You are correct in much of what you say I tend to agree that Henry Bray may be connected to Thomas Bray when I see two men close in age and in the same place I tend to connect them . however thinking it possible does not prove it . I do not know how old Henry Bray was I do not know when he was born , I do not believe he lived to be 113 . even in this day it is not likely if it happened there would have been much to do about it and it would noted in local history books etc . I know that it is easy to confuse the records of men with the same name , and while I am at it I always wondered how the name Mary Wilson was arrived at ? I realize Mary comes from the will where does the surname Wilson come from ,and were there others of her family near by in Chatham Co ? Patricia Caviness Perkins ----- Original Message ----- From: "james e. wall" <jewall@students.wisc.edu> To: <BRAY-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Sunday, December 28, 2003 2:47 PM Subject: [BRAY-L] Henry & Edward BRAY > > Thank you Pat & James for feedback on the earliest BRAY generations > posting (Southern branches of the family). > > Pat, while healthy skepticism is always a good thing, I would like to > point out that Mahala BRAY BROWN was of Henry BRAY & Marie WILSON's family > while the William Gilmer BRAY who served in the US Congress from > Indiana was of Edward BRAY married Sarah MAYNARDs line. Seems highly > improbable they knew one another yet both lines of the family end up > pointing to the same couple of BRAY men. And while a Congressman might > have some incentive to connect to famous BRAYs, there isn't anything in the > letter Mahala BRAY BROWN wrote that indicates she recalled the historical > import of Thomas BRAY other than he was a man of the Church. > > Plus, Mahala BRAY BROWN was the great-grand-daughter of Henry BRAY & Marie > WILSON and typically family memories go back to the g-g-grandparents before > the memories begin to dim. Mahala certainly did not put Thomas BRAY front > and center in her account either, highlighting his important activities in > America prior to his return to England. > > So, I for one am inclined to give the account the benefit of a doubt until > disproven. I realize these family stories can attract embellishments over > time, but the fact a detail here or there is off is not the same as saying > the entire story is hokem & hooey. People have lived to 113 in the > past. Is there evidence that Henry BRAY who married Marie WILSON died at a > younger age? It is one thing to dismiss a claim, it is quite another to > disprove it. Do you have any proof how old Henry BRAY who married Marie > WILSON was at the time of his death Pat? (or anyone else?) It seems to me > that the easiest way to fact test the story is to confirm Henry BRAY's > birth and death dates. > > I hope this discussion is of interest to the list. I find I typically > learn more from those I disagree, with than those who I do, so don't take > the fact my thoughts are different from anothers as a criticism of them. I > appreciate all interested researchers feedback :) > > james wall > > > ==== BRAY Mailing List ==== > Bray Family GenConnect Query Board at: > http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/genbbs.cgi/FamilyAssoc/Bray > > > ============================== > To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 > > >