The James Boyd family settled in Waterford, Erie County, Pennsylvania, in the early nineteenth century, establishing a gristmill and sawmill in the area. The patent for their property indicated that they had built a dwelling on it by 1816. That dwelling is still standing, and these documents were found in the attic by the current owner.
James Boyd’s descendant, Flavel Boyd, was a prominent citizen of Waterford. He was a county commissioner during the mid-nineteenth century, and later became a tax collector. As seen from the documents found in the two links below, he amassed quite a bit of historical material. Included in his papers are Waterford Borough tax lists and militia lists (Waterford Borough Documents), as well as correspondences and day book ledgers for the businesses of several Boyds and John Himrod, a relative of the Boyds (Boyd Family Papers).
For more information about this family see:
Pennsylvania, U.S., Land Warrants and Applications, 1733-1952. Ancestry.com (database online) Record Index: James Boyd, Warrant Date 31 Dec 1816, Warrant Place Erie.
Erie County, Pennsylvania Deed Books on Familysearch.org
Pennsylvania, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1683-1993, on AncestryLibrary.com.
United States, Census, 1810, Erie County, on Familysearch.com
Nelson’s Biographical Dictionary and Historical Reference Book of Erie County, Pennsylvania. 1896: S. B. Nelson, Publisher, Erie, PA . p. 114—First Settlers in Waterford, 1799; pp. 372-378—Waterford Borough
Popular History of Erie County, Pennsylvania, by D. P. Robbins, M. D., published by Advertiser Printing Ltd, Erie, Penn. 1895, found at hathitrust.org.