Christopher M. Colley was born on November 12, 1813, in Washington County, Virginia, to Shadrach and Mary Colley. His father was a waggoner. He married Mary McDaniel on April 2, 1835, and they had at least six children: Thomas, born on November 30, 1837; William, born on January 30, 1839; Mary, born around 1843; Elizabeth, born around 1846; Laura, born on October 2, 1850; and Susan, born around 1856. They lived in Washington County, and he worked as a waggoner. By 1860, he owned $700 of real estate and $400 of personal property.
According to an early biographer, he “served nine months with Gen. [John] Floyd as wagon-master in Northwest Virginia, but his age incapacitated him for field service.” He returned to Washington County after leaving the army, and he worked as a waggoner and farmer. By 1870, he owned $500 of personal property. His wife probably died in the late 1890s. He died on June 23, 1907, near Abingdon, Virginia, from “the infirmities due to old age.”
Image: Christopher M. Colley (Richmond Times-Dispatch, 21 October 1906)