William Byrd III William Byrd III William Byrd III (September 6, 1728January 1 or January 2, 1777) was the son of William Byrd II and the grandson of William Byrd I. He inherited his family's estate of approximately 179,000 acres of land in Virginia and continued their planter prestige as a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses. He chose to fight in the French and Indian War rather than spend much time in Richmond. In 1756 he was colonel of the Second Virginia Regiment. William Byrd III had a reputation as a notorious gambler. He initiated what was said to have been
Act in Relation to Service Act in Relation to Service The Act in Relation to Service, which was passed on Feb 4, 1852 in the Utah Territory, made slavery legal in the territory. A similar law, Act for the relief of Indian Slaves and Prisoners was passed on March 7, 1852, and specifically dealt with Indian slavery. African slaves were first brought into Utah in 1847 by Mormon Pioneers. At the time, slavery was illegal in Mexico, but became de facto law, based on Mormon acceptance of slavery. Several prominent Mormon leaders had slaves, including Charles C. Rich, Abraham O. Smoot and William H. Hooper.