Early Life and Family
Thomas was born near Charleston (then in Virginia, now in West Virginia). He was the son of John and Margaret Morris, who settled on the Kanawha River about 1785.
Thomas' early education was obtained in the common schools, later pursuing special studies in a school taught by a William Paine, an Englishman. Before reaching manhood Thomas served three years as an assistant in the office of his brother Edmund, who was County Clerk. At the age of eighteen, Thomas was drafted to serve a six-month term in the War of 1812. Oweing to his youth, however, his family obtained a substitute for him, thereby allowing him to avoid military service (as was common in that day).
Read more about this topic: Thomas Asbury Morris
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