John S. Wray
Sex: M
Individual Information
Birth Date: Abt 1809 - Kentucky Christening: Death: Abt 1865 Burial: Cause of Death:
Spouses and Children
1. *Elizabeth Hinds (Abt 1812 - After 1880) Marriage: 6 Mar 1828 - Wayne Co., Kentucky 1 Children: 1. James L. Wray (Abt 1829- ) 2. Fountain F. Wray (Abt 1836- ) 3. Matthew E. Wray (Abt 1838- ) 4. Elizabeth E. Wray (Abt 1840- ) 5. John P. Wray (Abt 1842- ) 6. William E. Wray (Abt 1845- ) 7. George A. Wray (Abt 1848- ) 8. Lovel D. F. Wray (Abt 1850- ) 9. Virginia I. Wray (Abt 1852- )
Notes
General:
CENSUS:
<pre>1830 Wayne Co., Kentucky; pg 240
John S. Ray 10001 -- 0001; 2 female slaves
male female
1 < 5
5-10
10-15
15-20 1
1 20-30 </pre>
<pre>1840 Wayne Co., Kentucky
John S. Wray 220011 -- 11001; 2 in agriculture; 2 female slaves
male female
2 < 5 1
2 5-10 1
10-15
15-20
1 20-30 1
1 30-40 </pre>
<pre>1850 Wayne Co., Kentucky, District No. 2; Aug 22; pg 42
291/298
John S. Wray 42 MW Ky $2500 Farmer
Elizabeth " 36 FW Ky
James L. " 21 MW Ky Laborer
Fountain F. " 14 MW Ky
Matthew E. " 12 MW Ky
Elizabeth E. " 10 FW Ky
John P. " 8 MW Ky
William E. " 5 MW Ky
George A. " 2 MW Ky
---------- " 1/12 Ky </pre>
He owns 7 slaves in the Slave Schedule. His brother-in-law John B. Hinds lives at 292/299. Elizabeth's sister Rhoda Payne lives at 293/300, her niece Elizabeth Johnson lives at 296/303, and her nephew Joseph K. Hinds lives at 322/329.
<pre>1860 Wayne Co., Kentucky, p.o. Clio; July 19; pg 120
800/779
John S. Wray 51 MW Ky $25200/$10000 Farmer & Merchant
Elizabeth " 48 FW Ky house Wife
Matthew E. " 22 MW Ky Farm laborer
John P. " 16 MW Ky Farm laborer
William E. " 14 MW Ky
George A. " 12 MW Ky
Lovel D. F. " 9 MW Ky
Virginia I. " 8 FW Ky
George A. Caldwell 15 MW Ky Farm laborer
Thomas J. " 17 MW Ky Merchants Clerk </pre>
He is the owner of 3 slaves in the Slave Schedule (black female, 14; black male, 12; black male, 10). Archibald Hinds lives at 801/781.
<pre>1870 Wayne Co., Ky, District No. 6, p.o. Mill Springs; Sept 24; pg 8
54/54
Elisabeth Ray 59 FW Ky $1800/$750 Keepinghouse
George A. " 22 MW Ky Farm laborer
Lovel " 20 MW Ky Farm laborer
William " 24 MW Ky Farmer
Anna " 20 FW Ky Keepinghouse
James F. Weaver 26 MW Ky Farmer
Virginia " 18 FW Ky Keepinghouse
Mary " 6/12 FW Ky (Dec) At Home
George Pain 43 MW Tn At Home (Idiotic) </pre>
George Pain is Elisabeth Ray's nephew. Matthew Ray (33, Ky, farmer), his wife, and 3 children live at 55/55.
In 1880 Elizabeth Wray (68, Ky Tn Tn, widow) is living in Wayne Co. with her son Matthew (44, Ky, works on farm), his wife, and 6 children. George A. Wray lives next door with his wife and mother-in-law, and James Weaver lives very close by with his wife and 3 children.
LAND:
On October 7, 1836 John S. Ray and Elizabeth, his wife, of Wayne Co., legal representatives of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, sold to Allen R. West of Wayne Co. for $800 all their undivided interest and claim as heirs to all the estate, both real, personal and mixed, of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, . . . consisting of lands, Negroes, etc.. (Bk G, pg 121) Then on July 25, 1838, John S. Ray repurchased from West for $425 half of what he had previously sold to him. The deed says "said John S. Ray for a valuable consideration is to have the same tract of land which said Ray put said West in possession of at the time and ____ aforesaid and also one negro girl named Sary Jane during the lifetime of the widow of said Joseph Hinds and at her death the land and negroe to revert to the estate and to be held equally by said Ray and West". (Bk G, pg 433)
It appears that with this repurchase John S. Wray began a project to become the sole owner of the 200 tract on which his father-in-law had lived and which was jointly owned by numerous heirs.
On November 26, 1838 John B. Hinds sold to John Ray all property belonging to the estate of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, both real and personal, which was purchased by said Hinds from Bond, a legal heir made so by the will of Joseph Hinds and mortgaged by Hinds to Andrew Lynch. The compensation was the mortgage to Lynch.(Bk H, pg 8)
On January 13, 1841 Joseph M. Johnson sold to John S. Ray for $200 all his undivided right, title, interest, and claim in and to all the landed estate of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, which descended to the mother of said Joseph M. Johnson, she being a legal heir of Hinds . . . the mother having departed this life. (Bk H, pg 412)
On the same date (January 13, 1841) Joseph M. Johnson, one of the legal heirs of Pleasant S. Johnson, dec'd, sold to John S. Wray for $50 one undivided third in and to a tract of 200 acres on the south side of Cumberland River deeded by Cox and wife to Pleasant S. Johnson on February 24, 1823. It is described by metes and bounds and was part of a 400 acre tract patented to Nancy Martin. It includes the dripping spring. (Bk H, pgs 413-14)
On April 3, 1841 Michael Huffaker, Deputy Sheriff, acting for Hiram T. Hall, Sheriff of Wayne Co., Kentucky gave a sheriff's deed to John W. Wray "by virtue of a Writ of Feri facias issued by Pulaski County Circuit Court July 29, 1840 in favor of Leonard Swink against the estate of Levi S. Hinds, dec'd, in the hands of Archibald Hinds, his Administrator to be administered and of the estate of Joseph K. Hinds, heir at law and legal representative of said decedent to him descended from the said Levi S. Hinds, deceased, for the sum of $115.00 with interest from the 16th day of March 1828 after the rate of six percentum until paid and also $18.74 cost . . . levied on two tracts of land each containing 200 acres or the interest of the defendants in said land". The two tracts were sold at public auction on September 28, 1840 in the courthouse yard in Monticello, it being a court day in Monticello, after having been appraised by James Weaver and Joseph Roberts at $3000 and after having been duly advertised by William H. Berry, deputy sheriff. John S. Wray was the last and highest bidder for the interests of the aforesaid defendants in the two tracts. His bid was $150. (Bk H, pgs 446-48) The two tracts are described in the deed by metes and bounds, and they are the tracts designated elsewhere as the Joseph Hinds home place and the Worley tract.
On March 30, 1844 John S. Wray paid $200 to Allen R. West for the balance of the landed estate, being 1/2 share which said West heretofore purchased of said Wray, being Wray's interest and share to the landed estate of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, and this being the last 1/2 of the purchase by said West and also the interest in the land which was deeded from John Bond to said West. (Bk J, pg 319) John S. Wray has now repurchased all of the land his wife inherited and he has also purchased a part of what Marian Brady (wife of John Bond) inherited. See notes under Joseph Hinds.
On August 28, 1847 John McHenry of Bates Co., Missouri sold to John S. Wray of Wayne Co., Kentucky for $308 "all his interest and claim to 200 acres on the south side of Main Big Road leading from Monticello to Somerset near Walter Emerson's and the same tract which Joseph Hinds lived on at the time of his death and the same which said Joseph Hinds willed to his wife during her life time and the same on which said John S. Wray now resides . . . the same interest which McHenry purchased from John W. Jones and Manerva, his wife, and Joseph Bond and Charity, his wife, heirs and legal representatives of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, and the same interest Willed to said Heirs by the last Will and testament of said Hinds". The deed of Bond and wife is of record in Book G:200, and the deed from Jones and wife is in Book H:74. (Bk K, pg 68) The wives of John McHenry and John S. Wray are second cousins. See notes under John McHenry for more details.
On September 1, 1847 John S. Wray paid $51.50 to Zachariah B. Ford and Polly Mariah, his wife, late Polly Mariah Johnson, granddaughter of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, of Wayne Co. for "their 1/3 part of 1/14th undivided interest in and to" a tract of 200 acres on which Joseph Hinds lived at the time of his death and whereon Wray was then living". (Bk K, pgs 80-81).
On September 27, 1847 John S. Wray paid $178.50 to Sarah Mercer and $47.60 to Elizabeth Ann Johnson, both of Wayne Co., Kentucky, for their interest in Joseph Hinds' 200 acre tract where Wray then resided. Specifically he purchased from Sarah Mercer all her interest in the tract of land belonging to the estate of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, of 200 acres known as the Home Place of said Hinds, dec'd, and whereon said Wray was then living . . . the 1/14 part that Sarah Mercer held in her own right as heir and the 1/4 part of 1/14th part she held by purchase from John Bond and Marian, his wife, late Marian Hinds, lawful heir by the will of said Joseph Hinds, dec'd. He purchased from Elizabeth Ann Johnson her 1/3 part of 1/14th undivided part in the above named 200 acres belonging to the estate of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, which descended to her as one of the heirs. (Bk K, pgs 215-16)
By 1850 John S. Wray and his wife Elizabeth are living on the plantation on which her father was living at the time of his death. Ownership is shared among numerous heirs, and Wray has been gradually buying the interest of other heirs. Several transactions in 1850 and in 1851 suggest that John S. Wray and his two brothers-in-law John B. Hinds and Archibald Hinds are all trying to increase their share of the ownership of where they themselves live.
On October 22, 1850 Benjamin Hinds of Miller Co., Missouri (one of the sons and legates of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, late of Wayne Co., Kentucky) sold to John S. Wray of Wayne Co. for $150 "his undivided interest and share as heir and legatee as aforesaid in and to a certain tract or parcel of land situate lying and being in the County of Wayne and State of Kentucky, on the south side of the big road leading from Monticello Ky to Somerset Ky near Walter Emerson's and the same tract which Joseph Hinds, dec'd, lived on at the time of his death and which he willed to his wife Elizabeth during her life time and the same on which the said John S. Wray now resides containing two hundred acres more or less and the same interest willed to the said Benjamin Hinds by the last will and testament of said Joseph Hinds, dec'd". (Bk L, pgs 121-22)
On January 8, 1851 Archibald Hinds and Martha Hinds, his wife, John B. Hinds and Mariah Hinds, his wife, and Rhoda Payne (legatees, heirs, and legal representatives of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, late of Wayne Co., Ky) of Wayne Co., Kentucky sold to John S. Wray of Wayne Co. for $150 their undivided interest and share as legatees, heirs and respresentatives aforesaid being one fourteenth part each in and to a certain tract of land on the south side of Cumberland River and on the right hand side of the big road leading from Monticello to Somerset and known as the Joseph Hinds home place and the same whereon the said John S. Wray was then living, containing 200 acres. Archibald Hinds also conveyed the 1/4 of 1/14 interest which he purchased from John Bond, one of the heirs of Joseph Hinds, dec'd. The property is described by metes and bounds. (Bk L, pg 177)
On January 8, 1851 Elizabeth Ann Bolen, late Johnson, of Wayne Co., Kentucky sold to John S. Wray of Wayne Co. for $22.50 her 1/3rd of 1/14th interest in the Worley tract where John B. Hinds was then living. She was one of the children and heirs of Mary Johnson, who was one of the daughters and heirs of Joseph Hinds, dec'd. (Bk L, pg 599)
On January 9, 1851 Rhoda Payne (one of the daughters, heirs, legatees, and legal representatives of Joseph Hinds, dec'd) of Wayne Co., Kentucky sold to John S. Wray of Wayne Co. for $50 "her undivided interest and share as heir aforesaid in and to a certain tract or parcel of land . . . on the south side of Cumberland River on the left hand side of the road leading from Monticello to Somerset Ky and known as the Worley tract and the same whereon John B. Hinds now lives containing 200 acres the boundaries of which are set forth in a deed made from John S. Wray to John B. Hinds the 8th day of January 1851". (Bk L, pgs 173-74)
On January 24, 1851 Elliot P. Wade and Margaret, his wife, of Adams Co., Illinois sold to John S. Wray of Wayne Co., Kentucky for $150 "all their right, title, interest, and claim as bequeathed and willed by Joseph Hinds, deceased, to Margaret Hinds, now Margaret Wade, of in and to a certain tract of land, to wit:" the one fourteenth share in the homestead farm on which Joseph Hinds resided at the time of his death containing 200 acres on the east side of the county road leading from Somerset to Monticello and bounded on the north by Walter Emerson". (Bk L, pgs 284-85)
On June 26, 1852 Zachariah B. Ford and Mary Mariah Ford, his wife, of Andrew Co., Missouri sold to John S. Wray of Wayne Co. for $100 two undivided thirds of the following tract of land on the waters of Cumberland River, surveyed by Pleasant S. Johnson and bounded by the lands of J. C. Flinn, Archibald Hinds, John S. Wray, and Walter Emerson and containing 200 acres. One third descended to Mary Mariah Ford, late Johnson, from her father Pleasant S. Johnson, dec'd, and the other third was purchased from Elizabeth A. Johnson, who was also a daughter and heir of the said Pleasant S. Johnson, dec'd. (Bk L, pgs 540-41)
On November 5, 1853 William McCleudon and Sally McCleudon of Wayne Co., Kentucky sold to John S. Wray of Wayne Co. for $390 their undivided interest and share in two tracts of land in Wayne Co.: 1) a tract of 206 acres now in the possession of Archibald Hinds and known as the Nancy Johnson tract, and 2) a tract of 200 acres now in the possession of John B. Hinds and known as the Worley tract. The deed says that the sellers are heirs of John McHenry, dec'd, late of Bates Co., Missouri, and that the 2/13 interest being conveyed was conveyed to John McHenry from John W. Jones and Minerva, his wife, heirs and legatees of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, by deed bearing date April 29, 1839 and from Joseph Bond and Charity, his wife, heirs and legatees of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, by deed bearing date February 18, 1837. Then in two deeds dated November 2, 1851 the children and heirs of John McHenry conveyed their interest to William McCleudon. (Bk N, pgs 113-14) These 2 deeds of 1851 are recorded in Book L, pgs 646-648 and pgs 648-49. The second deed mentions only 4 heirs and further states that what is being conveyed is all their interest in "one full share of the estate of Joseph Hinds, deceased, of the Brady heirs, supposed to be worth $850, more or less, consisting of negroes, money and land". John McHenry owned two shares, not one, purchased from the Brady heirs. Thus it is not clear how much of John McHenry's interest was purchased by William McCleudon. The first deed does not explicitly say that the two sellers are heirs of John McHenry, but they transfer all their interest in the estate of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, which was purchased by John McHenry. The deed states that they retain their interest in John Brady's interest in the estate of Joseph Hinds, but it is no way clear why they possessed such an interest. Both deeds mention several promissory notes.
On November 29, 1853 Henry Gibson and Elizabeth Ann Gibson, his wife, late Elizabeth Ann Johnson, of Pulaski Co. sold to John S. Wray of Wayne Co. for $150 a tract of 100 acres on the road from Monticello to Somerset, a part of Pleasant S. Johnson's tract. It is described by metes and bounds. It begins on Rhoda Payne's corner, and part of it is adjacent to the road. (Bk M, pg 172) This sale appears to contradict the claim made in the deed of June 26, 1852 to John S. Wray from Zachariah B. Ford and his wife.
On April 7, 1854 Archibald Hinds sold to John S. Wray for $616.80 "four undivided interests and shares which I hold by purchase from the heirs of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, in and to the 206 tract on which I now live known by the Nancy Johnson tract in Wayne Co., Ky." (Bk M, pg 190) After the sale Archibald still owned 4 shares.
On June 7, 1856 Z. B. Ford and Mary M. Ford of Andrew Co., Missouri sold to John S. Wray of Wayne Co. for $125 all their interest in 2 tracts in Wayne Co.: 1) a 200 acre tract belonging to the estate of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, known as the Worley tract now occupied by and in the possession of John B. Hinds lying on the waters of Cumberland River, and 2) a 206 acre tract belonging to the estate of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, known as the Nancy Johnson tract and in the immediate vicinity of the previous tract. Both descended from Pleasant S. Johnson and Polly Johnson, his wife, to Joseph Johnson, Betsey Ann Johnson, and Mary M. Johnson, their children and heirs at law. Mary M. Johnson married Z. B. Ford. (Bk N, pgs 247-48)
On April 11, 1857 John S. Wray paid $70 to Sarah E. Wade for all her interest in 2 tracts of land in Wayne Co., namely, the Worley tract "where John B. Hinds now lives" and the Nancy Johnson tract "now in the possession of Archibald Hinds". (Bk N, pg 250) Sarah E. Wade is a daughter of Margaret Hinds, a sister-in-law of John S. Wray.
On December 6, 1858 W. H. Wade, Matthew A. Wade, L. R. Parker and E. S. Parker, his wife, late Wade, of Adams Co., Illinois sold to John S. Wray of Wayne Co., Kentucky for $550 "there undivided one full share each in the landed estate of Joseph Hinds, dec'd, late of Wayne County Kentucky, being the same three undivided third shares which they hold from the Brady heirs who were legatees under and by the virtue of the last Will and Testament of the said Joseph Hinds, dec'd". All of the sellers except Parker's wife also conveyed to John S. Wray for $166 2/3 "their undivided interests being one third each which descended to them from their Mother Margaret Wade late Hinds in and to the lands lying in Wayne Co., Ky.". These lands consist of the Nancy Johnson tract of 206 acres and the Worley tract of 200 acres. They explicitly sold all their interest, whether it came from purchase or heirship. The acknowledgement is by a Justice of the Peace in Adams Co., Illinois. (Bk O, pgs 155-56)
On January 10, 1859 Archibald Hinds of Wayne Co. sold to John S. Wray of the same county for $650 4 1/3 shares in the Nancy Johnson tract of 206 acres, held by Archibald Hinds by inheritance and by purchase. He holds no more than 4 1/3 shares. (Bk O, pgs 77-78)
On February 18, 1859 Matthew Hinds of Wayne Co. sold to John S. Wray of the same county for $300 "my entire interest in a tract or parcel of land containing two hundred acres. And is known as the, "Homeplace" of Joseph Hinds my Father. And the same that said Wray has in hand." (Bk O, pg 78)
SLAVES:
On September 24, 1849 Joseph K. Hinds of Wayne Co., Kentucky, sold to John S. Wray for $725 his "entire interest of every kind & description in and to the slave or Negro property of my deceased father Levi S. Hinds and which descended to him from the estate of Joseph Hinds, deceased". (Bk K, pgs 346-47)
DEATH:
John S. Wray appears on the tax roll for Wayne Co. for the last time in 1864. He is in the Upper District. He has 6 children between the ages of 6 and 20 and owns the following taxable items: 1100 acres in Wayne Co. on Cumberland River worth $8000, 200 acres in Pulaski Co. on S. Fork worth $100, 3 slaves worth $600, 3 horses worth $150, and 40 cattle worth $300; the following nontaxable items: 23 hogs, 4 tons of hay, 750 bushels of corn, and 250 bushels of wheat; and his total worth is $9150. In 1865 John S. Wray is absent and Elizabeth F. Wray is present for the first time. He has presumably died. She has 4 children between 6 and 20 and owns 200 acres on Cumberland River worth $3000, 4 slaves, 1 horse worth $50, 8 cattle worth $50, and her total worth is $3100.
On March 28, 1868 commissioners appointed by the Wayne County Court at its November term to partition the lands belonging to the estate of John S. Wray, dec'd, conveyed certain lands to George A. Wray. (Bk P, pg 409)
1
June Baldwin Bork, "Wayne Co., Ky. Marriages & Vital Records 1801--1860," Vol 2, pg 200. Repository: Clayton Library, Houston, Texas.
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