William Covey, Sr. served in the American Revolutionary War as a “Rust Soldier” from July 1781 to 30 May 1782 in the 4th Maryland regiment. After the war he moved into Guildford County, North Carolina. His brother Noble was part of the Nicholite Church, a branch of quakers. It is not known if they left Maryland all together or not. All records show William as a Methodist and probably a minister. According to most of the people Wes Covey contacted, William and his family did not come to Tennessee until 1816. But he has been found on records of a William and most of the family in Maury County, Tennessee as early as 1803. Levin Lewis Covey did not leave North Carolina until 1816. He was also a minister, presumably a Methodist.