![]() ![]() ![]() Both the Ferris and Hayes families were devout Presbyterians. William’s maternal grandfather, Silvanus Ferris, publicly supported the patriot cause during the Revolutionary War the backlash he received from his loyalist neighbors was so severe that he moved his family across the state border to Westchester County, New York. Strong personal conviction, even when it countered prevailing public opinion, was part of William’s heritage. His mother was descended from Jeffrey Ferris, one of the earliest residents of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and subsequent generations of her family had settled in Connecticut. William’s family had deep roots in New England. William grew up on his family’s farm, surrounded by his siblings, James, Polly, Anne, Isaac, Harry, and Rebecca, as well as a large, extended network of aunts, uncles, and cousins. William James Hayes, the third child of Henry Hayes and Mary Ann Ferris, was born on November 10, 1795, in Galway, New York. A quiet, unassuming farmer with a deep moral conscience, William Hayes risked his reputation, his property, and even his life to help men and women escape from slavery to live free lives. ![]()
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