William Derry was an African American man. Enslaved by Robert Coleman in Isle of Wright County, Virginia, Derry was freed when Coleman died in 1716. However, Derry had to continue to make yearly payments in tobacco to Coleman's heirs. In 1737 Derry, despite making his payments, was sold by Coleman's heirs to William Taylor, a resident of colonial North Carolina. In about 1740 Derry petitioned the North Carolina colonial court, arguing that he was a free man of color and that Taylor had no right to keep him enslaved. The outcome of the case has not been located.