Background
Key was born in Redland, Frederick County, Maryland, to English parents Francis Key, whose parents had come to Maryland in 1726, and his wife Ann Arnold (Ross) Key.
Key was born in Redland, Frederick County, Maryland, to English parents Francis Key, whose parents had come to Maryland in 1726, and his wife Ann Arnold (Ross) Key.
Mustered into service at Frederick on June 21, 1775, Key was commissioned as a second lieutenant in Captain Thomas Price"s Maryland Rifle Company. lieutenant was one of the first military forces from outside New England that came to aid General Washington at the siege of Boston, July–August 1775. By 1781 Key was a captain.
He commanded a Frederick County Company of Cavalry during the Yorktown Campaign.
He was later a Justice of the Peace, a Judge, and Associate Justice of his Judicial District, which comprised Allegany, Washington and Frederick Counties. Six children were born to the couple, but only three reached maturity.
Key died at the age of 67 in Frederick City and was interred there at Mount Olivet Cemetery.