He was a supporter of the American Independence movement and a member of the Fairfax County Committee for Safety.
In 1755, he had a physical altercation with George Washington over an election issue for the Virginia House of Burgesses which almost resulted in a duel.
[1][2] He was married to Susannah Clarke (1721–1771) on February 3, 1748, in a ceremony officiated by the Reverend Charles Green, First Rector of Pohick Church, Truro Parish.
[6] William Payne famously knocked George Washington to the ground in a dispute of an election issue that almost led to a duel in 1755.
In the fall of 1755, Colonel George Washington’s Regiment (i.e., the Virginia Rangers) was encamped at Fort Cumberland following the defeat 3–4 months earlier of General Edward Braddock’s expedition to the Ohio River Valley as part of the Seven Year’s War.
William Payne is described as being 5’6” and slender[3] while Washington was 6’2” and described as “padded with well-developed muscles, indicating great strength“.
This set of resolutions rejected the British Parliament’s claim of supreme authority over the American colonies.
He began his service as a 1st lieutenant in the Marines[1][3] and later was a captain in the 1st Virginia Regiment of the Continental Army.