Author: WILLS, Archibald
Biography:
WILLS, Archibald (fl 1800-10)
The title-page of Wills's one book provides most of the biographical material available about him. He lived in Raleigh NC as "Haberdasher and Grocer of Small Wares, Constable of the District of Raleigh, Crier of the Federal Court and Door-Keeper to the Honorable Council of State" in 1808. His term as Constable (an appointed, not an elected position) ended in 1810. Advertisements in the Raleigh papers between 1802 and 1810 reveal him as a resourceful man, primarily a shopkeeper. He advertised for staff (a cook, a barkeeper), posted a reward for a runaway horse, announced the arrival of a shipment of oysters, and most interestingly offered to trade instruction--with an option to board--in exchange either for cash or for payment in kind (specifically produce or brandy). He is probably the Archibald Wills who was twice married in Wake County NC, first to Charity Lewis in 1802 and then to Gilly Bridges in 1807. The date and place of death are not known. Kettell includes his work in the bibliography attached to his 1829 anthology but does not quote it. (findmypast.com 12 Feb. 2021; ancestry.com 12 Feb. 2021; Raleigh Register 6 Apr. 1802; Minerva [Raleigh] 3 Oct. 1803; Star [Raleigh] 21 Jul. 1810) HJ