Page 124 - The Ancestry of Francis Bryan (1770-1863)

And once again I was awakened to the possibility that I was mistaken by my trusty colleague, Andrea!
Andrea had designated William Bryan III as the William Bryan (1750-1826) who had married John Lewis’ (1746-1783) widow, Martha Patsy Briscoe Love, (1747-1802). I, on the other hand, had assigned him as the William (1752-1805) who had married Letty Asher (1746-1828). DAR (Daughters of The American Revolution) records agree with Andrea’s findings.
There are definite connections between John Lewis and the William Bryan III family as they both lived in Augusta County, Virginia at the same time. John Lewis' younger brother, Andrew Lewis, Jr. (1759-1844) married William Bryan III's niece, Margaret Bryan (1772-1852). Another family connection.
I have already discounted the possibility that Guy Bryan is a sibling to Francis Bryan, but it does not eliminate the possibility of a different relationship, such as cousin. Guy Bryan, as previously discussed, married Mildred Asher, sister to Letty Asher. And from land sales it appears as though the Asher family lived next door, literally, to William Bryan III and his family in Roanoke, Virginia.
I have found DNA matches to two descendants of Martha Patsy Briscoe Love, but through her first husband, John Lewis, and none through her second husband, William Bryan. So that does not help me make any connection to our Bryans.
I have also not found any DNA matches to descendants of William Jennings Bryan. I HAVE found many DNA matches to the ASHER family, and some of more than 15 cM!
This was a surprise!
So the matter of our relationship to William Jennings Bryan is currently unresolved. I do believe that DNA will eventually help us sort this out. Maybe it will turn out that we are related to William Jennings Bryan through the Ashers and not the Bryans!
On the following page is the Horizontal descendants Chart for John William Asher.
Note that William Bryan III and Letty Asher are in white boxes and not blue boxes because I have not yet found any DNA matches to their descendants.
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