PEYTON RANDOLPH was born in Williamsburg, Virginia. He graduated from the College of William and Mary in 1798. As an adult, he lived in Richmond. He served on the Virginia Privy Council—or Council of State from 1809 to 1812–which placed him in a position to assume the governorship upon the death of George William Smith. He served as governor for just nine days, until the election of James Barbour. A prominent lawyer, he became reporter of the Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals and authored the six-volume Report of the Cases Argued and Determined in the Court of Appeals of Virginia (Richmond, 1823-1832).

*Note: exact date of birth is not known.