Ivor Thord-Gray lived from 1878 until 1964. He was born and raised in Stockholm, Sweden to a school teacher and his stay at home wife. While is older brother became an artist and his younger one an archaeologist, Ivor was an adventurist, ethnologist, and linguist.
In 1893 he joined the Merchant Marine and sailed on three ships before going ashore in Cape Town, South Africa during December 1895. He joined the Cape Mounted Rifles in South Africa as a Private in 1897. Between 1897 and 1919, Thord-Gray participated in 13 different wars covering several continents. He changed his name to Gray in 1899 and Thord-Gray 1917.
In 1923, he wrote a book about Mexican archeology Från Mexicos forntid : Bland tempelruiner och gudabilder. In 1925 Thord-Gray moved to the United States and established I.T. Gray & Co, an investment bank located at 522 Fifth Avenue in New York City.
In August 1935 he was appointed Major-General and Chief-of-Staff to Governor David Sholtz of Florida. During his military career as a mercenary, Ivor fought in Russia, Africa, Asia, Mexico, and Britain. He fought in 13 different wars and came out a pretty successful man.