The Gray Family of Sambro, Nova Scotia
Grays in General
The Gray family with its common name, similar to the Smith name, comes from many different
parts of the world. A quick study of Chapter 5 of The World Book of Grays lists
countless areas of origins and arrivals. (See the last paragraph for more information on
Grays in general.)
The Grays of Sambro
However, we are interested in the Grays of Sambro. It is interesting that the first
listing in the World Book of Grays is from an article stating:
James arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749.
John arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749 with wife.
Thomas arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749 with servant.
As will be shown, these three men came on ships accompanying Edward Cornwallis who
founded Halifax. More on them later!
Conflicting Origins
I’ve always been bothered by conflicting statements as to the origin of my Grays in
Canada. Here are the two sources I have had:
- The Grays came from England to Massachusetts and then to Canada. This
information is from an interview with my grandparents, Joseph and Ada Gray when I was
about 10 years old. My grandfather (Joseph Gray) said his father (Josiah) came from Cape
Negro off the coast of Nova Scotia. He then said that the Grays were fishermen coming from
Gloucester, Massachusetts. He said the Grays came from England and landed around
Massachusetts. They were (in 1775) Tories, British subjects. In 1800 they left for Canada.
In an interview with my father (Firman C. Gray) he told me the Grays were fishermen who
fished at Newfoundland Bank. They were United Empire Loyalists who came from Gloucester,
Massachusetts.
- The other source is the Cornwallis Document
which states that William Gray came from England as a staff member of Edward Cornwallis,
the man who founded Halifax and was the first governor of Nova Scotia. William came over
in 1749.
Conflict Resolved
Recently these two conflicting sources began to make sense when I began electronically
corresponding with Cyril Gray of Ontario. He pointed out the following:
"We know that English fishermen spent many months each year in Newfoundland,
working the fishery in those days, returning home and then repeating the journey until
some stayed and settled in this British Colony [Canada.] It is reasonable to assume the
same for the area of Gloucester by the English.
"From what I have read and learned, trade and commerce, and the free movement of
people along the Nova Scotia, particularly fishermen because it was the primary industry,
before and after the period of the American Revolution, 1776, was frequent and most
common. I can imagine without fear of exaggeration that the bounty of fish on the Banks,
saw relatives working from the seaports of Nova Scotia and Gloucester, Mass. At the same
time and as such were well known to each other in personal terms."
He then conjectures that the Grays who came from New England were from the same family
of original Grays who moved to New England from Sambro and simply returned due to the
uncertainty of the time.
Were the Grays Loyalists?
It is doubtful that the Grays were Loyalists. They probably moved back and forth from New
England to Nova Scotia for economic or practical reasons rather than political ones.
However, the Cornwallis Document clearly states that Abijah Smith, was a son of United
Empire Loyalist stock. His daughter married Josiah Gray thus bringing the Loyalists into
the family tradition. Josiah was my great grandfather.
Why Isn’t William Gray on the Passenger Lists?
With the discrepancy resolved we only have one major problem left. That is, that William
Gray does not appear on any passenger list of the Cornwallis group. That brings us back to
the list of Grays that do appear and that are listed at the top of this page. Looking in Planters
and Pioneers: Nova Scotia 1749-1775 we have the following Gray listings for 1749
to Halifax:
Gray, John, mariner, Winchelsea, m.
Gray, Thomas, governor’s clerk, Canning, single, 1 male servant.
Looking at the passenger lists on-line at The Cornwallis Ships to Halifax
we see passenger lists for 13 of the Cornwallis ships to Halifax in 1749. An additional
listing of a Gray found at this Web site is:
Gray, James, mariner, Merry Jacks
Note that these are the same three Grays mentioned at the beginning of this document.
It is interesting that of all the occupations listed by the men including mariner,
carpenter, quartermaster, butcher, shoemaker, apothecary mate, etc. there is only one
Governor’s Clerk. That, to me, is significant. I believe that Thomas Gray is also
William Gray, but we will have to prove it! His middle or first name could have been
William, a very common name, but not used in the passenger listing.
Another point: Do we have all the passenger lists? Were there other ships? Incidentally,
which ship did Cornwallis come on? He is not listed as a passenger. (The internet listing
names only 1,100 passengers. Reportedly there were 2,500).
My Version of the Grays of Sambro History
Given this background I would like to trace the history of the Grays to Sambro from
England or the British Isles.
William Gray, governor’s clerk, (possibly an Irishman and also a naval petty
officer) immigrated to Canada on the ship Canning and landed in Halifax in 1749. He
probably worked with Governor Cornwallis for a few years, in helping to set up the city
and the province, but sometime before 1755 he married and began rearing a family in
Sambro. (I use that date because it was in 1755 when James, one of the sons, was born.)
Perhaps William was the first Gray ever to come to Nova Scotia. Who knows!
His sons scattered around, mainly working in the fishing industry. At times
family members would live in Gloucester, Mass., Newfoundland, and other areas. Some of
them began limiting their catch to lobsters. This led to the canning of lobsters by
Joseph, my grandfather, and one of his brothers.
The Grays seemed to be Methodists (from marriage records.) Some probably married
Catholics. But my line at least beginning with Joseph, my grandfather, belonged to the
Church of England.
Where the Grays came from in Great Britain remains to be studied. Tradition has it that
they were Irish. Also that the first William Gray was a naval petty officer, a job he
could have held along with the more important position of governor’s clerk.
Further history of this family can be read by referring to the biographies of the
descendants. (See Sources below for list of biographies.)
The Sambro Island
Lighthouse is the oldest working light in North America. It was first lit in 1760 and
marks an area of dangerous shoals. It has stood guard off Halifax for 238 years.
The Halifax Nova Scotia Temple. A temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints now stands
in Nova Scotia.
Another version. I just came across this site which
gives us another origin of the Grays of Sambro:
http://www.rootsweb.com/~nshalifa/Sambro.html
SOURCES:
1. Wright, Esther Clark, Planters and
Pioneers: Nova Scotia, 1749 to 1775. Revised edition. 1982. (Family History Library
Microfiche #6049168.)
2. The World Book of Grays. Published
by Halbert’s Family Heritage.1994. (The passage cited regarding the three Grays is
taken from Akins, Thomas Beamish, editor. "List of Settlers Who Came Out . . ." Acadia
and Nova Scotia: Documents Relating . . . " Cottonport, Louisiana: Polyanthos,
1972. James is on page 525, John on page 513 and Thomas on page 541.
3. Web site: The Cornwallis Ships to Halifax in
1749. (See link above.)
4. The Cornwallis
Document.
5. Interviews by Wallace F. Gray with his
father and grandfather.
6. There are many other sources which are
listed in the following biographies:
#G4 Gray, Joseph Albert
#G8 Gray, Josiah John
#G16 Gray, William [II]
#G32 Gray, William [I]
RESEARCH TO BE DONE:
There is a wealth of information in the Cornwallis Document that needs to be
searched out. Whom did the original William marry? When? When were the children born? When
was William [II]’s children born? Birth, marriage and death records are probably
available. The records of Josiah Gray (son of the second William), for example, and his
family, are available. (See his biography.)
Also, where did the Grays originate from in the British Isles? Were they Irish? Do we
know for sure that Thomas Gray who came in 1749 as governor’s clerk had a middle or
first name of William? William is a common name. The first William named one of his sons
Thomas.
What is the origin of the Cornwallis Document?
Also, each family mentioned in the document needs to be researched (Abijah Smith, William
Hart, etc.)
(Written by Wallace F. Gray)
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