William Caldwell Finley (bef. 1743 - bef. 1802)

Born before 30 Jan 1743 in Augusta County, Virginia Colony

Ancestors

Husband of Mary Pettus — married about 1772 in Virginia

Husband of Judith (Unknown) Halsey — married before 1791 in Wythe County, Virginia

Descendants

Died before 9 Feb 1802 at about age 59 in Wythe County, Virginia

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This is the profile of William Finley named in the 27 August 1784 power of attorney granted by David and Samuel Finley of Lincoln County

Biography

William Finley was baptized by Rev. John Craig on 30 January 1743 at Tinkling Spring, Augusta County, Virginia. ^[1]

1765 Land Purchase at Vaughn's Creek, Prince Edward County

On 19 August 1765 William, son of John, bought 430 acres on Vaughan's Creek from John Caldwell. ^[2] Carmen Finley shows that John Finley of South River had left the Tinkling Springs area of Augusta County and moved to Prince Edward County during the period 1765 to 1772. On 29 June 1772 William Finley sold 175 acres on Vaughn's Creek in Prince Edward County to Charles Smith. On 10 July 1787 William Finley and Mary, his wife, of Montgomery Couty, solds 50 acres to Joseph Fore. ^[3]

Marriage to Mary Pettus

He married first Mary Pettus (1753–1790). "Dabney Pettus in his will in 1788 in Charlotte County referred to a son "Stephen Pettus of Prince Edward and a daughter Mary Finley. Prince Edward and Charlotte are adjacent counties. Recall that John Finley sold his Prince Edward property to Stephen Pettus." ^[4]

1785 Move to Montgomery County, Virginia

The William Finley who also lived on Vaughan's Creek ...is the same who moved to Montgomery County about 1785. ^[5] William Finley and Mary, his wife, of Montgomery County, sold property in Prince Edward in 1787. ^[4]

1801 Will

"in 1801, William Finley Sr, of Wythe County, wrote his will and named son John Pettis [sic] Finley. He also provied for his second wife, Judith, and children Mary Ann, Asa, William Rhoda, Margaret, and an unborn child. ^[5]

Research Notes

sourcing for id statement entry needed, a different document may be better, with George or John, see Finleys of Sonoma County p147 , linked article p13Smith-112541 00:21, 22 December 2023 (UTC)

TO DO: Upload images of probate record. Source and upload petition in favor of Independence. Add place creation section.

9 Children are listed at The Virginia Genealogist 39:16 (1995) https://www.americanancestors.org/databases/virginia-genealogist-the/image?volumeId=12374&pageName=16

Beautiful probate record with 43 geese, tow bee hives, four hundred seventy weight of bacon: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/62347/images/0034224-00263?pId=2031945

Herald Stout, in Clan Finley 2nd edition (1956-61), v1p62, names him William Joseph Finley. However, no record has been posted with a middle name.

Disambiguation

• William Finley, this profile.
• William Joseph Finley-2929, born 1743, Augusta County, Virginia. No parents. Duplicate of this profile.
• William Finley born 22 March 1751 in Prince George's County, Maryland. Revolutionary War. Married Nancy Treadwell. Died in Tennessee. Living with daughter at death. (Previously conflated with this profile.)
• William Finley born 22 March 1752 in Augusta County. Lived in Kentucky.
• Robert William Finley born 26 Feb 1754 Cecil County, Maryland. Unsourced.

Sources

1. ↑ Carmen Finley (2003) 9
2. ↑ . Prince Edward Co, Va., Deed Book 3:21. Cited by Finley, Augusta County John Finleys.
3. ↑ Finley (2003) 106
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} Finley (2003), 110
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} Finley (2003), 111

• Finley, Carmen J., Ph. D. (2003) The John Finleys of Augusta County, Virginia: Correcting the Record. Virginia Genealogist 46 (2003). (Requires paid subscription) American Ancestors.org,
• Finley, Carmen. The Finleys of Early Sonoma County California, Westminster CA: Heritage Books, 2009.
• Finley, Carmen J. Finley, Ph.D. (1989) The George Finleys of Augusta County, Virginia (published in The American Genealogist, Vol. 64, No. 4, October 1989, pp. 216-225), available online courtesy of USGenWeb

See also:

• FamilySearch
• DAR