Mary Douglass (abt. 1740 - 1760)

Biography

Mary Douglas was born in the early 1740s, the eldest daughter of Jeremiah (Jeremy) Douglas and Elizabeth Sharp. ^[1] Mary's maternal grandfather, Joseph Sharp, left her property in his will written on 24 June 1746. ^[2] Soon after Mary's father died in 1747, her mother remarried to William Reed Sr. Mary moved with her mother and stepfather from Pennsylvania to the western frontier of the North Carolina Provinice in late 1750. They settled in the new county seat of Orange County, originally "Corbin Town," or "Corbinton," but later changed to "Childsburg."

Mary's stepfather, William Reed, became active in the county affairs, serving as a justice of the peace, deputy clerk of court, deputy surveyor to Lord Granville's surveyor, William Churton, standard keeper, court justice, and Childburg town trustee and director. Beginning in 1760, he assumed the role of "High Sheriff" for Orange County.

Mary Douglas died in Orange County in early 1760, and in August, the Orange County Court appointed her stepfather as the administrator of her estate. ^[3]

Sources

1. ↑ Chester County PA Estate Records, Jeremiah Douglas, 1747.
2. ↑ Chester County PA Will Book B pp. 214-215 (will of Joseph Sharp, written 24 June 1746, filed in court 3 January 1747).
3. ↑ Orange County NC Court Minutes Book 2 (1758-1762), p. 154 (August 1760).