1 8 5 0 ▁- ▁wid ow ▁Rh oda ▁described ▁as ▁a ▁" M ul atto " ▁in ▁census ▁of ▁Bar bour ▁County , ▁Virginia ▁ ▁Work ▁by ▁Alex andra ▁Fin ley ▁has ▁confirmed ▁that ▁the ▁CR P ▁descend ▁in ▁the ▁direct ▁pat ernal ▁line ▁from ▁an ▁imm igr ant ▁English man , ▁Wil more ▁Mail ▁( 1 7 5 5 - ca . ▁ 1 8 4 5 ), ▁born ▁in ▁D over , ▁Kent , ▁England . ▁▁ ▁Mail ▁settled ▁in ▁Virginia ▁with ▁his ▁parents ▁William ▁and ▁Mary ▁in ▁the ▁ 1 7 6 0 s . ▁As ▁an ▁adult , ▁Mail ▁purchased ▁a ▁black ▁female ▁slave ▁named ▁Nancy . ▁In ▁ 1 8 2 6 , ▁when ▁he ▁was ▁ 7 1 , ▁Mail ▁both ▁em an cip ated ▁and ▁claimed ▁her ▁as ▁a ▁common - law ▁wife ; ▁inter ra cial ▁marriage ▁was ▁illegal ▁in ▁Virginia . ▁The ▁em an cip ation ▁document ▁reads ▁as ▁follows : ▁▁▁▁ ▁Over ▁the ▁following ▁two ▁dec ades , ▁Mail ▁was ▁class ified ▁as ▁" white ", ▁" color ed " ▁and ▁" mul atto " ▁in ▁official ▁documents . ▁The ▁Federal ▁Census ▁of ▁ 1 8 4 0 ▁class ified ▁him ▁as ▁" free ▁colored ". ▁▁ ▁( In ▁ 2 0 1 4 , ▁Harvard ▁historian ▁Henry ▁Louis ▁G ates , ▁Jr ▁discovered , ▁through ▁DNA ▁gene al ogy ▁testing , ▁that ▁Wil more ▁Mail ▁is ▁among ▁his ▁ancest ors . ▁Although ▁no ▁document ary ▁connection ▁was ▁made , ▁Mail ▁is