Byrd, William
author, was born March 16, 1674, in Westover, Va. He was a colonial Virginian and man of letters, whose journals, first published in 1841, are known as The Westover Manuscripts, from Westover, the family mansion of Byrd. A fuller collection, styled The Byrd Manuscripts, was printed in 1866, edited by T. Wynne. They are well worth reading for their wit, keen observations, and vigorous style. They comprise The Story of the Dividing Line, an account of the expedition to fix the boundary between Virginia and North Carolina; A Progress to the Mines; and A Journey to the Land of Eden. He died Aug. 26, 1744, in Westover, Va.