Peter W. Grayson
American politician (1788–1838)
Peter Wagener Grayson (1788 – July 9, 1838) was an American politician, lawyer, diplomat, and poet.
Born to a political family, Grayson practiced law in Kentucky and served in its general assembly. He moved to Texas in 1830, operating a plantation and becoming an associate of Stephen F. Austin. He served as Texas Attorney General, though after a series of disappointments in his political career, committed suicide. Grayson County, Texas is named for him.
Early life
Grayson was born in 1788, in Bardstown, Virginia, the son of Benjamin Grayson and Caroline Malinda (née Taylor) Grayson. His brother was Kentucky Attorney General Frederick W. S. Grayson, and his sister, Mary Elizabeth Grayson, married James D. Breckinridge. His great-uncle was William Grayson, and he was also related to President James Monroe.
Career
Grayson served in the War of 1812, and also worked as an attorney and poet amidst the war. In 1816, he was postmaster of Bardstown.
“Peter W. Grayson” enters the record as american politician (1788–1838). Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Peter, Grayson and American can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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The entry’s evidential value lies in the named roles, institutions and publications that can be tested against primary documentation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 1, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q26213742. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1788, 1838, 1830 and 1812.
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This entry incorporates text from “Peter W. Grayson” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.