According to a book titled, "William Duncan of Scotland, Chatham County North Carolina, and Maury and Marshall Counties in Tennessee and His Eleven Known Children" and compiled by Olive and Joe C. Harris in 1979, William Duncan was born about 1744 in Scotland, married in 1766/67, and ventured to America in 1769 or 1770. Apparently, their journey was not without incident, as during the three-week trip, the small sailboat encountered a major storm that blew them way off course from their designated Carolina port. The storm was so severe, his wife (possibly named "Isabella") was so traumatized that she never recovered from the trip. The records show William was married twice, though no reason was given.

       William married his second wife, believed to have been Patsy West, after he arrived in America. It is believed that he and his wife were married in Chatham County, North Carolina in 1777 or 1788.

       From Court Records and Estate Settlements, William Duncan had eleven named children, though researchers have surmised there may have been twelve children. That unlisted child was also named William. The 1790 Chatham County, N. C. records show William Duncan to be "William Duncan Senr." (possibly referring to "Sr."), further indicating that there was a William Duncan, Jr. A James Duncan was shown on one record as the son of William Duncan (Sr.)

       As previously mentioned, William Duncan (Sr.) had 11 named children -- James, Sarah (Sally), John W. (Sr.), Micajah, Nancy, Elizabeth (Betsy), Josiah, Joseph, Joab, Mary (Polly) and Robert West.

       Mary (Polly) Duncan, the tenth child, was born about 1793 in Chatham County, N. C. According to the Chatham County Records, she married Abraham Tally on September 17,1810, with William Emerson as Bondsman. By 1820, Polly and her husband had moved to Maury County, TN, as their names appeared in the 1820 County Census. She and Abraham had eight known children - Nancy, Allen, J. William, Elizabeth, Stephen S., Sarah E. (Elizabeth?), Mary Paralee and Louisa B.

       Sarah E., the sixth child of Polly and Abraham Tally, was born in Maury County in 1823. At the probable age of 17, she was married to James D. (Davis) Grant, also known as "J D", in Maury County on July 14, 1840 by John Hatchett, J. P. Acccording to the book, there were no further records of Sarah. An entry from Levi Cochran's Account Book that he kept in Maury and Marshall Counties showed a coffin was purchased by Abram Tally on September 13, 1834 for his wife, Polly ($5.00). Abraham lived in Marshall County the rest of his life, as did most of their children.

       From my research, Sarah E. Tally Grant died on September 12, 1834. My research of Sarah supports the connection of the Grants to the Duncans. The accounts from the "William Duncan of Scotland...." book clearly take us to the James D. (J D) Grant family. J D was my great-grandfather and the father of James Polk Grant, my grandfather, etc. While it does not solve the question of who my great-great-grandfather, Thomas Grant, was or where he came from, it does confirm some roots to Scotland.

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