Trailor, William

Born: 1791-1800 Green County, Kentucky

Died: 1842

Flourished: 1829-1842 Warren County, Illinois

Alternate name: Traylor

In 1829, Trailor moved to Illinois with his brothers Archibald and Henry. William settled in Warren County, where he was a farmer. In 1841, Henry falsely accused William and Archibald of murdering Archibald Fisher. Logan & Lincoln defended the brothers, who were exonerated for the crime when Fisher appeared alive and well. William died less than a year after the trial.

U.S. Census Office, Sixth Census of the United States (1840), Warren County, IL, 167; John Carroll Power and S. A. Power, History of the Early Settlers of Sangamon County, Illinois (Springfield, IL: Edwin A. Wilson, 1876), 720-24; Abraham Lincoln to Joshua F. Speed; Remarkable Case of Arrest for Murder; People v. Trailor & Trailor, Martha L. Benner and Cullom Davis et al., eds., The Law Practice of Abraham Lincoln: Complete Documentary Edition, 2d edition (Springfield: Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, 2009), http://www.lawpracticeofabrahamlincoln.org.