While we do not know whether or not William Brady fathered any children via slave mothers, it is unlikely that he was not a slave owner and related to the African-American Brady offspring in Arkansas. The realities of slavery in America was that slave owners not only had the opportunity but also the legal right to sexually engage their slaves if they chose to do so. Many American scholars have professed expertise as to who peoples of African heritage are not; and imagined that few if any slaves knew their real fathers and rather took the easy path of naming themselves after their favorite White man. Some measure of truth perhaps but not for all colors to fit one sized reason such as was so common for so long about so many millions of souls. 
http://www.arkansashistory.org/educational/slavery.asp http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSsr=281&GSmid=9245992&GRid=8626847&pt=Marshall%20Brady& http://www.arkansasfreedmen.com/natcem.htm Husband's Name | 
