10
VIRGINIA BIOGRAPHY
graduating, practiced his profession first in
Williamsburg, and afterwards in Albemarle
county, to which he removed. He was lieu-
tenant of an independent company in 1775,
and served in the convention of May 6, 1776,
as alternate to Thomas Jefferson, who had
been elected to Congress. In this body he
was a member of the famous committee ap-
|.uinted May 15 to prepare a declaration
of rights and state constitution. He mar-
ried his cousin, Lucy Walker, daughter of
Thomas Walker, and was father of Francis
Walker Gilmer, an accomplished scholar and
writer, and grandfather of Hon. Thomas
Walker Gilmer, governor and secretary of
the navy. He died at "Pen Parke," .Albe-
marle county, in 1795.
Grayson, William, was born in Prince William county. Virginia, in 1736, son of p.enjamin and Susannah (Monroe) Gray- son. His father emigrated from Scotland to Dumfries, Prince William county, Virginia, and his mother was an aunt of President Jj-.mes Monroe. He was graduated from the College of Philadelphia, and studied law at the Temple, London ; and began practice in Virginia. On November 11, 1774, a com- pany formed in Prince William county, called the Independent Company of Cadets chose William Grayson for captain, and adopted as their motto .-^tit liber ant nul- Ins, On .August 24. 1776, he was appointed aide-de-camp to General Washington; and January i, 1777, became colonel of Grayson's Additional Continental Regiment, organized by him. His brother, Rev. Spence Grayson, was chaplain. Colonel Grayson distin- guished himself at the battle of Monmouth, when he commanded his regiment in the advanced corps, displaying great valor. Dur-
ing 1780-81 he was commissioner on the
board of war; and at Valley Forge he was
appointed a commissioner to treat with Sir
William Howe respecting prisoners. At the
close of the war he was elected a member
of the Continental Congress in 1784, serving
three years with distinguished ability. In
1788 he was sent to the \'irginia convention called to consider the constitution of the United States; and with Patrick Henry powerfully opposed the instrument, and in a Utter shortly after declared that the South was destined to become the "milch cow of the Union." He was chosen a senator to the first Congress, which met March 4, 1789, took his seat May 2ist, and August 7th was granted leave of absence in order to re- cuperate his health, but died at Dumfries, Virginia, March 12. 1790. He was regarded as a man of the first order of talent, and was one of the leaders of Congress.
Griffin, Cyrus, son of Colonel Leroy Grif- lin, of Lancaster county, and Mary Anne Hertrand. his wife, was born about 1748, was educated in England, where he met and subsequently married Lady Christina, the daughter of John Stuart, sixth earl of Tra- (;uair in Scotland. He studied law in the Temple, and on his return to America was a member of Congress, 1 778-1 781, and elected by that body president of the supreme court of admiralty ; member of Congress again in 1787-88, and president of Congress, and was I'nited States district judge for \'irginia,
1789 to his death, December 14, 1810, when he was succeeded by John Tyler. In politics he was a Federalist.
Hardy, Samuel, son of Richard Hardy, and descended from George Hardy, who
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