railroad and by the Eastern line of the Boston and Maine Railroad; the latter connecting it directly with the railroad systems north, east and south. Lynn harbor opens on Broad Sound, in Massachusetts Bay. It is nearly half filled with flats, but through it run numerous channels, some of which are 15 feet in depth, and wide enough for easy towage. Lynn is bounded on the north by Peabody and Salem, east by Swampscott and its harbor, on the south by its own harbor, and on the west by Saugus. The long peninsula of Nahant lies in the sea eastward; forming the eastern side of Lynn harbor. There is a considerable extent of beach on each side of the peninsula. The assessed area of the city is 4,378 acres. The more densely occupied portion is about four miles in length along the shore, and some two miles in breadth from the shore to the hills. The western half of this tract, resting on the Saugus River (which forms the southwestern line of the township) is a rather low plain, of which nearly one half toward the sea is salt marsh covered at high water. The eastern half is of greater elevation. The rear section of the township northward is a tract of rough hills covered with wood. A large portion of this wild and romantic tract has been acquired by the city for the purpose primarily of a series of basins for an increase of the water-supply of the city. The area of two small ponds has already been increased to beautiful sheets of water, one of which is about two miles in length, and very irregular in its outline. It has been named "Walden Pond," in honor of the leader in the formation of this noble park. The height recently named "Mount Gilead," in this region, affords a magnificent view of forests, rocks, villages, bays and beaches. The soil, except on the hills, is a gravelly loam, approaching clay, with ample deposits of clear clay. The rock, in the half nearest the sea is a dark, bluish felsite, passing into a purple porphyry, and thought to be of Huronian origin. http://capecodhistory.us/Mass1890/Lynn1890.htn 5/28/2004 Lynn Massachusetts, 1890 Page 2 of 4 North of the porphyry, the rock is a gray sienite, strongly metamorphic in the east, but northerly becoming distinctly hornblendic. On the west the porphyry becomes conglomerate. Profitable quarrying has been done in some places. Just east of the territorial centre lies Wennuchus Lake, covering 117 acres; Wyoma Lake, of 84 acres, lies near on the northwest; and on the same line is Cedar Lake. Southwest of the centre lies a group of ponds, partly artificial, which furnishes the city with water. The drainage is by Strawberry, Mowers and Birch brooks, affluents of the Saugus, and by Stacy's Brook, which enters the ocean at Swampscott. An elevation called "Dungeon Rock" lies northwest of the centre. Near it is Sunadon Rock, 770 feet in height, on the western line. High Rock is a picturesque cliff in the city proper. This elevation affords an excellent view of the city, of the neighboring towns, and of the harbor and beaches. At the foot of this rock dwelt, a generation ago, the famous fortune-teller, Moll Pitcher. The city has many well-shaded streets, and beautiful private and public buildings. Ocean Street and others in its vicinity have many fine residences and command fine sea views. The leading business is the manufacture of boots and shoes, for which there were in 1885, 308 establishments, employing upwards of 9,474 persons, producing goods to the value of $23,573,319. More than 1,000 men are employed in tanning and dressing the various kinds of leather. The artisans' tools made amounted to nearly $1,000,000; and there are large manufactures of food preparations, electrical apparatus, boxes and other paper goods, textiles, bricks, carriages, polishes and dressing for leather, lasts, furniture, glass, liquors, and others common to villages. The aggregate value of goods made was $31,100,906 The 36 farms yielded to value of $40,848, and fisheries (mackerel) $3,600. The dwellings numbered 7,951. There are five national banks in the city, having an aggregate capital of $ 1,100,000; and two savings banks, carrying deposits at the beginning of the present year of $5,189,519. The valuation of the city in 1888 was $33,224,080, and the tax-rate $18.60 on $1,000. The population in 1885 was 45,867; including 11,949 legal voters. The only post-office is "Lynn," which has carrier delivery. The villages are Glenmere, Highlands, Linwood, East Lynn, West Lynn, Lynnmere, http://capecodhistory.us/Mass1890/Lynn1890.htm 5/28/2004 Lynn Massachusetts, 1890 Page 3 of 4 Stetsonville and Wyoma. In or near each of these are railway stations of the Boston and Maine Railroad. The city hall is a very handsome building, with ample lawns. The schools are in four grades, and occupy 30 buildings, valued at upwards of $530,000. There are also several private schools, - consisting of an English and classical school, two mercantile schools, an art academy, Ireson Academy, the Lincoln Hall school and a Roman Catholic school. There are 30 libraries for public use; the city library having about 35,000 volumes; and four circulating libraries having about 5,000. The periodicals are the daily "Bee" and the "Evening Item;" the weekly "Reporter," "Transcript," "City Item" and "Knights of Labor;" the monthly "Agassiz Journal," Household Monthly" and the "Modern Priscilla." Of the 22 churches in the city, 3 are Baptist, 4 Congregationalist, 1 Free Baptist, 1 Friends, 6 Methodist, 1 Protestant Episcopal, 2 Roman Catholic, 1 Unitarian, 2 Universalist and 1 African Methodist. Several of the edifices are elegant buildings, that of St. Stephen's Memorial being especially striking. Lynn is with one exception the oldest settlement in Essex County. It was admitted to the General Court under its original (Indian) name of Saugus, in 1630, some 50 new settlers having come in that year. The pioneers came in 1629, and consisted of 5 families -- about 20 persons, all told - who had recently landed at Salem from England; and a certain plain about half a mile in extent, in the eastern section, was the site of this settlement. Saugus signifies "great" or "extended," and probably referred to the long beach. Saugus River was called Abousett by the Indians. The township in its original extent embraced the present towns of Lynnfield (set off in 1682), Saugus (set off in 1815), Swampscott (set off in 1852) and Nahant (set off in 1853). The name was changed to Lynn in the records of the General Court, November 20, 1637. It was incorporated as a city, April 10, 1850. The name in the early period was variously spelled, "Lin," "Linn" and "Lynne." The new name was given in honor of the Rev. William Whiting, the first settled minister, who had been a curate at Lynn Regis, in England. It is believed that the first iron foundery in America was erected in 1643 in this town on the west bank of the Saugus River, making use of a deposit of bog-iron ore in its vicinity. Ten years http://capecodhistory.us/Mass1890/Lynn1890.htm 5/28/2004 Lynn Massachusetts, 1890 Page 4 of 4 later Mr. Joseph Jencks, of these works, made by contract for the town of Boston "an ingine to carry water in case of fire," which was the first constructed in this country. In 1652, the coinage dies for the Boston mint were made here. As early as 1635 two shoemakers came from England and established themselves at Lynn, and the business steadily increased from that time; a great impulse coming to the business about 1750, when John Adams Dagyr, a Welshman, produced shoes equal to the best then made in England. Early in the Revolution Lynn sent 168 men into the contest, and 56 of them never returned, - four being killed at Lexington. For the war of the Rebellion the city furnished 3,270 men, - 230 more than its quota. In honor of the 289 who were lost, it has erected a beautiful monument of marble. Abraham Pierson (1641-1707), a president of Yale College; William Gray (1750-1825), merchant and lieutenant-governor; Isaac Newhall (1782-1858), merchant and author; Chandler Robbins, D.D. (1810), an eminent clergyman; and Peter Thacher Washburne (1814-1870), an eminent jurist, - are distinguished sons of Lynn in past days. pp. 430-432 in Nason and Varney's Massachusetts Gazetteer, 1890 Gazetteer http://capecodhistory.us/Mass1890/Lynn1890.htm 5/28/2004 The Salem Houses of William "Old Billy" Gray July 25, 2009 Robert M. Gray 1 Introduction These notes were first put together in the carly 90s, motivated by my curiosity as to whether William "Old Billy" Gray's house in Salem still stood. The eventual resolution of the mystery proved a sad one, none of his houses still stood - but his most famous house did still stand when I was a college student in Boston in the early 1960s. I could have seen it, albeit in much altered form, if I had known at the time. It was torn down around 1975, after Historic Salem Incorporated "reluctantly" voted "to support the razing of the Gray-Essex House on Essex Street." citing its "deteriorated condition and years of alterations to the original structure." The house was torn down to clear space for the East India Mall, another example of the relentless encroachment of fast food and boring plastic shops on our vanishing architectural heritage. It turns out that both Billy Gray's mansions occupied space now covered by the mall, but his earlier residence was torn down long ago. It is ironic that the East India Mall itself is no more, having been replaced by the Museum Place Mall following the combination of the Peabody Museum of Salem and the Essex Institute. The combined museum has greatly expanded, but the maritime emphasis has been lost in the process and its original galleries in the old East India Society building have shrunk to only a hint of the glory days of one of the great maritime museums of the world. I retain the separate identity of the Essex Institute in these notes, as it was separate when I did my research and it seems almost invisible now in the new PEM. In tracking down the stories of some of Gray's Salem properties, I found several interesting characters and a few historical confusions. I have tried to sort through the differing versions and to provide some background information on the characters. In the course of my reading I visited the Essex Institute of Salem, now incorporated into the Peabody Essex Musem of Salem. and spent many enjoyable hours with Irene Norton, the Research Librarian Emeritus of the James Duncan Phillips Library, finding both information and pictures, some of which are included in this manuscript. Most concern Gray's best known residence, the brick mansion he built that for many years was to be the central hostelry of Salem, the Essex House. The house numbers used here are those given in the Pickman account [1]. and used in the map of Salem in 1780 drawn by Henry Noyes Otis [2] and printed in Phillips [3], hereafter referred to as the Otis map. Large copies of this beautiful map were available for purchase from the Essex Institute, but I have not been able to find them at the Peabody Museum. 1 2 Early Residences According to the Pickman Account, before acquiring his own house Billy Gray first lived with Samuel Gardner Esq. and afterwards with richard Derby Jr. Esq. Edward Gray mentions that Billy was an apprentice to Samuel Gardner [4]. Samuel Gardner (1712/13-1769) was the son of one of the seemingly innumerable Capt. Gardners and was one of the leading merchants of Salem. He was reputed to be the wealthiest man in town when he died [5]. According to Phillips [3], Samuel Gardner's house was west of Town House Square on the south side of Main (Essex) St. It seems probable that Billy Gray lived with Gardner during the period of his apprenticeship, an unknown period of time between his arrival in 1762/1763 at the age of 12 or 13 and the death of Samuel Gardner in 1769. This likely was the beginning of the long period of connections between the Gray and Gardner families. Gray would later share ownership of the brigantine Ceres with Weld Gardner, the son of Samuel and Esther (Orne) Gardner. The ship was built in 1788 and registered in 1791 with Capt. Benjamin Ives as master. She was lost at sea two or three years later. Weld Gardner was a merchant in Salem and owned several ships. Weld Gardner lived in house #57 in Pickman (who misspelled his first name as Wild), a house on School Street, north of Church St. and west of the town jail. Gardner was a bachelor and in 1793 was sharing his house with Capt. Thomas Lec. Samuel Gardner's brother John was the grandfather of Samuel Pickering Gardner, who's two daughters Sara Russell and Elizabeth Pickering married the Gray brothers, Horace and John Chipman. Samuel Gardner's sister elizabeth married another Captain John Gardner (a distant cousin, also descended from the founder of the family, Thomas Gardner) and their son (guess who) Captain John Gardner married Sarah. the daughter of Richard Derby, the founder of the Derby merchant house of Salem. Billy Gray's next housemate was Richard Derby, Jr., the eldest son of Richard Derby and the brother of Elias Haskett Derby (1732-1799), the most famous of the Salem merchant kings and the first millionaire in America. This move was likely commensurate with Billy Gray's taking a position in Richard Derby's counting house, where he remained until setting up business for himself. Gray's early career would be in the shadow of Elias Haskett Derby. but after Derby he was the most successful of the young merchants of his generation. By 1780 he was paying the second largest tax in town, and following Derby's death in 1799 he became unquestionably the wealthiest and most influential merchant in Salem. Richard Derby, Jr., was reknowned as a sea captain while Elias ran the business following the death of Richard Sr. in 1783. Richard Jr. was a member of the Provincial Congress in 1774 and 1775. He added to his fame by relaying a suggestion of Congress to his father to send a fast ship to England following the battle of Lexington to present the American side of the story to the Lord Mayor of London before the dispatches of General Gage could arrive. Richard Sr.'s son Capt. John Derby commanded the successful adventure. [6, 7] Richard Jr. lived in a small house near his father's house, which was on the easterly corner of Derby and Herbert Streets. The house of Richard Sr. was later called the 2 Miles Ward House. 3 The Court Street House House # 80 in the Pickman Account. [1]. The property bearing William Gray's name on the Otis 1780 map is located on the Highway to Marblehead, a continuation of School St. At the time it was called Otis map of Salem around 1780 Location of Billy Gray houses: #80, #29, #36 Court St. because the original Court House was on the street. The property was owned by Samuel Baron Esq., who sold it to Miles Ward. Jr., who built a house on it. Barton did not like the property because of a slaughterhouse in front of it, but he retained nearby property on which he built a house for his son. Ward later sold the property to Nathaniel Sparhawk, a grandson of Sir William Pepperell. Sparhawk sold the property to Billy Gray, who owned it in 1780. Gray later sold the property to a Capt. Nichols 3 4 The Mansions Both of Billy Gray's mansions were on what is now Essex Street. From 1694 through 1805 it was called ye Main Street and the name was changed in 1805, when Billy lived in his second mansion. Before 1694 the street had been called the street from ye meet- ing house to ye harbor (1653), the street that comes straight from the meeting house (1659), and ye street that goeth from ye meeting house to the training place (1671). The street was first paved in 1792, partly by the Town and partly by subscriptions, the town contributing $1000 and the residents contributing a total of $600. Both of Billy Gray's mansions were built on property owned for many years by the Browne family of Salem. Their story is mixed in with that of both houses. The First Essex St. Mansion House #29 in the Pickman Account. The house was first built by the Hon. William Browne Esq. (b. 1639) in 1698 to replace his previous house, which had been lost in the great fire. He died quite wealthy in 1716 at the age of 76, leaving the house to his grandson William, the husband of Governor Burnet's daughter, who died at age 54 in 1763. The house then passed to his son, William Burnett Browne. Here a variety of stories exist. According to Perley [8], when William Burnett Browne left Salem for Virginia, he conveyed the house and lot to Catherine Sargent for four hundred pounds. As Perley's source is the Essex Registry of deeds, I will follow his line first (although the other stories are more colorful). Catherine Sargent sold the estate for three hundred pounds to Paul Dudley Sargent on 16 September 1780. The property is listed as belonging to Paul Dudley Sargent on the Otis map of 1780. Mr. Sargent sold the property and its house an barn to Jesse Fearson, a Salem merchant, on 12 November 1781 for two thousand pounds. Mr. Fearson conveyed the same estate to Billy Gray on 17 September 1783. Other versions state that William Burnett Browne sold the house to his cousin, Col. William Browne [6]. This Col. Browne is one of the most interesting people to arise in connection with Billy Gray's houses. He was a tory loyalist who fled Salem in 1774 to take refuge in Boston before leaving for England in 1776. The year is interesting because in it took place one of the confrontations between colonists and British soldiers that occurred before the battle of Lexington two years later, but which did not explode into gunfire. General Gage had sent troops to break up the Salem town meeting where seditious behavior was feared. First, however, Gage took time to be lavishly entertained by Brownc. At the party, however, Gage was distracted by clever townsfolk and got SO upset that he did not act in time to prevent the meeting from concluding its business. In the meantime, troops had been called up and bloodshed feared, but none occurred. The resulting anti-British feeling was SO strong. howoever, that Browne and his family left all of their possessions and fled to Boston. Browne had been a pillar of the community, serving as a representative, superior court judge. and colonel of the regiment. He followed a long line of five generations of distinguished citizens of Salem. He had been born in 1737 and he graduated from 4 Harvard in 1755. He owned a large estate, including what is now Derby Square. As a result of his departure, all of his property in Salem was confiscated in 1784. He lost his mansion. gardens, wharfs, and stores as well as anothyer house and adjoining land in Salem. He was the only resident of Salem to lose property by confiscation. According to one story, this house was one of those confiscated and William Gray bought it as an absentee estate at public vendue following the revolution [9, 10]. This story seems unlikely since Col. William Browne in fact had another mansion in Salem (#4 in Pickman) which was indeed confiscated and which was bought by Elias Haskett Derby (who was related to Browne) after Browne fled with his half-brother, John Sargent. The remaining confiscated property does not fit the description of the house. Another, more probable, version states that Col. William Browne's mother, who was then the wife of Col. Sargent, received the house in payment of a debt due her by her son and subsequently sold it to Billy Gray on 17 September 1783. [1] This story is consistent with Perley's since the sale of the house by William Burnett Browne to Mrs. Sargent could have been arranged (and paid for ?) by Col. William Browne. Col. William Browne was later (1781-1788) Governor of Bermuda and he died in London in 1802. When Gray bought the house. it was a large and stately mansion standing eighteen feet back from the street. [9] He had the house beautified and lived in it until 1800, when he moved to his second mansion at 176 Essex St. Billy Gray sold the house to Union Marine Insurance for $13,500. On 25 June 1805 it became the Sun Tavern with Benjamin Webb as landlord (more later on the Sun Tavern). The original Sun Tavern sign from this location is supposed to be in the possession of the Danvers Historical Society [9]. On 15 November the house was sold to Mr. William Manning of Salem. He tore it down and had William Roberts construct the Bowker Building there in 1830, one of the "malls" of the time (later the location of the first Filene's store). The Bowker Block was in turn torn down for construction of the East India Mall in the 1970s. The Rogers store occupied the site when I visited in the early 90s, selling fancy clothes. Just to the east of this house, opposite the head of Liberty St., stood the house of Daniel Ropes, which he inherited from his father Joseph Ropes. To the west stood another of the Browne's family houses, which was occupied by Colonel Newhall in 1780. 4.1 176 Essex St. House #36 in the Pickman Account. Billy Gray's best known house during his life in Salem was undoubtedly the man- sion he constructed at 176 Essex St., a building famous of years as the Essex House and which lasted, in much altered form. until torn down in the 1970s to make way for the construction of the East India Mall. In addition to the Essex House, the property housed many famous inns and taverns in its time. Immediately to the east in 1780 stood the house of Same Gale, the barber. To the west stood a house occupied in 1780 by Capt. Nathanial West, Elias Haskett Derby's son-in-law. The West house 5 and 1800 About 176 6 was built by John Turner Esq in 1748 and then sold to Judge Andrew Oliver, who sold it to West. The house became a public house in 1833 on the occasion of a visit by President Andrew Jackson and it was known as the Mansion-House until it was destroyed by fire around 1857. Before Turner built the house, the property had an illustrious history of taverns. For a long time it was the location of the Ship Tavern, the most noted in Salem during the seventeenth century. John Gedney was the proprietor before 1692, followed by John Stacey, Francis Ellis, and Henry Sharpe. The vicinity had a reputation for public houses from about 1675 on. The Billy Gray property and the site immediately to the west were the locations of the above taverns as well as the King's Arm Tavern (which became the Sun Tavern as the king's popularity faded), Pratt's Tavern (before 1730, it was supposed to have been the most famous tavern ever in Salem; it was torn down in 1740), Goodhue's Tavern, Robinson's Tavern, Webb's Tavern, the Essex Coffee House, the Lafayette Coffee House, and, finally, the Essex House. Before Pratt occupied the tavern, the property was owned by the Curwens, of witchcraft hysteria fame. The first known owner of the property was Peter Palfry, one of the original "old planters." His homestead occupied the arca between the West block, nearly opposite Market (Central) St., and the head of St. Peter St. He owned the property from before 1651 through 1664, when he sold it to William Browne Esq. William Browne built a mansion on the grounds in 1652 which he occupied until his death in 1667 at age 79. This house was thereafter called the Browne mansion-house, leading to some confusion with house #29 mentioned earlier. Both of the Billy Gray mansions occupied sites on which mansions built by a William Browne had stood and on which a Sun Tavern stood! This led to considerable confusion in disentangling the history of the two houses. The house was then occupied by William's son Benjamin Browne Esq., until his death at age 60 in 1708. As he had no children, he left the house to his nephew, John Browne Esq., who died in 1719 at age 46 and who left the house to his son, another Benjamin Brown Esq.. who lived there until his death in 1750 at age 43. This Benjamin Browne represented the town for many years in the General Court and was Lieutenant Colonel of the Regiment. The house gained some reknown when a "vast sum" of English shillings was found in one of the chimneys of the house during Col. Browne's wedding in 1730. [6, 1]. The money was assumed to have been hidden during the Dutch wars. After Colonel Browne's death, his children inherited the house and his widow lived there until she remarried in 1751 and moved to Boston. An interesting sidelight on the Browne mansion is that apparently some of Hawthorne's descriptions in the House of the Seven Gables came from this house rather than from the better known Turner house now often called the House of the Seven Gables. In particular, a rough ornament beneath the leaves was taken from the Browne mansion before it was razed by Billy Gray and was likely seen by Hawthorne in the Essex Institute [12]. After the departure of the widow Brownc, the house was occupied in succession by the Rev. John Sparhawk until his death in 1755 at age 43, Richard Lechmere Esq., Andrew Oliver Esq., John Turner Esq., and then William Goodhue, tavern-keeper. 7 Lechmere was the Salem Collector of Customs in 1759 and a nephew of Nicholas, Lord Lechmere. of the reign of George I of England. He was reputedly one of the best bred men in Salem. Goodhuc was occupying the building by about 1770 [6] and he purchased the house on 29 November 1780. It was called the King's Arm Tavern at the time, but the name was changed to the Sun Tavern at the beginning of the revolution in 1776. The King's Arm Tavern was notorious in 1768 as a meeting place for merchants and traders discussing a boycott of all imported British goods save coal and salt. [6] Goodhue owned the house until 1796, but he regularly leased it to others. notably Samuel Robinson, Capt. Benjamin Web, and then Capt. Webb's son Jonathan Webb. Jonathan Webb also owned a tavern on School St. in 1780 (House #55 in the Pickman Account [1]). Goodhue and Robinson had also managed public houses on the South side of Essex Street to the east of the Billy Gray house, in a house built by Mr. Hirst in 1700 and subsequently owned by Major Walter Price, Ichabod Plaisted Esq., and a Scotsman named Somerville, who first kept a public house at this address. Hence it is difficult to know if references just before 1770 to Goodhue's or Robinson's Tavern are to this house or the Billy Gray house. During much of this time it was called the Sun Tavern, but it was also known as Goodhue's Tavern and Webb's Tavern and the names often crop up in Salem history and guide books as local gathering places. The 1793 Pickman Account states that the tavern, then run by Webb, was the most noted in town. Phillips [3] describes Webb's Tavern as the most famous tavern in town in 1783. Goodhue's Tavern is noted on the Otis map. At this time the property was on the north side of Ye Main Street, between Ingall's Land and St. Peter St. In 1796 Goodhue sold the property to Jeremiah Allen of Boston, who in the same year sold it to Billy Gray. According to the Pickman Account, the house was owned by the Browne children until 1788, when the last, John Browne, died leaving it to his widow, who was an Allen. When Billy Gray purchased the property, the house was called the Sun Tav- ern and it was roughly opposite the head of what was then Market Street and is now Central Street, close to the Peabody Museum of Salem. According to [10], Benjamin Webb was landlord when Billy Gray bought the house and it was Webb that moved into the house Gray had just vacated and promptly hoisted the Sun Tavern sign there. It is ironic that Billy Gray effectively traded houses with the Sun Tavern. The new house was some- what farther in from the street and farther eastward than its predecessor. He moved into his new house in 1800 and remained there until he left Salem in 1809. 176 Essex St., Salem, Mass. After Gray left, virtually driven out gift of Mrs. Mary C. Hart of town because of his Republican senti- Courtesy of the Essex Institute ments in support of the Federal govern- ment, President Jefferson, and the Em- 8 bargo Act of 1808, his house was enlarged and altered and became the Essex Coffee House sometime before 1814. His stable was converted into the eastern wing of the building. The garden was originally located near the corner of Essex and St. Peter St. The house itslef was located between Market and Liberty Streets. The establish- ment's name was changed to the Lafayette Coffee House in 1824 following Lafayette's last visit to Salem. During this period there were a fine old fireplace and a mantel in the office and a pictorial paper with scenes of the French Revolution covering the walls of the parlor. The house was also called simply the Lafayette House for a while. During 1842-1877 the inn was called the Essex House. 5 Gray's Wharf Billy Gray's counting house and warehouse were located at 311 Derby St., which then sat on the shore and had a wharf extending into the South River. The wharf seems to be the same as that called Faben's wharf. which was at the end of Fish St., but I have not been able to confirm this. The warehouse was later occupied by J.P. Langmain and Sons. 9 Essex House (William Gray House) 176 Essex St., Salem, MA. Essex Institute Negative Number 18941 Copied from the glass neg. 9310 in the library collection. Courtesy, Essex Institute, Salem, Mass 10 Essex Essex House, 176 Essex St., Salem, Copied from a photo in the library collection. 18943 Institute Negative Number MA. Courtesy, Essex Institute, Salem, Mass 11 71 ug aut 10 pool r OSIC St 101 Suitimes panoj 09 SBUI Asna pub SCHOOL ade 347 pur 07 07 ut are sanoy 118 18 a us seq 7I new issues peat 947 S! pus uo process st SIUL INTIVS XSS 9L1 ON 'LLIAVIT'S 's Xassa 12 ORIGINALLY References [1] George B. Loring, "Some account of houses and other buildings in Salem, from a manuscript of the late Col. Benj. Pickman," Historical Collections of the Essex Institute. vol. VI, pp. 98-109. June 1864. [2] Map of Salem about 1780. Based on the researches of Sidney Perley and the accounts of Col. Benjamin Pickman and Benjamin J.F. Browne with additional information assembled by James Duncan Phillips and Henry Noyes Otis. Drawn by Henry Noyes Otis. 1937. Published in Phillips [3]. [3] James Duncan Phillips, Salem in the Eighteenth Century, The Riverside Press, Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston 1937. [4] Edward Gray, William Gray of Salem, Merchant, Riverside Press, Houghton Mif- flin, Cambridge, 1914. [5] Frank Augustus Gardner, Gardner Memorial, Newcomb and Gauss, Salem, Mass, 1933. [6] C.H. Webber and W.S. Nevins, Old Naumkeag, A.A. Smith & Co., Salem, Mass., 1877. [7] Robert E. Peabody, Merchant Adventurers of Old Salem, Riverside Press, Houghton Mifflin, Cambridge, 1912. [8] Sidney Perley, "Salem in 1700, No. 16," The Essex Antiquarian, Vol. VIII, 1904 pp. 113-116. [9] Visitors Guide Salem, Essex Institute, Salem, Mass. 1895. [10] Essex Institute Historical Collections, Vol. IV, p,. 80. [11] Salem and the Indies, Riverside Press, Houghton Mifflin, Boston, 1947. [12] Frank Cousins and Phil M. Riley, The Colonial Architecture of Salem, Little Brown & Co., 1919. 13 7/17/2019 Xfinity Connect Re Old Bfarmation, and George Dorr Printout Session Timeout Continue Session Robert M Gray wrote: Dear Bob, This will be a test message to see if you can still be reached via Stanford since I have determined that you have relocated to Rockport ME. Briefly, back in 2005-2006 we exchanged email regarding the Gray family connection to George B. Dorr, the Founder of Acadia National Park. I was preparing a biography which you may be pleased to learn 7/17/2019 Xfinity Connect Re Old Billy_Gray, Mary Gray Ward, and George Dorr Printout was published in 2016 on the centennial of the park and the National Park Service.. You visited me at my home in Merrimack NH at that time and I have an ancestry charts in your handwriting. There is much more to relate, but I'll wait and see if you respond to this message. Note new address and email,. Ron Ronald H. Epp, Ph.D. 7 Peachtree Terrace Farmington, CT 06032 717-272-0801 eppster2@comcast.net Portraits OF Shipmasters and Merchants IN THE Peabody Museum of Salem With an Introduction by Walter Muir Whitehill Salem Peabody Museum 1939 capital brought to Salem car- ce, hides, rattans, hemp, indigo and pepper, Asiatic products. Early in 1885 he expressed take up a less adventurous life, and arrange- proposed for his removal with his family to ere he hoped to enter upon a mercantile career with his brother-in-law George D. Richard- hopes were never realized, for Captain Gillis ship Equator on his passage from Batavia, l' 1835. Mrs. Gillis died in Salem in 1875. x Co. Prob. Rec., Docket 10951; Salem Vit. d), I, 356, III, 417, V, 280; E. I. H. C., ), 162; Salem Ship Reg., 199 History E. I. l'utnam, I, 111, II, 133; Gillis Papers at the ute, II, 40; Duren, Three Generations of Their Vessels, 15-30, 39; Vinton, Richard- l, 631, 691, 692.] M GRAY, 1750-1825. Oil after Gilbert i. Canvas, 331/4 in. X 26 in. Seated figure towards right, head three-quarters to right, ront, fair hair brushed loosely over forehead ed in a queue. White stock, frilled shirt, satin waistcoat, dark coat. Sits at table, has red cover and papers on it. Right hand open letter. Dark gray background. M 314. 390. Plate XVIII. |ray, Salem merchant, familiarly called was born at Lynn on Marion Street near oad, 27 June 1750, but about 1760 he re- em with his parents, Abraham and Lydia i. He was apprenticed as a lad to Samuel , but soon entered the counting house of Y. Here he learned the first principles of WILLIAM GRAY igh the application of which he became one No. 60 wealthiest merchants. Seafaring life evi- tempt him, for he began business for him- was about twenty-eight years of age. His 3 married 28 March 1782, was Elizabeth at Marblehead 9 June 1756, the daughter Elizabeth (Brown) Chipman. Always in- PORTRAITS IN THE PEABODY MUSEUM the brig Malay. Captain Gillis brought to Salem car- goes of coffee, hides, rattans, hemp, indigo and pepper, with other Asiatic products. Early in 1835 he expressed a desire to take up a less adventurous life, and arrange- ments were proposed for his removal with his family to Portland where he hoped to enter upon a mercantile career in company with his brother-in-law George D. Richard- son. These hopes were never realized, for Captain Gillis died on the ship Equator on his passage from Batavia, 10 December 1835. Mrs. Gillis died in Salem in 1875. [See Essex Co. Prob. Rec., Docket 10951; Salem Vit. Rec. (printed), I, 356, III, 417, V, 280; E. I. H. C., LVII (1921), 162; Salem Ship Reg., 199; History E. I. M. S., 61; Putnam, I, 111, II, 133; Gillis Papers at the Essex Institute, II, 40; Duren, Three Generations of Silsbees and Their Vessels, 15-30, 39; Vinton, Richard- son Memorial, 631, 691, 692.] 60. WILLIAM Gray, 1750-1825. Oil after Gilbert Stuart. Canvas, 331/4 in. X 26 in. Seated figure facing towards right, head three-quarters to right, eyes front, fair hair brushed loosely over forehead and tied in a queue. White stock, frilled shirt, black satin waistcoat, dark coat. Sits at table, which has red cover and papers on it. Right hand holds open letter. Dark gray background. M 314. Neg. 1390. Plate XVIII. William Gray, Salem merchant, familiarly called "Billy" Gray, was born at Lynn on Marion Street near the Boston Road, 27 June 1750, but about 1760 he re- moved to Salem with his parents, Abraham and Lydia (Calley) Gray. He was apprenticed as a lad to Samuel Gardner, Esq., but soon entered the counting house of Richard Derby. Here he learned the first principles of business, through the application of which he became one of America's wealthiest merchants. Seafaring life evi- dently did not tempt him, for he began business for him- self when he was about twenty-eight years of age. His wife, whom he married 28 March 1782, was Elizabeth Chipman, born at Marblehead 9 June 1756, the daughter of John and Elizabeth (Brown) Chipman. Always in- 54 PORTRAITS IN THE PEABODY MUSEUM tensely patriotic, one of Mr. Gray's first acts was to con- tribute to the outfitting of the Quero, Richard Derby's ship which was rushed to England to carry the news of the American victory at the Battle of Lexington. Simi- larly several decades later he gave generously to the build- ing of the frigate Essex. Although Mr. Gray was from the first deeply absorbed in his business, yet he found time to join the Salem Fire Club, the Salem and Danvers Aqueduct Company, and was one of the incorporators of the Essex Fire and Marine Insurance Company. He also served as selectman and was President of the Essex Bank. Mr. Gray owned solely or in part several private armed vessels during the latter part of the Revolution. Of these the most prominent were the Defence, Hind, Venus, Iris, Hector and Union. Although he is not recorded as taking any active part in the service of the Revolutionary War, Mr. Gray held a lieutenant's com- mission in Captain Richard Ward's Company of the First Essex County Regiment of Militia. After the War a large number of vessels were purchased by Mr. Gray for merchant service in China, India and many other foreign countries, and the records show that a great proportion of his cargoes were consigned to himself. Among the best known of his vessels were the Grand Turk, Romp, Porcupine, Spitfire, Hawk, William and Henry, Active, Rising States and Leopard. In 1783 William Gray lived on Essex Street in Salem in a house purchased of William Brown, but in 1800 he built a mansion on the opposite side of the street, portions of which still form a part of the Essex House of today. In 1809 he removed to Boston, where he purchased the estate of Governor Sulli- van and also a summer house in Cambridge. He was a staunch Federalist in politics and a member of the Fed- eralist Committee of Correspondence, Senator from Essex County and Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, 1810- 11. The business ventures which he continued during his residence in Boston were very successful and he was accounted one of the largest ship owners in the country. Mrs. Gray died in Boston 29 September 1823 and Mr. Gray on 3 November 1825. He was unostentatious and affable in manner and scrupulously honest in his commer- 55 PORTRAITS IN THE PEABODY MUSEUM until his resignation in 1897. He died at 163 Marlbor- ough Street, Boston, 6 May 1900. [See Salem Vit. Rec. (printed), I, 281; Endicott, Memoir of Samuel Endicott; Adams, Memoir of William C. Endicott, LL.D.; Information at Peabody Museum.] 167. WILLIAM GRAY, 1750-1825. White marble bust, signed "Dexter." Extreme height, 28 in. Ex- treme width, 19 in. Head and shoulders of eld- erly man, long hair, smooth-shaven face, classical drapery. M 1500. Gift of John Chipman Gray. 1910. For a biographical account of William Gray, also rep- resented in the collection by an oil portrait (no. 60), see pages 54-56 of this catalogue. 168. AUGUSTINE HEARD, 1785-1868. White marble bust by unknown sculptor. Extreme height, 28 in. Extreme width, 20 in. Head and shoulders of elderly man with full curling beard and mous- tache, classical drapery. M 3787. Purchase, 1931. For a biographical account of Augustine Heard, also represented in the collection by an oil portrait (no. 63), see page 59 of this catalogue. 169. GEORGE AUGUSTUS PEABODY, 1831-1929. White marble bust by John Wilson, 1930, after a bust modeled from life in 1909 at Roque Island, Maine, by George Howard Monks, M.D. Ex- treme height, 21 in. Extreme width, 141/2 in. Extreme depth, 9 in. Head and shoulders of elderly man with drooping moustache, wearing an open coat, single-breasted waistcoat, standing collar. M 3785. Gift of George Peabody Gardner and William Crowninshield Endicott, Executors of George Augustus Peabody, 1930. George Augustus Peabody was born in Salem 23 Au- gust 1831. He was the son of George and Clarissa (En- dicott) Peabody, and was christened Joseph Augustus, but in 1845, by Act of the Legislature, his name was 157 SALEM MERCHANTS OF 1800 AND THEIR VESSELS By JAMES DUNCAN PHILLIPS This list has been obtained by taking the names of all vessels during the year 1800 entering or leaving Salem, or reported as Salem vessels spoken at sea or in other ports, and checking them back against the Salem ship registers. Most of the vessels mentioned are found readily in the registered list, a few are not and some of the numerous Sallys, Pollys and Betseys have been difficult to identify. Vessels not found in the registers have been excluded on the assumption that they were erroneously called Salem vessels or were small coasters enrolled but not registered. The names of the captains are from the newspapers which do not give initials. The owners names are taken from the ship registers which give the last owners before 1800. The tonnages are also from the ship registers. Undoubt- edly there were many more coasting vessels and fishermen which have not been included and it is possible that some registered vessels which did not return to Salem during the year and were not reported elsewhere may have been overlooked. It is not safe to assume, without other proof, that vessels registered in 1799 or before were still on the list, because many vessels were lost, captured by privateers or sold. The list herewith, however, does give a pretty good picture of the size, tonnage and ownership of the Salem fleet at the beginning of the century. Beverly was part of the port of Salem and is included in the list. It is surprising how many different owners there were In 1790 the amount of tonnage in Salem used in trading was 13,726 tons, which comprised 5 ships, 41 brigs, 76 schooners and 2 sloops beside 19 coasting and fishing schooners, and 8 coasting sloops of 953 tons. In 1800 this had grown to 34 ships, 45 brigs, barks, snows, and 59 schooners of 19,636 tons. The computation for 1800 includes 42 ships of 10,112 tons, 37 brigs, barks and snows of 5,122 tons and 59 schooners of 4,405 tons. As stated earlier, these figures (261) Essex Institute Historical Collection 80 (1944). 262 SALEM MERCHANTS OF 1800 AND THEIR VESSELS undoubtedly are subject to revision and cannot be taken as accurate to the last vessel and the last ton, but they un- doubtedly are nearly correct as to the overseas fleet. They will be affected by frequent transfers from coastwise to overseas trade and by errors or omissions due to the compli- cated methods of computation. 1790 Ships, 5 ; Brigs, 41; Schooners, 76; Sloops, 2, 13, .726 18002 Ships, 34; Brigs, 45: Schooners, 59 19,636 A study of the ownership of the various merchants in 1800 in shipping gives a pretty clear idea of who the big men were at that time, though the figures cannot be claimed to be absolutely accurate. William Gray stands clearly at the head. He was interested in eleven ships, two brigs and three schooners with a total tonnage of 3,184 tons. Next came the group of Derby heirs includ- ing Benjamin Pickman and Nathaniel West with ships owned in groups or individually but which represented the Derby family interests. This amounted to 2,071 tons in six ships and three brigs. These two fleets of Gray and the Derby heirs were considerably over a quarter of the whole Salem fleet. Next came a group of merchants owning an interest in vessels that amounted to slightly over 1000 tons. The most important of these was John Norris who owned part of one ship, four brigs and three schooners comprising 1,100 tons. Joseph White owned the whole or parts of two ships, three brigs, or barks, and one schooner which added up to 1,018 tons. The Crowninshield family at this moment appear to have had only three ships and a schooner. Their tonnage would be far down the list if it were not for the fact that they then owned the America which rated 654 tons and was nearly double the size of any other vessel in the port. Joseph Peabody was in this over 1000 ton class with two ships, three brigs and two schooners rating 1,204 tons in all, most of which he owned jointly with Thomas Perkins. The next group was William Orne and the partnership of Benjamin Hodges and Ichabod Nichols, both of whom owned interests in five vessels totaling over 800 tons and 1 From 2d Felt, ii. 298 for 1790. 2 J. D. Phillips' computation for 1800. BY JAMES DUNCAN PHILLIPS 263 after them came Waitt and Pierce, Simon Forrester, Jesse Richardson and William Ward who all owned a part in- terest in vessels aggregating 400 or 500 tons. Most of the merchants had one or more vessels which they owned alone or with one regular partner and then fractional in- terests in a number of others. Many of them owned more ships at an earlier or later date. The merchants were also shipping and receiving goods not only on their own vessels but on those of many other owners and a merchant might be doing a large business even if he owned no ships at that particular moment. It is especially surprising that Simon Forrester and the Crown- inshields did not have more ships in that year. The list of ships with owners and masters is as follows: ESSEX INSTITUTE HISTORICAL COLLECTIONS VOL. LXXXIII JANUARY, 1947 No. 1 WHO OWNED THE SALEM VESSELS IN 1810 By JAMES DUNCAN PHILLIPS By 1810, Salem had reached the zenith of her commer- cial prosperity as a port. Her merchants may later have owned a larger tonnage and their vessels may have carried more merchandise but they did less business actually on the wharves of the town. Apparently there is no list of the vessels in the Salem fleet. Ships registered that year were presumably then operating but vessels registered any time in the twenty years or so previous might or might not still be in the fleet. The embargo in 1808 reduced the number ma- terially and whether the fleet in 1810 was larger than the fleet of 1807 is very hard to estimate unless a compu- tation like that on which these figures are based is also made for 1807. It takes long hours of work to prepare such a list and the chances are that there are minor errors even in this careful computation. found out a couple of interesting facts about Morris Gray > (1856-1931) as well as one piece of data that appears incon > with your ancestry information: > Harvard graduate ('77), Progressive supporter of Teddy Roos > who gave a luncheon at University Hall (Harvard) when the P > visited Cambridge in 1902, he gave a gift of $42,000 (rough > in today's currency) to Widener in 1929. Described in his N > obituary (1.13.31) as "president of the Boston Museum of Fi > Arts He was the son of Francis H. and H. Regina Shober > Gray. " [This claim is the source of the inconsistency]. The > continues to describe his legal career, publications, and > memberships during his 75 years of life. There is no mentio > spouse or children. > > Your thoughts, when convenient. > > Ron > > > > "Robert M. Gray" wrote: > > I found a little information in the family book and genealo > brother put together, and some more in some material my cou > Gray sent me many years ago. > > It turns out that the Morris Gray born in 1856, one of the > William Rufus Gray (Billy Gray's eldest son) and Mary Clay, > Frank Gray's grandfather. His wife was Flora Grant. They we > family tree that > I sent you, but I don't think I sent you the next page. Mor > and Flora Grant had three children, Morris Gray (b 1884), E > Clay Gray (b. 1886), and Francis Calley Gray (b. 1890), as > mention. The latter is the father of my late cousin Frank G > tell you Elizabeth's kids and Francis Cally's other kids. > > The clippings that Frank sent me were clipped by his grandf > Morris clipped from a paper in 1901. They deal with the dea > Morris' uncle Horace Gray, the seventh son of William Rufus > had died a bachelor banker in New York and left his conside > fortune of more than $1 million dollars to the five childre > brother Francis Henry Gray, including Morris. > > Your Morris was a lawyer in Boston who lived in Chestnut Hi > siblings were Francis C. Gray, Samuel S. Gray, Reginald Gra > Mary C. Gray. > > Bob > > > > On Sep 8, 2006, at 7:42 AM, ELIZABETH and RONALD EPP wrote: > > > Dear Bob, > > > > I hope that you had a relaxing Summer and have wondered W http://us.f842.mail.yahoo.com/ym/ShowLetter?MsgId=9078_0_67753_2245_2333_0_2460..3/1/2007 Verizon Yahoo! Mail-eppster2@verizon.net Page 3 of 3 > > traveled here to New Hampshire recently. > > > > Briefly, a quick question. Are you familiar with any of t > > descendants of Boston born Morris Gray (1856-??), item #3 > > "William Gray of Lynn , Massachusetts" by Edward Gray (19 > > children are listed : Morris (1184- ), , Elizabeth (1886- ) > > Frances Calley (1890- ). . > > > > I ask because Morris Gray is designated as one of three > > beneficiaries--should her only son predecease her-- in th > > will of Mary Gray Dorr, George Dorr's mother who died fou > > later. I've not been able to unearth any information abou > > Gray that would suggest why she would favor him. Any sugg > > > > With best wishes, > > > > > > > > Ron Epp > > 47 Pond View Drive > > Merrimack, NH 03054 > > (603) 424-6149 > > eppster2@verizon.net > > > > > Ron Epp > 47 Pond View Drive > Merrimack, NH 03054 > (603) 424-6149 > eppster2@verizon.net Delete Reply Forward Spam Move Previous Next Back to Messages Save Message Text I Check Mail Compose Search Mail Search the Web Copyright © 2007 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved. I Copyright/IP Policy I Terms of Service I Send Feedback Help NOTICE: We collect personal information on this site. To learn more about how we use your information, see our Privacy Policy. verizon http://us.f842.mail.yahoo.com/ym/ShowLetter?MsgId=9078_0_67753_2245_2333 _0_2460...1 3/1/2007 Epp, Ronald From: Epp, Ronald Sent: Friday, July 15, 2005 10:14 AM To: 'Robert M. Gray' Subject: RE: Amy Heard & Dorr's Dear Bob, Hope you are feeling better. I've located a document that is at odds with your ancestry report, unless what I have is inaccurate. At the Massachustts Historical Society in the Thomas Wren Ward Papers ( B. 8, f. 3) is an ancestral chart for Mary Gray Ward (author unknown) It is understandable preoccupied with the Ward side of the family. However, it lists Mary as daughter of Thomas Wren Ward and Lydia Gray (b. 7.30.1788), married 11.13.1810. Lydia is identified as daughter of Samuel with no indication of his dates or his wife's dates; if this is correct it would make Mary a grandaughter of Samuel, not a daughter. I've asked our ILL department to secure a copy of "William Gray of Lynn" to sort this out. From the essay on William Gray (1750-1825) in the Dictionary of American Biography we see the "Lydia" name reappear as William Gray's mother (father is Abraham) Yesterday I spent in Portland at the Maine Historical Society looking through the "Yellow House Papers," dozens of manuscript boxes of Laura and Henry Richards of Gardiner, Maine. He was the architect who designed old Farm, the Bar Harbor Home of the Dorrs; Laura was a reknown author who was the first female to receive a Pulitzer prize. Anyway, it was a "eureke" moment when I found an eight page essay focused on Mary Gray Ward Dorr, a not very flattering portrait. However, up until this point all I knew about her was fragmentary and this essay allows me to better interpret her sons motivations, or lack thereof until her death in 1901. Looking forward to hearing about your reaction to this ancestry issue. Ron Original Message From: Robert M. Gray mailto:gray@eemail.stanford.edu] Sent: Tuesday, July 12, 2005 7:08 PM To: Epp, Ronald Cc: Robert Gray Subject: Re: Amy Heard & Dorr's I found her. I am recovering from a sore throat and cough so I found my copy of "William Gray of Lynn and some of his descendants. Mary was the daughter of Samuel Gray, who was a brother of my ancestor William "Old Billy" Gray, and his first wife, Anne Orne. She married Charles Hazen Dorr in Boston 27 August 1821. They had two children, but you doubtless know about them. This explains why Russell Gray knew Dorr, Dorr's wife was a cousin. Russell Gray was half brother to Justice Horace Gray and the Harvard Professor John Chipman Gray (of Ropes and Gray, a still existing law firm) Russell's father was Horace Gray, Billy Gray's youngest son. Horace's main claim to fame was that he founded the Boston public gardens with a donation of 1500 tulips. So I can add Dorr to my list of interesting marriages made by relatives. Horace's nephew John "Jack" Gardner married Isabella Gardner, and they do not come much more interesting than she was. 1 Epp, Ronald From: Robert M. Gray [gray@eemail.stanford.edu] Sent: Tuesday, July 12, 2005 7:08 PM To: Epp, Ronald Cc: Robert Gray Subject: Re: Amy Heard & Dorr's I found her. I am recovering from a sore throat and cough so I found my copy of "William Gray of Lynn and some of his descendants. Mary was the daughter of Samuel Gray, who was a brother of my ancestor William "Old Billy" Gray, and his first wife, Anne Orne. She married Charles Hazen Dorr in Boston 27 August 1821. They had two children, but you doubtless know about them. This explains why Russell Gray knew Dorr, Dorr's wife was a cousin. Russell Gray was half brother to Justice Horace Gray and the Harvard Professor John Chipman Gray (of Ropes and Gray, a still existing law firm). Russell's father was Horace Gray, Billy Gray's youngest son. Horace's main claim to fame was that he founded the Boston public gardens with a donation of 1500 tulips. So I can add Dorr to my list of interesting marriages made by relatives. Horace's nephew John "Jack" Gardner married Isabella Gardner, and they do not come much more interesting than she was. Regards, bob 1 Epp, Ronald From: Robert M. Gray [gray@eemail.stanford.edu] Sent: Tuesday, July 12, 2005 6:49 PM To: Epp, Ronald Subject: Re: Amy Heard & Dorr's I am surprised so few take advantage of such a priceless resource. Windows into the past are hard to come by. I have built up a fair collection of email correspondents of writers and historians over the years who have also stumbled onto my stuff. It has led to many mutually beneficial exchanges of informations, documents, and occasionally photographs. I will check into the Stanford library system, I would like it to be as available as possible. It does well in many search engines on many of the names it contains. I will also try to check through some of my stuff during the next week or so to see if I can find anything on the Dorr connection. The main treasure trove of stuff relating to the Heard family is at Harvard. It was in the Baker Library when I spent my sabbatical there over a decade ago. There are many personal letters as well as business records of Augustine Heard and Company. I will be sure to let you know when next we are in the area. We usually pass through once or twice each year. Our daughter was just here, so it will not be before fall. Regards, bob 1 Message Page 1 of 1 Epp, Ronald From: Epp, Ronald Sent: Monday, July 11, 2005 1:52 PM To: "rmgray@stanford.edu" Subject: Amy Heard & Dorr's Dear Professor Gray, I was led to your "Amy Heard: Letters from the Gilded Age" website because of my research on those who signed the Old Farm guestbook now housed, as you know, in the Bar Harbor Historical Society. I appreciate your publication of these letters since I too am trying to detail a friend of Amy, George Bucknam Dorr. Dissatisfied with the secondary and largely anecdotal literature on Mr. Dorr, I began an archival-based inquiry into the life and times of Mr. Dorr, focusing attention on those four decades that preceded his joining forces with Harvard President Eliot to establish the Hancock County Trustees of Public Reservations (1901) which led establishment of the National Park (1916) that we today call Acadia. No one (literally) had asked about Mr. Dorr's early years (1853-1901) and tracing these details has been a very illuminating but exhaustive process. If you have any additional documentation regarding Amy Heard or friends that she shared in common with the Dorr's I would be very appreciative of any assistance--and would return the favor as well. I appreciate your use of the Reading Room membership list since that is a linbe of inquiry that I had not persued and "curator" Deb Dyer at the BHHS had not sduggested. When did you make use of the Old Farm Guest Book? By the way, would you perhaps be related to Mr. Dorr's mother since she was Mary Gray Ward Dorr (1820-1901) of Salem? Thank you for your labors. Ronald H. Epp, Ph.D. Director of University Library & Associate Professor of Philosophy Southern New Hampshire University Manchester, NH 03106 603-668-2211 ext. 2164 603-645-9685 (fax) 7/11/2005 Epp, Ronald From: Robert M. Gray [rmgray@stanford.edu] Sent: Tuesday, December 06, 2005 10:52 PM To: Epp, Ronald Cc: Robert M. Gray Subject: Mrs Craig Wadsworth Dear Ron We are finally back and somewhat recovered from the jetlag, cold, and fatigue. The Boston and France trips were productive and fun when not tiring. Highlights of France were finally visiting Carnac and the megaliths and walking through Montparnasse cemetery in the snow. I finally had a chance to see what I could dig up on Mrs. Craig Wadsworth, the former Miss Peters. While I have not yet found anything in my letters, I did find quite a bit in my favorite books. From the letters of Mrs Henry Adams Index entry: Wadsworth, Mrs Craig Wharton (Evelyn Willing Peters) , 288, 296, 307, 350, 365, and n. , 387f. I had marked these when tracking her when I first found her in the letters. 288 seems to be an error, she is not mentioned there. But this establishes her as a friend of Clover Adams, a fascinating and tragic figure. Clover mentions that Mrs Wadsworth and Mrs Heard took adjoining houses on Mass Ave (p. 307) She met at tea at Clover's along with my father's uncle, Judge Gray (p. 365) (Horace Gray) From the letters of Mrs James G. Blaine Index entry: Wadsworth, Mrs Craig, vol i, 282, 289, 311 Vol. ii, 5,6 p. 282 describes a long call Mrs Wadsworth made to Mrs Blaine, mentions her lunch on the presidential yacht. p. 289 mentions her being the wife of James Wadsworth, member of Congress from NY. Unfortunately none say very much about her. 1 New England Quarterly: Vol. 73, No. 4, p. 603 Dec. 2000 Page 2013 1 of Redefining the Economic Elite in Salem, Massachusetts, 1759-1799: A Tale of Evolution, Not Revolution RICHARD J. MORRIS C onsider, if you will, three case studies. Born into an old and prosperous agricultural family in northern Essex County, Massachusetts, in 1724, George Dodge migrated to Salem around 1750. Prior to the American Revolution, he became a successful master mariner, and thereafter, having invested heavily in privateers during the conflict, he prospered as a mer- chant. When he died in 1806, his estate was valued at nearly $200,000. The Reverend William Bentley tells us that Dodge was "a man acute in business allowing little intercourse at his house, even to his children, who were permitted to pay short visits. He had no information at all upon any subject but "business," and "Public opinion is that he was not indulgent to his children, and nothing is known of him out of the walks of business in which he had uncommon success." Far less successful was Joseph Searle, better known as "the Commodore." Searle was renowned as "a remarkable imitator of Cocks" because he could "deceive the animal day or night." Bentley found Searle "indolent" and "lecherous but never drunk tho' not abstemious." On the eve of his death in 1805, Searle insisted that he had always attended meeting, and, ad- dressing Bentley, he claimed that "I have prayed for you in my wav as well as T could." Bentlev remarked in turn that Searle http://0-www.jstor.org.library.colgate.edu/view/00284866/ap020295/02a00060/0?current.. 12/20/2006 JSTOR: New England Quarterly: Vol. 73, No. 4, p. 621 Page 2 of 3 SALEM'S ECONOMIC ELITE 621 Charlestown when he died in 1747. Joseph Sprague, a distiller from Medford, arrived in town in 1767 and by 1768 was paying a large tax. Last among the eight was Ichabod Nichols, who had no direct connection to the elite. 45 A more thorough examina- tion of the experience of Nichols and William Gray reveals the way family connections could operate. Salem's wealthiest man in 1799, with property assessed at $503,520, was William Gray. According to local legend, his fa- ther, Abraham, moved his family from Lynn during the 1760s at the behest of Richard Derby, the wealthy Salem merchant, who wanted a secure supply of shoes, but Gray's father-in-law, who was a ninth decile currier in 1759 Salem, may have drawn his daughter's family there. Shortly after his arrival in Salem, the elder Gray seems to have dabbled in shipping, for he was taxed for wharf footage and warehousing in 1769, the year in which he ranked sixty-ninth in assessed worth. 46 Abraham Gray, who also became a deacon in Salem's First Church, appren- ticed his son William to Samuel Gardner, the richest man in Salem in 1759, and then to Richard Derby, the town's wealthi- est merchant in 1769. Both of these men attended the First Church. During the Revolution, William invested in privateers and made a most successful transition to the peacetime trade after the war. In fact, nine of the ten wealthiest men in 1799 had secured an interest in privateers. William Gray's brother Samuel was the only member of that group without such invest- ments, and he was only eighteen years old when the war ended. 47 Ranked twentieth among Salem's 1799 elite, with an assess- ment of $30, 160, was Ichabod Nichols. Nichols's father David The top twenty in 1799. in rank order, were: William Gray: Elias H. Derby: http://0-www.jstor.org.library.colgate.edu/view/00284866/ap020295/02a00060/18?search.. 12/20/2006 Verizon Yahoo! Mail-eppster2@verizon.net Page 1 of 2 Pup. Verizon Yahoo! Mail Verizon Central Yahoo! Search: Web Search Welcome, eppster2@verizon Mail Home Tutorials YAHOO! Help verizon [Sign Out, Member Center MAIL Mail Addresses Calendar Notepad Mail For Mobile - Options Check Mail Compose Search Mail Search the Web Folders [Add Edit] Previous Next I Back to Messages Inbox (1) Delete Reply Forward Spam Move Draft This message is not flagged. [ Flag Message - Mark as Unread Sent Date: Sat, 09 Sep 2006 19:23:08 -0700 Bulk [Empty] Trash "Robert M. Gray" Add to Address Book Adc [Empty] From: Alert My Folders [Hide] Subject: Re: Gray Family & Ron Epp Eliz messages To: "ELIZABETH and RONALD EPP" Member Information CC: "Robert M. Gray" Ron messages I found a little information in the family book and genealogy Search Shortcuts brother put together, and some more in some material my cousi Gray sent me many years ago. My Photos My Attachments It turns out that the Morris Gray born in 1856, one of the SO William Rufus Gray (Billy Gray's eldest son) and Mary Clay, Frank Gray's grandfather. His wife was Flora Grant. They were family tree that I sent you, but I don't think I sent you the next page. Morri and Flora Grant had three children, Morris Gray (b 1884), Eli Clay Gray (b. 1886), and Francis Calley Gray (b. 1890), as yo mention. The latter is the father of my late cousin Frank Gra tell you Elizabeth's kids and Francis Cally's other kids. The clippings that Frank sent me were clipped by his grandfat Morris clipped from a paper in 1901. They deal with the death Morris' uncle Horace Gray, the seventh son of William Rufus G had died a bachelor banker in New York and left his considera fortune of more than $1 million dollars to the five children brother Francis Henry Gray, including Morris. Your Morris was a lawyer in Boston who lived in Chestnut Hill siblings were Francis C. Gray, Samuel S. Gray, Reginald Gray, Mary C. Gray. Bob On Sep 8, 2006, at 7:42 AM, ELIZABETH and RONALD EPP wrote: > Dear Bob, http://us.f841.mail.yahoo.com/ym/ShowLetter?MsgId=9186_17456671_94810_2292_123. 9/11/2006 Verizon Yahoo! Mail-eppster2@verizon.net Page 2 of 2 > > I hope that you had a relaxing Summer and have wondered whe > traveled here to New Hampshire recently. > > Briefly, a quick question. Are you familiar with any of the > descendants of Boston born Morris Gray (1856-??), , item #34 > "William Gray of Lynn , Massachusetts" by Edward Gray (1916 > children are listed : Morris (1184- ), Elizabeth (1886- > Frances Calley (1890- ). . > > I ask because Morris Gray is designated as one of three > beneficiaries-- - - should her only son predecease her-- in the > will of Mary Gray Dorr, George Dorr's mother who died four > later. I've not been able to unearth any information about > Gray that would suggest why she would favor him. Any sugges > > With best wishes, > > > > Ron Epp > 47 Pond View Drive > Merrimack, NH 03054 > (603) 424-6149 > eppster2@verizon.net Delete Reply Forward Spam Move Previous Next Back to Messages Save Message Text I Check Mail Compose Search Mail Search the Web Copyright © 2006 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved. I Copyright/IP Policy I Terms of Service Send Feedback Help NOTICE: We collect personal information on this site. To learn more about how we use your information, see our Privacy Policy. verizon YAHOO! http://us.f841.mail.yahoo.com/ym/ShowLetter?MsgId=9186_17456671_94810_2292_123... 9/11/2006