For Sarah. I changed the subject since not everyone on the Laird mailing list would be interested in our discussion. William McLeard had strong ties to South Carolina. Specifically he enlisted in the War of 1812 at Marion, SC. This record also indicates that he was born in Marion, SC. This could have been coincidence since later census records usually list his place of birth as NC. However, in the 1870 census his name was spelled "Laird" and his place of birth was listed as SC. His wife, Elvey, was listed as NC. I have spent several years trying to find something that would connect him to any of the earlier Laird's, Leard's and Leaird's with no luck. Since it seems most likely he was born (1792) in either SC or NC I keep hoping that someone will provide a clue that will lead to the identification of his parents. One theory is that the "Mc" was simply added to his name to indicate that he was "son of Leaird." If that is true, then it might also be assumed that his father would also be named William. Since there was a James Leaird listed on the 1790 Anson County, NC census and William and Elvey named their eldest son James I have long felt that it is more likely that this could have been his father. I have records of most of their descendants and would be happy to provide the names if you are interested. If you have anything that might indicate a possible connection to your branch I would really like to explore it further. Ken