William Finch

William S. Finch (October 1, 1832 - January 10, 1911) was a minister, tailor, and politician. Biography Finch was born October 1, 1832, enslaved in Washington, Wilkes County, Georgia. When he was twelve he was taken into the home of Judge Garnett Andrews, the father of Eliza Frances Andrews where he was educated to read and write. Whilst at the Andrews house, where he stayed for four years, he also became a tailor's apprentice. He was purchased by Joseph H. Lumpkin the chief justice of the Georgia Supreme Court in 1848, and while still enslaved worked as a tailor and acquired some property. Finch attributed his time with Justice Lumpkin and the counsel he received to his later success in life. He married Laura Wright in 1854 and when the American Civil War started he and his family had moved back to the Judge Andrews home where they remained until the end in 1865 and by that point they already had six children together. He was often called to help the wounded Confederate soldiers and to protect his owner's property and family. At the end of the war he showed his appreciation for his freedom by presenting to the 144th New York regiment an American flag he had made.