William Gist was born in Baltimore County, Maryland on 23 September 1743. [1][2] He is the son of William Gist and Violetta Howard. [1] He was christened in St Thomas Parish, Baltimore. He died 31 October 1802 in Charleston, South Carolina and was buried in St. Michael's churchyard. [2]
He left Baltimore for the new settlements in North and South Carolina, settling northern South Carolina Province about 1766. [2] He acquired large holdings in the Ninety Six District and served as Deputy Surveyor for the King of England for a number of years. [2] He was granted land in Craven County, South Carolina, along a branch of Fair Forest Creek (S.C. Land Grands Bk. 26, pg. 414). [2] He was married to Sarah Fincher in 1773 or 1774 in the Ninety Six District, South Carolina. [2]
During the American Revolution, he, like many of his South Carolina neighbors, remained loyal to the King of England. [2] Soon after the war, he left for England since he was included in the "Act of Confiscation and Banishment." His activities during the war are told in the Memorial of 18 December 1783:
Will(m) Gist - the Claimant - sworn
He is an American & lived in Ninety Six in the beginning of troubles. He first set out to sign a Protest in 1775 but was taken sick. He first show'd his principles in December 1775. He took arms to protect some Loyalists who had taken a Magazine of Powder which was sent by the Rebels to the Indians. He afterwards endeavour'd to raise some Men & was taken prisoner in the same Month & was sent to Charlestown gaol & kept there for more than six Months. He then went home after six Months imprisonment. Just before he was let out of Custody they tender'd him an Oath which he took or they would have confined him longer. He then went home & encouraged the Loyalists for which he was again sent to Prison but at last committed to Gaol. In Jan(y) 1777 Major McCleod came to his House where a number of Loyalists met. He came from Florida. He was betray'd to the Rebels for holding a Correspondence with him. In consequence of which 25 Men came to take him & were carrying him to the Gaol but having a good horse he made his Escape. He kept in the Woods ten Months. In Oct(r) 1777 Colonel Thomas proposed to him to take the State Oath or to take this tryal. He refused to take the Oath & was tried. The Grand Jury found the BIll but thinking that he should be hanged he gave 5000 Continental Dollars to the Witness to absent himself - 5000 Dollars worth about £60or £70s. He was therefore discharged. He was kept bound till Nov(r) 1779 when his recognizance was discharged. After the surrender of Charlestown was known in their neighborhood Many of the Loyalists met on the 6th of June 1780 about 300 of them. They attack'd Col(l) Brannam the next morning & defeated him. They increas'd very fast until they had near 1000 Men. He was a Magistrate from the year 1778 & when the Rebels came into them at this time he administer'd an Oath to them & they laid down their Arms. On the 1st of July 1780 Major Ferguson joined them & took the Command. M(r) Gist was with him afterwards in several Engagements. He staid with him till his death & was then made Prisoner & march'd near Virginia. He was kept in Prison about a Month & then made his escape & got to the British Lines at Ninety-Six in Sept(r) or Oct(r) 1780. He afterwards acted as Assistant Commiissary untill 1781. He had 5s. a Day for it & continued to act in that Capacity for 14 Months. He then came to Charlestown & went to Johns Island to act as Commissary under Colonel Cruger. He was Kept in Pay till June 1782 & after that he staid at Charlestown till the Evacuation & red(d) the Pay of Capt(n) till the time that he came to Eng(d) which was the 1st of January last.
He receives £60 a Year from the Treasury & has rec(d) it from January last. He has a Wife & five children in America.
Col Fortune sworn. He had known M(r) Gist 17 y(rs). He lives 80 Miles from him. He has only heard of his former Loyalty but he remembers him as Assistant Commissary in 1781. He always seem'd to be very active & did his Duty frequently atgreate risque. He says if he had not been so active the Army would have been in great Distress for provisions. He was a Surveyor at First when he knew him. He was not then a Man of Substance but 12 years ago He was a Man of substance & since that time he has heard that he had great landed property. He thinks he was one of the first people in the back Parts & very few People lived better than he did in that Country. (The Royal Commission on Loyalists' Claims 1783-85. Notes of Mr. Daniel Parker Coke - M.P. Edited by Hugh E. Egerton, University of Oxford, 1914, pg. 56-58) [2]
It should also be noted that William Gist fought on the opposite side of his cousins, Ensign Nathaniel Gist and Richard Gist, in the Battle of King's Mountain. They were both with the famous Virginia Regiment and they were both killed (L.C. Draper, King's Mountain and Its Heroes, 1881, pg. 355). [2] When William went to England his land was confiscated and sold. He had about 1,000 acres. His wife and children went to live with her parents. In 1785 the General Assembly of South Carolina restored 500 acres to "Sarah Guest, wife of William Guest." (Confiscated Estates, S.C. Archives Department, World War Memorial, Columbia) [2]
While he was abroad, his wife set up a mercantile business in her name. William sent her goods to sell and instructions. [2] He returned in 1789 and he moved with his family to Charleston, where they continued in the mercantile business. [2]
William never returned to the Tyger River. He died 31 Oct 1802 in Charleston, South Carolina, and is buried in St. Michael's churchyard, also the resting place of the general, his grandson, States Rights Gist.
Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/28969293/william-gist : accessed 20 December 2021), memorial page for William Gist Jr. (1740–31 Oct 1802), Find a Grave Memorial ID 28969293, citing Saint Michaels Church Cemetery, Charleston, Charleston County, South Carolina, USA ; Maintained by Saratoga (contributor 46965279) .
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DNA Connections
It may be possible to confirm family relationships with William by comparing test results with other carriers of his Y-chromosome or his mother's mitochondrial DNA.
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