William Emory (Amory), Indian Trader

Biography

William Emory was born in Lincolnshire, England, the son of John and Sarah (Wilson) Amory. Parish records from the village of Great Hale, a few miles from Boston, record the births of four children, "John son of John , Sarah bap 30 Oct 1727 Great Hale; Sarah d of John and Sarah bap 8 Sept 1730 Great Hale; William s of John and Sarah bap 15 Sept 1731 Great Hale; James s John and Sarah bap 19 sept 1732 Great Hale; James s John and Sarah bur 27 May 1737 Great Hale." [1] In 1737 John, Sarah, and their three children emigrated to America. "John Amory, his wife, three children and two menservants (he has a grant of 150 acres and is recommended to the Trustees as understanding surveying in case there should be any occasion for his assistance), he brings over a circumferenter and case of instruments; if he should be found useful and fit to be employed, he has a copy of the terms made with Rosse…" [2] In 1738 the family moved to South Carolina, and within a few years of their arrival, John and Sarah became engaged in trade with the Cherokee. [3] William joined in the trading business and by about 1750 he partnered with “Mary” Grant, the daughter of trader Ludovic Grant and his Cherokee wife who lived in the Cherokee town of Tomatly.

"William Emory, an Englishman, born ca 1720, married Mary Grant. . . . She was born ca 1727 in the Cherokee Nation East, Tennessee. She was 1/2 Cherokee. They both died and were buried in the Cherokee Nation East. . . . They were the parents of three daughters who were 1/4 Cherokee.

• 1. Mary Emory, born ca 1747 In the Cherokee Nation East, Tennessee. Her (1m) was to Rim Fawling. Her (2m) was to Ezekiel Buffington. Her (3m) consort husband Joseph Martin Jr.
• 2. Elizabeth Emory, born ca 1749 in the Cherokee Nation East, Tennessee. (1m) Robert Due. Her (2m) was to John Rogers. Both Due and Rogers were Englishmen.
• 3. Susannah Emory, born ca 1751 in the Cherokee Nation East, Tennessee. (1m) Captain John Stuart, a Scotsman. Her (2m) was to Richard Fields, Sr., an Englishman. Her (3m) was to Joseph Martin Jr., an Englishman."

William is also believed to be the father of a son,

1. Will,

by an unknown Cherokee woman and is believed by some to have fathered Creek children as well.

William married a woman named Sarah Cantle about 1768. She owned a great deal of property, outlined in a four-page prenuptial agreement signed in November 18, 1768. [5] Sarah and William were not married very long. Sarah's 1769 will left all her property in trust for her "loving Husband William Amory." [6]

According to an unsourced article he died in 1770. [7]

Research Notes

• The following birth, often attached to this William, is for a different person: "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V5L9-BVB : 11 February 2018, William Emery, 12 Mar 1728); citing , index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City; FHL microfilm 873,642.
• There are also unsourced claims that William was the father of Drury Hembree[8][9] Abraham Hembree, born in South Carolina in 1757. [10 [11]
• While many researchers position this William Emory as the son of John Amory and Sarah Wilson, Gus Hembree (https://ghem11.tribalpages.com/tribe/browse?userid=ghem11&view=9&ve...) inserts an additional generation, naming this man William Fowling Hembree (1828-1770) and giving his parents as John Amory's son William Emory (1680-1731) and his wife Elizabeth Peake. See https://ghem11.tribalpages.com/tribe/browse?userid=ghem11&view=0&pi....

Sources

• 1. "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:J331-984 : 11 February 2018, Wm Amory, 15 Sep 1731); citing , index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City; FHL microfilm 504,232.
• 2. Calendar of State papers , Colonial America and West Indies. digitized at Oct. 10
• 3. Shadburn, Don & Strange, John. Upon Our Ruins, Cottonpatch Press, Cumming, GA. 2012. p. 480
• 4.Starr, Emmet. History of the Cherokee Indians. Oklahoma Yesterday Publications edition, Tulsa, OK. 1979. p. 305
• 5. South Carolina Wills and Related Probate Matters, South Carolina Probate Court (Charleston County), South Carolina, Wills etc., 1760-1771. p. 97 Digitized at FamilySearch prenup
• 6.Abstracts of Wills of South Carolina, transcript at Ancestry.com Sarah
• 7. Shadburn, Upon Our Ruins, pp. 480-4
• 8. Unknown author, "William Emory, packhorseman, British soldier ," Tennessee Local History Network and Tennessee Local History Project, undated, link; while some sources cited for other claims, no direct evidence supplied to support Abraham (and Drury) as sons of William Emory.
• 9. Bob Hembree's "Roots-Branches-Leaves" 28th ed. Sept. 2000.
• 10. Lawrence Petrisky, "William Emory of the Cherokee," Geneology.Com Discussion Forum, January 22, 2004 at 12:24:18, link
• 11. Bob Hembree, "Roots-Branches-Leaves," vol 28, Sept. 2000. See also:
• Genealogy of Old and New Cherokee Indian Families by George Morrison Bell, Sr. (E99.CS B39) 1972, Leonard Printing Company of Bartlesville, OK, page 162:
• Unknown author, "William Emory, packhorseman, British soldier ," Tennessee Local History Network and Tennessee Local History Project, undated, link; while some sources cited for other claims, no direct evidence supplied to support Abraham (and Drury) as sons of William Emory.

Find A Grave: Memorial #61965025 for William Emory, Sr (1726–Jul 1770)

• [http://genforum.genealogy.com/emory/messages/349.html]
• Reference: MyHeritage Family Trees - SmartCopy: Mar 27 2023, 18:28:16 UTC