Woodard Footprints: Tracing the Footsteps of the Viking Woodwards In Normandy to England to Jamestown, Virginia, and Onward to Settlement In South Carolina and Alabama

Woodard Footprints

Tracing the Footsteps of the Viking Woodwards in Normandy to England to Jamestown, Virginia, and Onward to Settlement in South Carolina and Alabama

Merle Woodard Safford

Copyright © 2016 Merle Woodard Safford.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted by any means---whether auditory, graphic, mechanical, or electronic---without written permission of both publisher and author, except in the case of brief excerpts used in critical articles and reviews. Unauthorized reproduction of any part of this work is illegal and is punishable by law.

The author and editor have attempted to cite sources to ensure accuracy of the information contained in this book. However, we assume no responsibility for errors, inaccuracies, omissions or any other inconsistency herein. Any slights against people or organizations are unintentional.

ISBN: 978-1-4834-4557-1 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4834-4556-4 (e)

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Cover photograph by Ronna Kowal, 1995, gravestone of an unknown soldier at Stonewall Confederate Cemetery, Winchester, Virginia, the burial site of James Polk Woodard.

Lulu Publishing Services rev. date: 04/20/2016

Contents

Dedication

Acknowledgements

Foreword

Memorial Honor Roll

Relative Chart

Preface

Section I Prelude to America

Chapter I

The Vikings and the Normans

Chapter II

The Woodwards in England

Woodwards in Shevington

Woodwards in Standish

Section II America

Chapter III

The Virginians

Timeline: Roanoke Island and Formation of the Virginia Colony

The First Permanent Settlers

Formation of the Virginia Colony

Timeline: Arrival of Colonists and Population Growth 1620--1671

Martins Hundred

West and Shirley Hundred

Chapter IV

The First Generation Virginia

Genealogical Summary

Chapter V

The Second Generation Virginia

Chronology of Records Found for Christopher Woodward

Genealogical Summary

Chapter VI

The Third Generation Virginia

Genealogical Summary

Chapter VII

The Fourth Generation Virginia

Genealogical Summary

Chapter VIII

The Fifth Generation Virginia

Genealogical Summary

Chapter IX

The Sixth Generation Virginia

Genealogical Summary

Chapter X

The Seventh Generation

Virginians on the Move

Genealogical Summary

Chapter XI

The Eighth Generation

Genealogical Summary

Chapter XII

The Ninth Generation

Genealogical Summary

Elijah Eubanks

Elijah and Priscilla's Family

Chapter XIII

The Tenth Generation

The Move from South Carolina to Alabama

Genealogical Summary

Chapter XIV

The Long Trek

Chapter XV

The Founding Alabama Father

James Polk Woodward

Mary Mcteer (Duncan) Woodard

Chapter XVI

Homesteading

Chapter XVII

James Polk Woodward Off to War

Chapter XVIII

James Polk Woodward at War

The 5th Alabama Regiment

Bibliography

Chapter XIX

The Folks at Home During the War and the Aftermath

Chapter XX

The Eleventh Generation

Genealogical Summary

Chapter XXI

The Twelfth Generation

John Lyles Woodard

Martha Alta (Watkins) Woodard

Genealogical Summary

Chapter XXII

The Thirteenth Generation

Genealogical Summary

Chapter XXIII

The Duncan Connection

George A. Duncan, First Son of John Duncan

John Duncan, Jr., Second Son of John Duncan

Robert Duncan, Possible Third Son of John Duncan

David Duncan, Fourth Son of John Duncan

Dabney Duncan, Fifth Son of John Duncan

Mystery Duncan Family

Chapter XXIV

Other Woodwards in Virginia

Chapter XXV

The History of Liberty High School Ethelsville, Alabama

Chapter XXVI

The Meaning of Life

Life

Appendix A

Chronology Virginia Land Grants, Patents, and Other Records

Appendix B

Chronology of South Carolina Land Grants, Wills, and Other Records

Appendix C

Administration Papers, Estate of Isaac Woodward

Appendix D

Administration Papers, Estate of David Duncan

Appendix E

The Children's Tribute to their Mother Mattie Woodard

Appendix F

Relatives of John Lyles Woodard

Appendix G

Mary Ellen Woodard Grady Eulogy

Appendix H

Merle Watkins Woodard Safford Obituary

Sources

Dedication

To the memory of my great-grandfather, James Polk Woodward, whose absence in the family graveyard in northwest Alabama led me on a search for him and the cause of his death in the Civil War.

To Mary McTeer (Duncan) Woodward, the young wife who went west with James Polk about 1852 and sustained their family of five children while her husband gave his services and life to the Confederate cause in the Civil War.

To Lucinda (Ederington) Duncan, Mary McTeer's mother, who lived with the family after the death in 1862 of her husband, Rev. David D. Duncan, and helped mother the Woodward children until they were of age.

To the children of James Polk and Mary McTeer; Isaac, David, John Marion, Louisa Ann (Duncan) Lollis, Lucinda June Duncan, and the child, Thomas Jefferson Woodward, who died tragically at age seven, whose life never faded from the memory of his siblings, parents, and grandparents. He sleeps forever in the Alabama soil.

To the memory of my only brother, John Mark Woodard, who did not live to see the completion of this book but was always with me in spirit and physical presence when I needed him. He died suddenly on 21 March l996 of a heart attack. There is now a hole in my heart, but his contribution to this effort is very much a part of the story. To Doris, his wife, who filled his shoes after his passing and drove me countless miles as we explored yet another church, or graveyard, or visited another cousin. She still holds the family together with annual family reunions in Alabama. [Now deceased, ed.]

To my sister, Alta, now departed, who inspired me as we worked together through libraries, archives, and cemeteries, always there with her heart as well as her automobile as we traveled together to South Carolina to walk some of the land trod by our forebears.

To my ever-loving husband, Dean, whose constancy and support of all my undertakings has never wavered in our 72 years together.

To Lyles and Mattie Woodard, my parents, now deceased, who instilled in me a love of family and the past and gave me the confidence to explore new paths.

To my other siblings, Laura, Mary Ellen, Betty Lyles, Lorena McCartney, and Billy Beth (all deceased, except for Betty), for their contribution in molding me into the person I am.

To my Liberty School teachers, Lila Richards, Flora Redus Richards, Eunice Kaylor, Martelia MacNair Rickman, Mr. McDonald, Mr. Cox, and Mr. Burrows (principle), for their leadership and encouragement in bringing me out of a path of shyness and low self-confidence, pushing me into a broader world. To Louise Smilie and Euland Rushing, mentors, Pickens County 4-H Club leaders who led the way for so many rural children and were especially helpful to me in my entry into college at Auburn in 1939.

To my later friends and mentors, Lucy Kerr, mother of Anita, who introduced me to my husband Dean; Alice Scott Ross, a prolific newspaper columnist who chose me as her friend to chair her committee for the annual picnic for her some 700--800 readers she held at Stanley Park in Westfield; Scott Stearns, Jr., who, like Dean, allowed, supported, and encouraged me to fulfill my potential in the world of real estate.

To all the board members and directors who said, Yes, to me as we formed a non-profit corporation in 1975 and embarked on the development of zoning provisions and erection of Brownstone Gardens, 172 units of needed elderly housing in East Longmeadow, and to Christopher Carr whose management skills continue to assure pleasant living for over 200 residents. Also to another group of directors who joined me to establish a non-profit corporation for the rescue from demolition of the Norcross House, recognized by the Massachusetts Historic Commission and recommended for Federal Designation as an historic site. Finally, to my friend Ernie Gralia, who donated needed money for its purchase.

A good ending to this dedication is to reach out with a big hug to all the supporters throughout my life. It has been a wonderful ride, and without you who said, Yes, I would have left only ashes to add to the soil. Hopefully the institutions and environment we leave behind will say, Yes, we were here.

Acknowledgements

My first acknowledgment is a thank you to my sister, Alta Nell Woodard Dion, who was always a steady influence on this project. She provided the foreword for this book. Alta passed away on 24 July 2008, after a productive and inspirational life. She served as an army nurse in the formative days of the Army Nurse Corps and was buried with honors at Arlington National Cemetery. Her funeral service may be seen online at Alta Dion at Arlington, a slide presentation prepared by my daughter, Ronna Kowal.

In his book Woodwards of Colonial America, Vol. I, J. Gary Woodward of Lansing, Kansas, produced a massive collection of Woodward genealogy and history and now has a web site. He credits Dr. Edmund Woodward, a member of a group that attempted to organize a Woodward Society of Virginia in 1933, and who presented an account titled Our Woodward Forebears. I am indebted to both Gary and Robert Hill for introducing me to the ancestors of our great-grandfather, James Polk Woodward, of Fairfield County, South Carolina. I have added the remaining South Carolina generations and those who moved to Alabama.

Another thank you goes to the Fairfield County Genealogical Society and the personal help of Mrs. Ruth Stevenson for opening their files leading to the knowledge that this was where our great-grandfather was born. She also gave me a name of a Woodward researcher, Mr. Robert Hill of Brandon, Florida (deceased November 2001), who credited much of his information to a Mrs. Christopher of South Carolina. He in turn opened up his store of information on some Woodward families he was researching; the Hills, Feasters, and Cockerells. Bob was a member of the Sons of the American Revolution (SAR) and I am honored that he has allowed me to use his carefully researched material for publication. Much of his English research has been credited to what he refers to as a reliable professional genealogist, Mr. Roger Moore of London. From my own research in England, I have uncovered no information to negate any of it.

A special debt is owed to Jason Sanders, a great-great-great-grandson of James Polk Woodward and of the fifteenth generation from Christopher Woodward. He is the grandson of my first cousin, Imogene Woodard Sanders. As a youngster, he was a very involved student. He was an Eagle Scout and had a wide range of interests from farming and community service to history. While a student at the special Public High School of Math and Science for gifted students in Mobile, Alabama, Jason wrote his senior thesis on the The 5th Alabama Regiment, of which James Polk Woodward was a private. Jason received a grade of A (95) with the notation Very Good.

It occurred to me that such a fine piece of research and writing would be a fitting addition to this book and would further honor the memory of our forebear. Jason seemed pleased to have it included, and I have used it, with his permission, as the basis for the Chapter in this book, James Polk Woodward off to War. It will appear under his by-line. My comments within his text are set off in italics. I am pleased to be allowed to include his work in this account, and I think James Polk would feel honored to know that he is still remembered by his descendants.

I must further acknowledge and thank my brother, John Mark Woodard (now deceased), for his unfailing support in this enterprise, and I deeply regret his not living to see it to fruition. A thanks also to Doris Pate Woodard [now deceased, ed.], his wife, who carries the family banner for him. My sister Billy Beth Truitt Falk (deceased 2010) deserves a place in the production of this book, for it was she who assured me of a ride to and from the Atlanta, Georgia, airport on my research treks, gave me bed and bath, hosted family gatherings, and provided me with many automobile trips from Atlanta to Alabama.

Another who was generous was Miriam Steele of Steelhaven in Lowndsboro, Alabama, with whom I talked before her death, who sent me a copy of the book she wrote in 1979 with her husband Parker, graciously allowing me to quote from it. The book, out of print, is entitled The Steeles of Bibb, A Pioneer Family With Allied Families (Revised), published in 1979. I owe her my thanks for her generosity and I treasure the book with its hand written notes, as I treasure my personal chat with her at age 96. It was from this book that I discovered that her mother, Mary (Woodward) Steele, who married James Steele, was the daughter of Rachel and Richard Woodward who moved to Bibb County about 1830/31, the same time that James Polk Woodward was born.

Still another was Jean Holley Day of Danville, Indiana, who sent me an entire excerpt from her book, Know Your Family, and is now out of print. Jean was a descendant of Richard and Lancelott Woodward from Fairfield County and did a body of research on the Woodward family. Her work has confirmed my research, as well as added to some of mine, and for this I am grateful. I learned, in March 1999, that she has deceased. She was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR).

I must also thank Beth Fazekas, my first cousin once removed, for her contributions of early census records of the Duncans in Fayette County, opening doors leading to much information on that family. Her generosity with family photos and the only photograph of James Polk in a Confederate uniform, which appears herein, has added a personal touch that brings life to the written text.

Others who should be mentioned are Mary Elmore, historian and researcher of Tuscaloosa, Alabama; Kathleen Brown, Historian of Pickens County, Alabama; and Janice Steed of Tulsa, Oklahoma, who provided the entire genealogy of the Lollis side of William Henry and Louisa Ann (Woodard) Lollis and their descendants. In turn, I was able to provide her with the Duncan connection to the Lollis family. Also thanks to Patricia Rowbothan of Lamar, Arkansas, for providing some meat to put on the bones of Louisa Ann and her children, grandchildren of James Polk and Mary Woodard.

Thanks go to all the patient librarians in Fairfield County, Union County, and Columbia South Carolina Archives, Tuscaloosa County, Pickens County, and University of Alabama Genealogical Libraries, especially those in Fairfield County.

I further acknowledge the support, patience, and personal help from my daughters Ronna Kowal, Deana Wilson, and Melanie Mercier; and Dean Safford, the breadwinner husband of our 72-year marriage. Sometimes we laughingly say, We're still working on it! Thank you, my love!

Without the patience of all the contributors who have updated their data, some at least four times since the beginning, this book would not be the living history and genealogy that I hope it is. Perhaps some descendant 150 years hence may chance upon a tattered copy of this story and use it to connect themselves to this ancestor, James Polk Woodward of Pickens County, Alabama, and his wife, Mary McTeer (Duncan) and all the Woodward predecessors of these two pioneers of Alabama.

After a long hiatus at the age of 92, I shall attempt to bring this to a conclusion. I have spent the last ten years (2003--2013) forming a non-profit corporation for the restoration of the aforementioned Norcross House and working to establish it as a cultural center devoted to historical research, local history, and an art and writing center. I have just completed and self-published a 277 page book, Faith of our Founders, a story of a man's search for faith, which traces the history of five churches in the East Village of Longmeadow, Massachusetts, that were in existence in 1894 when the town split from Longmeadow. Each church is traced back to its roots and the Reformation. With local sales of the book well under way to help provide funds for the Norcross House, I now work on my fourth and final update of the Woodard history. More information about Faith of our Founders may be found at www.facebook.com/MWSBOOK?ref=profile. I am cognizant of, and apologetic for the delay to those people who provided genealogical data some 10 to 15 years ago. May you feel it was worth the wait.

[Merle Watkins (Woodard) Safford passed away on 22 October 2013, before completing Footprints. Her second daughter, Deana Merle (Safford) Wilson, took up the challenge to finish compiling the manuscript and seeing Footprints finally come into print, ed.]

Foreword

A WALK WITH FAMILIES

By Alta Nell Woodard Dion

When my sister Merle asked me to write the foreword of the book, which is the culmination of our travels together in the land of our forebears in South Carolina and the Northeast National Archives in Atlanta, I was glad to add my bit to record the events that had shaped a generation still influenced by the great conflict that threatened to tear our infant nation apart, the Civil War, in which our great-grandfather, James Polk Woodward, lost his life. He left a wife and six children to sustain the dream of independence and to build a nation, a dream his forebears had followed when they left England in 1620 and settled near the banks of the Rappahannock River in Virginia.

People write genealogies to record family lineages. They write histories to record events in the lives of people, their accomplishments, failures, rewards, and their legacies to the future. This book is a bit of both, and our intent is to use the lineage of the Woodward/ Woodard family as the skeletal bones of our genealogy and the lives and accomplishments of the family as the flesh and blood of our history.

We think of it as a continuation of the footprints trod into the soil of history, as James Polk Woodward and his wife Mary McTeer (Duncan) carved their footprints into the red clay of the northwestern Alabama hills of Pickens County. Their pioneering spirit, like so many of their ancestors, led their feet westward into a sparsely settled portion of Alabama. It was here they clashed head-on with the destiny they left behind in the seething political storm of South Carolina. It was to devour them only eight years after their move, as the clouds of war were being fomented in the political storms of a rebellious South, and an emerging political party that sought power by joining the moralistic forces of the Abolitionists in the North. Like the cleavages they had experienced in the churches they left behind, the same forces had preceded our family to their new home, and they were caught up in it.

Our story relates the early adventures of the family in Norway, the North Seas, Normandy, in 912 AD, and England in 1066 to the shores of Virginia in 1620. Later they went to South Carolina and finally to Pickens County, Alabama, all bearing the genetic traits of the founding father, and still home to a remarkable number of his descendants.

These pages are the culmination of several years of accumulating information from archives, libraries, courthouses, and cemeteries. I have tried to transfer to my sister some of my feelings about the family, who I, as an older sister, experienced in conversations with my elders, especially my grandfather John Marion Woodard that she may have missed. Two trips in 1993 and 1994 with her reunited us with our roots in Fairfield County, South Carolina, and we both cherish the days we spent together.

These forays have resulted in a book we hope will be enjoyed as a history of a pioneering family, a source of enlightenment for J. P. Woodward's descendants, and pass muster as a valid historical and genealogical work. Over all, it puts us in touch with generations that until this time were just pages in the history books, the dead in cemeteries, and family stories recalled by the aging parents of each generation, some of which we only had glimpses and never dreamed we might be a part.

As I reach the culmination of life, I am glad to have been a part of the search for the material enfolded into this book. My early efforts at recording family notes that I gleaned from my grandfather were passed along to my sister and the time she and I spent together in South Carolina seeking a paper trail of their lives, which has resulted in this book, are memories that I cherish.

We hope that the sacrifices that these dear people made in hewing to their ideals of patriotism will inspire their descendants to hold firm to the convictions of their hearts, and that their spirit of adventure and discovery will long live in the blood lines of their descendants.

My thoughts flow back to my childhood when one of my favorite things to do was visit with my grandparents, John Marion and Leila Rebecca Lyles Woodard. They lived with us for a time while grandmother recovered from peritonitis after an acute appendectomy, and I remember this as a time of closeness with them. When we moved back to the Old Homeplace and they were in their little retirement home two miles away, I often walked with my sister Ellen for an afternoon visit. Sometimes we spent the night. Sometimes we rode our horses, and when Ellen was in the garden or house, I would be on the porch with my grandfather. Grandmother was deaf, and it was hard for a 14 year old to converse with her, but talking with grandfather gave me a warm, fuzzy feeling.

So I decided to invite you to take a little walk with me as I reminisce about some of the talks we had and some of the inspiration they engendered in me. Come along and walk with my sister Merle and me as we search out the beginnings of our family, where they lead us, and then spend a little time with our ancestors. This is only part of the story, but the one I feel so close to as we travel in the up-country of South Carolina in the Fairfield, Spartanburg, Newberry, and Union Districts. On our way from Alabama we will pass through Atlanta where I now live, cross into South Carolina and make a brief stop in Anderson County where we have evidence that our Duncan connection might lay. Here we find and visit Big Creek Baptist Church where David Duncan and his family had been members and where David had been a minister. Let's look for the grave of David and Lucinda's first born, 16 year-old Betsy. We cannot find it. The church is closed, so we move on.

We go to Newberry and the library and courthouse to look for Woodwards. We find that this is Lyle's territory, our distaff side. We take copies of what information we can find and move along, as today we are looking for Woodwards. We shall return to Newberry another day. We head to Union County, where we have called for an appointment with the President of the Union County Historical Society. Here we buy a copy of the History of Union County, view the items in their very nice, small museum and are advised we might like to visit the library. We do, are greeted by the librarian who introduces us to their genealogy and history section where we find interesting data on the life of South Carolina but nothing on Woodwards. We meet a library patron who asks us our sphere of interest and he responds that we should go to Fairfield County, for that is Woodward Country, just as we found from a patron at the Greenville Library that Greenville County is fertile Watkins Country, the family of our mother. That also, will be for another time. It has been a busy day, and we need to find a place for the night. It is raining; we drive to Winnsboro, check into a motel outside of town, have supper, and review our copied material while it is fresh in our minds.

We arise early, have breakfast, and hasten to the Fairfield County Historical and Genealogical Society where we have an appointment with Mrs. Ruth Stevenson for the morning. Here we hit pay dirt, and I will leave it to Merle to incorporate our findings there into this book. In the afternoon we will walk through a Woodward cemetery and commune at graves so old that pieces of the stone-covered vaults have fallen away, where babies, young mothers, old folk, and memories of great-grandfather Duncan and his Betsy assail us. For he is one of us through the melding of the Duncans, Lyles, and Woodward families, and wherever we walk we will look for the footprints of any of those who led the way for us.

Let us look back to the first Christopher Woodward who started the family line in America when he came to Virginia on the Gifte in 1618 and to his son Christopher who followed two years later on the ship Tyrall. They prospered and propagated, and following Woodward generations moved out and on as the Christophers had done when they left England. Woodwards left tracks in Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, and North Carolina. Later, as the west opened up they moved on to Alabama, Tennessee, Indiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Texas, until today there are no doubt, Woodward footprints in all fifty states of this union, of which Christopher was a founding father.

Let us recall the mid 1800's when our family joined the great migration westward and came to Pickens County, Alabama, and people like our great-grandfather, George Monroe Lyles, who helped found the church at Arbor Springs, nurtured his flock at Bethlehem, and ministered to his people at Mineral Springs where he and his loved ones are still being buried to this day. David Duncan carried his Primitive Baptist faith to Fayette County where he founded the Harmony Baptist Church in 1860. The church continues to provide a faith-following for the loyal people of the community of Belk.

We walk into the middle of that century and follow James Polk Woodward from South Carolina to Pickens County, Alabama, a boy orphaned at birth by a father who died too young, leaving three small boys. Let's follow him as he marries Mary McTeer Duncan and as father of two children joins his in-laws, Lucinda and David Duncan, on the long trek to Pickens County. Let's follow him behind the plow as he and Mary homestead beneath the growing clouds of the Civil War.

Follow me down to the riverboat landing at Pickensville as James boards the Marengo after joining the Pickensville Blues in the earliest days of that great conflagration, sometimes called The War Between the States. Let us imagine his first days in the 5th Alabama Regiment as he watches his comrades engage in the Battle of Bull Run or First Manassas, as he joins them in the victory at Chancellorsville, the Seven Days Battle, the Battle of Seven Pines, South Mountain, Antietam, Cold Harbor, Spotsylvania, the Wilderness, Lynchburg, and the third Battle of Winchester. Let us sit out the long, hard winters in the Shenandoah Valley, away from family, preparing for the campaigns in the spring. Then we join him in Gettysburg for the famous Pickett's charge and the heroic action of so many, which ended in the defeat of the Rebels on that great battlefield. Let us imagine the heartbreak of defeat and the long days following, of a war that never seemed to end.

Close your eyes for a moment and imagine what it was like to serve under the leadership of some of the greatest military leaders of history, General Robert E. Rodes, P. G. T. Beauregard, James Longstreet, D. H. Hill, Stonewall Jackson, Richard E. Ewell, Jubal Early, and that greatest inspiration of them all, the great gentleman commander, General Robert E. Lee.

And can we, for a moment, join our ancestor another day in the beautiful Shenandoah Valley of Virginia on a bright September morning of 1864 with another battle looming. Tired, hungry, and ragged men are hoisting their rifles to their shoulder or taking their place behind the artillery for another day that portends to be a bloody one. It is to be an extremely costly one; the Confederates loss is 829 killed, 1,827 wounded, and 1,818 missing for a total of 3,921 from a force of 11,000. The Federals loss is 697 killed, 2,983 wounded, and 338 missing for a total of 4,018 from a force of 42,000. Merle will tell you of the events of that day, just one of many, in which James Polk participated.

Before we leave Winchester in the Shenandoah Valley, let me lead you down the road from the battle ground 135 years later, enter the Stonewall Cemetery, lift our eyes to the top of the towering Memorial honoring the fallen dead of that day who sleep side by side in a mass grave below. Let us bow our heads in a silent prayer and be thankful for men like these, who like the generation of World War II, our fathers and husbands, sisters and brothers, were willing to sacrifice their lives for the ideals of independence and freedom from tyranny.

We now take a walk back to Alabama with the family left behind and take a glimpse of them as they struggle with the adversity of war and it's aftermath; Mary, with her four boys and two girls; the tragedy of two boys going to the gristmill with a two-wheeled oxcart to have corn ground for meal for bread. Then there were only three boys, because there was an accident. Let us follow Mary and Granny Duncan with the children to the plowed field as they scurry to bury the family silver and a few pretties from their past, at news that the Yankees are in the area scavenging for food and treasures. Let us walk to the graveyard on the hill and remember Mary and Granny Duncan, and the child and three stillborn babies sleeping there and wonder about an empty grave that just might hold the remains of David Duncan, for whom we have searched. Let us view the crumbled chimney of the Old Woodard Homeplace, burned to the ground in the 1950's while vacant, and peer into the abandoned well that supplied them with water.

This has been a walk into our distant path, so let us return to the present, still in Alabama, and take a short pathway into the lives of our own parents and grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins now gone, whom we remember. They are only a generation away. Let us wonder how John Marion Woodard and his siblings became so well educated, with a love for learning that they passed on to the next generations. Up this hill is the last remnant of a brush-covered foundation of the one-room school John Marion built for his own and neighbors' children and where his grandchildren were schooled. His oldest son, John Lyles, my father, went to Florence Normal State Teachers College at age 18 to get his teaching certificate and in later years participated in the consolidation of some of the small schools into a larger one so they could have a high school. This resulted in the establishment of Liberty Vocational High School at Ethelsville, Alabama, that provided a basic education for his own children and his siblings' children. John Lyles was known by various titles, among them, Fessor or Professor, Cap'n by some of his black friends and neighbors, and Mr. Lize by others.

Wouldn't you like a visit with Ollie and Covie Fields, my aunt and uncle, on their dairy farm with their brown Jersey cows, or sit at the loaded boarding-house table of Aunt Bessie (Woodard) Drake and her gentle husband, Charlie; and who wouldn't like to drop in on Aunt Iva and Olin Drake with their generous hearts and love of children? You'd certainly go home with a treasure if you happened to mention you liked something she had. Or how about a drop-in on George Woodard with his carpentry skills as he builds a house, a barn, or a cabinet; or take a visit to the big plantation house at Melrose where James Duke and Lizzie lived for several years? Let us walk down to the sawmill and McShan Lumber Company where was once a large dairy barn with a large barnyard and a herd of handsome Holsteins. In the late 1920's it was converted to a prison camp, where black men in their black and white striped prison uniforms lived while they built U.S. Route 82 through Pickens County to the Mississippi state line. On Sundays the prisoners had a day off, and they were allowed to have music and entertainment of their own making within the chain-link fenced barn yard, and local people were invited to come and enjoy their singing, dancing, and comedy skits for the few coins and dollar bills placed in a passed hat. Their own families came and visited and enjoyed the entertainment.

Or how about picking figs in Eddie Lee Woodard and Laudice's back yard from the enormous fig tree to make some luscious fig preserves, or perhaps eat a piece of her fabulous fresh coconut cake, or some fried tomatoes with some tomato gravy? If you're a man and love the outdoors and an evening with the boys, Uncle Ed might get some of his buddies together, gather his pack of hounds and go for a fox hunt, sit around a camp fire, spin some tall tales and take a few swigs from a bottle of brandy, or if you're in luck there might be a fresh batch of corn likker to add to the conviviality.

Let's take a little ride to visit Early Woodard in the Union Hill community and see the fine orchard and the barn where he breeds mules. His wife, Mamie, invites you in for a shared dinner at noon with a slice of her fabulous Devil's food cake with its thick fudge frosting, for dessert. His daughter, Imogene, still lives nearby. It's really too far to walk to the Prairie Lea community near Florence, Texas, where Ike Woodard settled, established a farm, and brought up his family of girls, so we will let Merle take you there.

These are memories of my childhood, and I hope you have enjoyed the walk, as I hope you will enjoy the recounting of the history of your forebears that will unfold in the following pages.

Now we are the passing generation. Our lives were shaped by the Great Depression; we prepared for the work world by seeking out the opportunity of work, training, and advanced schooling by our own efforts; we answered the call to fight Hitler in the forties in World War II. It has been said we were the last generation to finish school, get married, and have children in that order. To bring a child into the world without two parents was unthinkable in our generation and those before us. If it did happen, the girl's family assumed responsibility, loved the child and the world went on. Sometimes the girl was sent off to a relative or a home, the child put up for adoption, and the girl picked up her life and thought no one knew. Sometimes there was a back-door abortion, but this was not the way of your forebears. There was a pride, independence, and ability to take responsibility instead of seeking to put the blame on society or others.

We were rural people brought up among black people, share croppers, timber workers, and mostly farmers of various land holdings, but they were all our neighbors pulling together to make a better world for our children, their children, and those still entering this rich land we call America. Even in a segregated society in the South we had a sense of fairness for all, and empathy for those less gifted or prosperous than we, and admiration for all who blazed a trail for others, especially women. These were the values instilled in us. Our mother used to put it in simple words, In the sight of God we are all the same, no matter the color of the skin. This is our heritage and we are proud of it!

[Note: My dear sister Alta passed away on 24 July 2008. She was buried at Arlington National Cemetery adjacent to her husband, Polydore F. Dion. Both were veterans of World War II. A movie of her military funeral recorded by Ronna Safford Kowal may be seen on the Internet (utube.com) at Alta Dion at Arlington. I do hope you will take time to be inspired by this gathering of our family at Arlington in honor of her life and her service to our country.]

Memorial Honor Roll

The following descendants of James Polk and Mary McTeer (Duncan) Woodward have honored the heritage of their forebears by contributing to the Fund for the Preservation of the Woodard Family Cemetery. The cemetery is located in the northwest section of Pickens County, Alabama. In 1986 a granite memorial marker inscribed with the following epitaph was installed:

FAMILY OF

JAMES POLK WOODWARD

AND WIFE

MARY McTEER DUNCAN

DEATH DATES 1850-1880

SIX SOULS REST HERE

We are indebted to John Mark Woodard, great-grandson, for the logistics and care in choosing, installing, and clearing the cemetery, and maintaining it until his death in 1996. The following descendants contributed to the memorial fund for the grave marker.

Relative Chart

Relatives of Christopher¹ Woodward through the Twelfth Generation

Son:

2. Woodward, Christopher² ca. 1594--by 1650

3. Woodward, Thomas² ca. 1600--ca. 1677

4. Woodward, John²

5. Woodward, William²

Grandson:

6. Woodward, Samuel³ ca. 1625--bef. 1658

7. Woodward, Christopher³ ca. 1623--ca. 1665

8. Woodward, George³ ca. 1634--by 1672

9. Woodward, Lancelott³ --ca. 1731

10. Woodward, William³ -- ca. 1695

11. Woodward, John³ --ca. 1665

12. Woodward, Thomas³ --1679/80

18. Woodward, John³ aft. 1665

Granddaughter:

13. Woodward, Katherine³

14. Woodward, Elizabeth³

15. Woodward, Mary³

16. Woodward, Rachel³

17. Woodward, Philarite³

G Grandson:

19. Woodward, Samuel⁴

20. Woodward, George⁴, Jr. ca. 1651--bef. 1704

23. Woodward, Henry⁴

G Granddaughter:

21. Woodward, Martha⁴

22. Woodward, Anne⁴

GG Grandson:

24. Woodward, Nathaniel⁵

25. Woodward, George⁵ III ca. 1678--aft. 1739

26. Woodward, Lancelott⁵ 1680--1685

27. Woodward, Samuel⁵

28. Woodward, John⁵ ca. 1692

29. Biggers, John⁵

30. Biggers, William⁵ 1679/80

31. Macon, Gideon⁵ 1682--prob. young

34. Macon, William⁵ 1693

35. Macon, John⁵ 1695

36. Macon, James⁵ 1701--1768

38. Spencer, John⁵

39. Spencer, Abraham⁵

40. Spencer, Benjamin⁵

42. Spencer, Thomas⁵ 1689

43. Woodward, Francis⁵ 1657--by 1679

44. Woodward, John⁵ 1681

45. Woodward, Richard⁵ 1683

GG Granddaughter:

32. Macon, Ann⁵ 1684

33. Macon, Martha⁵ ca. 1687--1716

37. West, Unity⁵

41. Spencer, Susannah⁵ 1686--1686

46. Woodward, Elizabeth⁵

GGG Grandson:

48. Woodward, Nathaniel⁶, Jr.

49. Woodward, Samuel⁶

50. Woodward, Richard⁶ ca. 1708

51. Woodward, Lancelott⁶, Jr. ca. 1710--1784

52. Woodward, George⁶

53. Woodward, William⁶

54. Woodward, John⁶

55. Woodward, Philemon⁶

56. Christian, Richard⁶

57. Christian, James⁶

59. Christian, William⁶ --1784

60. Christian, Gideon⁶ 1728--1796

61. Jones, Lane⁶ 1707--1750

66. Macon, William⁶, Jr. 1725/26

67. Macon, Henry⁶ 1727

72. Macon, Hartwell⁶ 1741

74. Macon, Gideon Hunt⁶ --1762

77. Dandridge, William⁶, Jr. --1784

81. Dandridge, Nathaniel West⁶ 1729

GGG Granddaughter:

47. Woodward, Elizabeth⁶

58. Christian, Judith⁶ 1713

62. Jones, Frances⁶ 1710--1785

63. Macon, Anne⁶ 1720

64. Macon, Martha⁶ 1722

65. Macon, Mary⁶ 1723/24

68. Macon, Elizabeth⁶ 1729/30

69. Macon, Sarah⁶ 1731

70. Macon, Mary⁶ 1736--1813

71. Macon, Judith⁶ 1737

73. Macon, Anna⁶ 1747

75. Macon, Frances⁶

76. Macon, Mary⁶ 1741

78. Dandridge, Martha⁶ 1721

79. Dandridge, Mary⁶

80. Dandridge, Anne⁶ --1781

82. Dandridge, Elizabeth⁶

GGGG Grandson:

83. Woodward, Randolph⁷ ca. 1728--ca. 1790

84. Woodward, Isaac⁷ ca. 1730--ca. 1781

85. Woodward, John⁷ ca. 1732--1797

86. Woodward, William⁷ ca. 1734--aft. 26 Jun. 1815

87. Woodward, Richard⁷, Jr. ca. 1736--1804

89. Woodward, Warwick⁷ ca. 1750--ca. 1784

90. Woodward, Lance (Lott)⁷ 1752--1838/39

92. Woodward, Philemon⁷ ca. 1740

93. Woodward, Joseph⁷ 1747

96. Jones, Lane⁷, Jr. 1733

98. Jones, Orlando⁷ 1738

99. Jones, Roland⁷ 1739/40

100. Jones, William⁷ 1746

102. Dandridge, John⁷, Jr. 1732/33

103. Dandridge, William⁷ 1734/35--1776

104. Dandridge, Barthomomew⁷ 1737

106. Dandridge, Francis⁷ 174

GGGG Granddaughter:

88. Woodward, Frances⁷ ca. 1738

91. Woodward, Urcilla⁷ 1762--1854

94. Jones, Martha⁷ 1728

95. Jones, Anne⁷ 1729

97. Jones, Frances⁷ 1735

101. Dandridge, Martha Jones⁷ 1731

105. Dandridge, Anna Maria⁷ 1739

107. Dandridge, Elizabeth⁷ 1749

108. Dandridge, Mary⁷ 1756--1763

5G Grandson:

109. Woodward, Chesley⁸ ca. 1745--ca. 1810

110. Woodward, John⁸

111. Woodward, Bartlett⁸

112. Woodward, Joshua⁸

113. Woodward, Samuel⁸ 1760

114. Woodward, Jacob⁸ 1762--ca. 1850

115. Woodward, Abraham⁸ ca. 1764

118. Woodward, Isaac⁸, Jr. ca. 1767

119. Woodward, John⁸ ca. 1768

121. Woodward, Burbabe⁸, Sr.

122. Woodward, Burbage⁸, Jr. 1760

123. Woodward, John⁸, Jr.

124. Woodward, William⁸

125. Woodward, George J.⁸ 1761--1847

127. Woodward, Richard⁸

128. Woodward, John⁸

129. Woodward, Robert⁸

131. Woodward, Julius⁸ 1799

135. Woodward, Abraham⁸ 1787--1875

136. Woodward, Richard III⁸ ca. 1765

137. Woodward, John, Dr. ⁸ ca. 1770--1829

139. Woodward, George⁸ 1779--1814

140. Woodward, William⁸ --1823

141. Woodward, Randolph/Randol⁸

142. Woodward, James⁸ 1783--1823

143. Woodward, William⁸ 1773

144. Woodward, John⁸ ca. 1795

145. Woodward, Lance⁸ 1797

146. Woodward, Chesley⁸ ca. 1798

148. Woodward, James/Henry⁸ ca. 1802

149. Woodward, Jubal⁸ ca. 1802

154. Hall, Richmond⁸ 1779

155. Hall, Arthur⁸ 1781

156. Hall, Green⁸ 1782--1863

158. Hall, William⁸, Jr. 1786

159. Hall, Bazil⁸ 1788--1848

161. Hall, Lance⁸ ca. 1792

163. Hall, Mahalon⁸ ca. 1796

164. Hall, Caleb⁸ 1804--1852

166. Hall, Albert Washington⁸ ca. 1807

167. Woodward, Henley⁸ 1769--1837

169. Woodward, Philemon⁸, Jr. 1778--1836

170. Woodward, Richard⁸ 1783--1834

171. Woodward, Richardson⁸ 1775

172. Woodward, Lancelott⁸ 1778

174. Woodward, John⁸ 1782

176. Woodward, Joseph⁸ 1786

177. Woodward, John F.⁸ 1788

179. Custis, Daniel Parke⁸, Jr. 1751--1754

181. Custis, John Parke/G. W. Parke⁸ 1754

5G Granddaughter:

116. Woodward, Elizabeth⁸ ca. 1765

117. Woodward, Frances⁸

120. Woodward, Rebecca ⁸ ca. 1775

126. Woodward, Rebecca⁸ ca. 1765--1839

130. Woodward, Mildred⁸ ca. 1775--1832

132. Woodward, Rachel⁸ ca. 1781

133. Woodward, Mary⁸ ca. 1783

134. Woodward, Elizabeth⁸ ca. 1784

138. Woodward, Margaret⁸

147. Woodward, Polly⁸ ca. 1799

150. Woodward, Perthenia⁸ ca. 1805

151. Woodward, Elizabeth⁸ ca. 1807

152. Woodward, Susan⁸ ca. 1812

153. Woodward, Eliza⁸ ca. 1816

157. Hall, Frances/ Fannie⁸ 1784--bef. 1812

160. Hall, Elizabeth/Betsey⁸ 1790

162. Hall, Pamela⁸ ca. 1794

165. Hall, Louise⁸ ca. 1805

168. Woodward, Rebecca⁸ 1772

173. Woodward, Nancy⁸ 1780

175. Woodward, Patsy⁸ 1785

178. Woodward, Rebecca. E.⁸ 1790

180. Custis, Frances⁸ 1753--1757

182. Custis/Washington, Martha Parke⁸ 1755--1773

6G Grandson:

183. Woodward, John⁹ 1763

184. Woodward, Chesley⁹, Jr. 1766

185. Woodward, Michael⁹

186. Woodward, Bartlett⁹ ca. 1770

187. Woodward, Silas⁹ ca. 1772

188. Woodward, Samuel⁹ ca. 1774

189. Woodward, Julius⁹ ca. 1776

190. Woodward, Thomas⁹ ca. 1778

193. Woodward, Joseph C.⁹ ca. 1784

195. Woodward, Richard⁹ IV 1804

196. Woodward, George W. ⁹ ca. 1806

197. Woodward, Nathaniel⁹ 1801--1887

198. Woodward, Isaac Calvin⁹ 1803

203. Woodward, George⁹ 1813

207. Woodward, Richard C.⁹

208. Woodward, John C.⁹

209. Woodward, George W.⁹

211. Woodward, Isaac⁹ -- by 1831

212. Woodward, Randolph⁹

213. Woodward, Joseph⁹

214. Woodward, William⁹ 1809--1893

215. Woodward, Zachariah⁹ ca. 1811

216. Woodward, Richard P.⁹ ca. 1812

220. Woodward, James Osborn⁹ 1820--1888

221. Woodward, George Wiley⁹ 1823--1863?

222. Woodward, Thomas H.⁹

226. Woodward, William P.⁹

227. Jones, Gilbert⁹

228. Jones, William Henley⁹

230. Jones, Philemon Chesley⁹

233. Woodward, Richard Henley⁹ 1825

234. Woodward, Philemon Taylor⁹ 1821

238. Woodward, Henley⁹

239. Woodward, John Pitt Lee⁹ 1821--1834

6G Granddaughter:

191. Woodward, Mildred⁹ ca. 1780

192. Woodward, Dolly⁹ ca. 1782

194. Woodward, Mary⁹ 1800

199. Woodward, Margaret⁹ 1805

200. Woodward, Jane/Jenett⁹ 1807

201. Woodward, Elizabeth/Betsey R.⁹ 1808--1868

202. Woodward, Nancy Anne/Agnes⁹ 1810--1831

204. Woodward, Levica⁹

205. Woodward, Nancy⁹

206. Woodward, Letitia⁹

210. Woodward, Eleanor S.⁹

217. Woodward, Sarah⁹ 1814--1873

218. Woodward, Mary⁹

219. Woodward, Nancy⁹

223. Woodward, Anne Frances⁹

224. Woodward, Caroline A.⁹

225. Woodward, Elizabeth M.⁹

229. Jones, Rebecca⁹

231. Woodward, Lucy⁹

232. Woodward, Sarah Virginia⁹ 1817

235. Woodward, Elizabeth Roane⁹

236. Woodward, Matilda Ann Elizabeth Temple⁹

237. Woodward, Isabella R.⁹

7G Grandson:

240. Steele, George Washington Lafayette¹⁰ 1825--1912

242. Steele, Boy¹⁰

244. Steele, William Madison¹⁰ ca. 1839

245. Steele, Christopher Columbus H.¹⁰ 1840

246. Steele, Amazon¹⁰ ca. 1842

247. Steele, Frederick Harrison H.¹⁰ ca. 1844

248. Woodward, William¹⁰ 1828--1850

249. Woodward, Richard L.¹⁰ 1829

252. Woodward, George Washington¹⁰ 1838

254. Woodward, Francis A.¹⁰ ca. 1845

257. Woodward, John¹⁰ 1826

258. Woodward, William McMillin¹⁰ 1828

259. Woodward, George Y.¹⁰ 1830

260. Woodward, Francis Marion¹⁰ 1832

261. Woodward, Isaac Calvin¹⁰ 1834

263. Woodward, Benjamin Frank¹⁰ 1838

266. Woodward, Malcolm H.¹⁰ 1833

267. Woodward, J. Fletcher¹⁰ 1838

269. Woodward, John Rust¹⁰

270. Woodward, Isaac¹⁰

271. Woodward, Daniel Y.¹⁰ ca. 1817

272. Woodward, Isaac H.¹⁰ ca. 1818

273. Woodward, James Polk¹⁰ 1831

281. Woodward, Wilbur P.¹⁰

284. Woodward, Marvin (N. O.)¹⁰

285. Woodward, William¹⁰

287. Woodward, John F.¹⁰

290. Jones, Chesley Meredith William¹⁰

291. Jones, William Thomas¹⁰

292. Jones, Peyton Carson¹⁰

298. Williams, Chesley¹⁰

300. Williams, Richmond¹⁰

301. Williams, John Wesley¹⁰

303. Jones, William Nathaniel Fletcher¹⁰

306. Jones, Thomas Chesley¹⁰

307. Woodward, Warner Minor¹⁰

7G Granddaughter:

241. Steele, Margaret Jane¹⁰ 1828

243. Steele, Mary Ann¹⁰ 1834--1900

250. Woodward, Elizabeth A.¹⁰ ca. 1832--1855

251. Woodward, Mary E. Adeline¹⁰ 1836

253. Woodward, Rebecca Ellen¹⁰ ca. 1841

255. Woodward, Margaret Jane¹⁰

256. Woodward, Amanda¹⁰ ca. 1856

262. Woodward, Elizabeth Amanda¹⁰ 1836

264. Woodward, Anne E.¹⁰ 1842

265. Woodward, Jane¹⁰ 1844

268. Woodward, Mira/Mary¹⁰

274. Woodward, Alice Leila¹⁰

275. Woodward, Nancy Florence¹⁰

276. Woodward, Anna Jane¹⁰

277. Woodward, Mary L.¹⁰

278. Woodward, Sarah Fletcher¹⁰

279. Woodward, Martha Susan¹⁰

280. Woodward, Margaret McKee¹⁰

282. Woodward, Hattie Houston¹⁰

283. Woodward, Eugenia Smith¹⁰

286. Woodward, Mary Elizabeth¹⁰

288. Jones, Elizabeth Harrison¹⁰

289. Jones, Frances Rebecca¹⁰

293. Jones, Mary Wesley¹⁰

294. Jones, Elizabeth S.¹⁰

295. Jones, Ucelia Jane¹⁰

296. Jones, Malissa Woodward¹⁰

297. Jones, Martha Eliza¹⁰

299. Williams, Patsy¹⁰

302. Jones, Albina Rebecca¹⁰

304. Jones, Ellen Turner¹⁰

305. Jones, Martha Virginia Rosser¹⁰

8G Grandchild:

355. Woodward, Stillborn¹¹

356. Woodward, Stillborn¹¹

8G Grandson:

310. Steele, Westley/Malissa?¹¹ 1853--1897

311. Steele, Andrew Jackson¹¹ 1856--1930

313. Steele, Jefferson Davis¹¹ 1861--1949

314. Steele, Felix M.¹¹ 1863--190?

315. Steele, Nathaniel Green¹¹ 1866--1942

316. Steele, Stephen¹¹ 1870--1870

320. Steele, Lafayette¹¹ ca. 1878

322. Peters, James Martin¹¹ 1852

323. Peters, Anthony¹¹ ca. 1854

325. Peters, John¹¹

326. Avery, L. F.¹¹ ca. 1867

327. Avery, Edgar¹¹ ca. 1870

329. Avery, Roscoe T.¹¹ ca. 1875

332. Steele, William¹¹ ca. 1871

334. Steele, James Patrick Henry¹¹ 1878--1971

335. Steele, James¹¹

336. Steele, Harvey¹¹

337. Woodward, John¹¹ 1850--1925

340. Woodward, George Robert¹¹ 1858

341. Woodward, Richard Monroe¹¹ 1862

342. Woodward, James Anthony¹¹ 1866

345. Steele, William Temolian¹¹ 1853--1939

346. Steele, James¹¹ 1855--1857

348. Steele, Columbus Q. W.¹¹ 1857?--1951

351. Steele, Robert L.¹¹ 1867--1937

352. Steele, Albert H.¹¹ 1869--1935

358. Woodward, Isaac Newton¹¹ 1852--1931

359. Woodward, James David¹¹ 1854--1925

360. Woodward, John Marion¹¹ 1857--1936

362. Woodward, Thomas Jefferson¹¹ ca. 1861

8G Granddaughter:

308. Steele, Mary Ann¹¹ 1848--1870

309. Steele, Amanda¹¹ 1851

312. Steele, Rhoda¹¹ ca. 1859--1860

317. Steele, Maggie¹¹ 1874

318. Steele, Ada¹¹ ca. 1875

319. Steele, Velma¹¹ ca. 1877

321. Peters, Mary Frances¹¹ 1850

324. Peters, Margherita¹¹ 1856--1933

328. Avery, Estella M. A.¹¹

330. Steele, Dovie¹¹ ca. 1867

331. Steele, Adella Virge¹¹ ca. 1869--1891

333. Steele, Mae¹¹ ca. 1876

338. Woodward, Sarah¹¹ 1852

339. Woodward, Martha Adelia¹¹ ca. 1854

343. Woodward, Mary Savilla¹¹ 1868

344. Fulgham, J. Mary¹¹ ca. 1853

347. Steele, Nancy P.¹¹ 1857

349. Steele, Fannie¹¹ 1861--1923

350. Steele, Dovey W.¹¹ 1864--young

353. Steele, Mary Ella¹¹ 1872--1903

354. Steele, Alice Augusta¹¹ 1874--1947

357. Woodward, Louisa Ann¹¹ 1850

361. Woodward, Lucinda Jane/June¹¹ 1860

9G Grandchild:

454. Woodward, Stillborn¹²

455. Woodward, Stillborn¹²

9G Grandson:

370. Steele, Frank¹² 1915

371. Shows, Harrison¹² ca. 1868

373. Shows, Austin¹² ca. 1873

376. Peters, Infant Son¹² 1882--1882

377. Peters, Herman Brown¹² 1883--1946

379. Peters, Grover Cleveland¹² 1888--1957

380. Peters, William Leslie¹² 1891

381. Peters, George Monroe¹² 1893

383. Peters, James¹² 1898

384. Peters, Prince Edward¹² 1902

386. Ingram, Christopher Columbus¹² 1880--1944

387. Ingram, Joseph¹² ca. 1882

388. Ingram, Grover Cleveland¹² ca. 1884

391. Ingram, Dan¹² ca. 1890

395. Petty, Grady¹²

401. Steele, James Patrick¹², Jr.

403. Woodward, James F.¹² 1881--1948

407. Woodward, Tobie A.¹² 1895--1897

408. Woodward, Terrell Bryan¹² 1900

413. Horton, Richard H.¹² 1877--1962

414. Horton, Savilla¹²

415. Horton, Edward¹² 1886--1974

416. Horton, Morgan Petus¹² 1889--1960

422. Woodward, James Comer¹²

423. Ragland, Roscoe¹²

424. Ragland, Chesley¹²

425. Steele, Everett Alexander¹² 1882--1973

427. Steele, William Walter¹² 1888--1919

428. Steele, Grover Young¹² 1892--1922

430. Steele, Brady Stacy¹² 1879

432. Steele, George Harper¹² 1882--1974

434. Steele, Cross¹² 1891

437. Steele, Ezekiel Robert¹² 1892

438. Dockery, Cad¹²

444. Lollis, James C.¹² ca. 1871

445. Lollis, General Marion¹² ca. 1873

446. Lollis, William D.¹² ca. 1876

447. Lollis, John S.¹² ca. 1879

449. Woodward, Thomas Claude¹² 1882--infancy

456. Woodard, James Early¹² 1889--1959

460. Woodard, John Lyles¹² 1889--1973

461. Woodward, James Duke¹² 1891--1976

463. Woodard, George Monroe¹² 1896

464. Woodard, Eddie Lee¹² 1889--1961

468. Duncan, J. Gould¹² 1890--1928

9G Granddaughter:

363. Steele, Lela Bell¹² 1888--1972

364. Steele, Amy Rose¹² 1889--1964

365. Steele, Ruby Kate¹² 1893

366. Steele, Mamie¹² 1896--1960

367. Steele, Ollie Ruth¹² 1900--1973

368. Steele, Bessie Mae¹² 1905--1955

369. Steele, Dovie¹² 1907

372. Shows, Amazon¹² ca. 1870

374. Shows, Amanda¹² ca. 1877

375. Peters, Cleo Patra¹² 1880--1921

378. Peters, Fannie Melissa¹² 1886--1969

382. Peters, Mary Estella¹² 1895

385. Ingram, May¹²

389. Ingram, Margaret Susannah¹² ca. 1886--1968

390. Ingram, Daisy Beatrice¹² 1888--1926

392. Ingram, Bessie¹² ca. 1893

393. Ingram, Maude I.¹² ca. 1896

394. Petty, Ola¹² 1890--1967

396. Petty, Leta¹²

397. Cooper, Jessie Dean¹² 1906

398. Cooper, Mary¹² 1905

399. Steele, Elsie¹²

400. Steele, Daughter¹²

402. Woodward, Minnie Ophelia¹² 1878--1968

404. Woodward, Mary Emmerline¹² 1882

405. Woodward, Alice Virginia¹² 1885--1970

406. Woodward, Efie L.¹² 1889--1890

409. Horton, Carrie¹²

410. Horton, Zymenia¹²

411. Horton, Bev¹² 1873--1954

412. Horton, Margarette Pernecia¹² 1876

417. Horton, Ethel¹² 1893?

418. Woodward, Margaret Lee¹²

419. Woodward, Harrie¹²

420. Woodward, Bird Estella¹²

421. Woodward, Lola Savilla¹²

426. Steele, Muggie¹² 1884--1901

429. Steele, Ray¹² 1894

431. Steele, Ruby Stacy¹² 1881--1923

433. Steele, Anne¹² 1890

435. Steele, Lillie¹² 1896--1961

436. Steele, Katie¹² 1899

439. Dockery, Nell¹²

440. Dockery, Minnie Lee¹²

441. Dockery, Mary¹²

442. Lollis, Francis¹² ca. 1867

443. Lollis, Josephine¹² ca. 1869

448. Lollis, Alberta/Alice Cordelia¹² ca. 1887

450. Woodard, Effie Mae¹² 1866--1918

451. Woodard, Leila Jane¹² 1888--1971

452. Woodard, Minnie Lee¹² 1892?--1991

453. Woodard, Willie Ethel¹² 1894

457. Woodard, Mamie R.¹² 1882--1883

458. Woodard, Ollie Lou¹² 1884--1963

459. Woodard, Bessie Florence¹² 1886--1977

462. Woodard, Iva Myrtice¹² 1894--1972

465. Duncan, Deana Bell¹² 1887--1990

466. Duncan, Della¹² ca. 1888--bef. 1900

467. Duncan, Willie¹² ca. 1889--bef. 1900

Preface

January 3, 2007

My Dear Children and Grandchildren,

This letter has been in the making for a long time, some twenty years, as I needed to accumulate information and then verify it as fact before putting in print for publication. It has taken me several years to feel comfortable with my research. I started this letter on the first day of 1995, and I am very much aware of the passage of time, since I will mark my eighty-seventh birthday in just ten days. It is now six years since the beginning of a new century and a new millennium, and if I am ever to finish this, I must stop doing all the little extraneous social things that I so enjoy and get back to achieving some of my life's dreams. This letter and finishing this book is one of them.

Today you may not have time, nor care much for my ponderings, and anytime you are bored please put this letter and book aside. Perhaps one day when you are in your dotage and grow philosophical, you may bring it out and try again. As has been said by wiser heads than mine, to know yourself is to know something of your past.

My children would probably ask, Mother, is this going to be a long story? My answer to you is, Yes, it is going to be a long story. Because you have been taught that you must respect your elders, I ask you to allow me to tell you some of the stories out of my past and about the paths of other generations who left their footprints for you to discover and follow.

The 21st century is already wallowing in the dark shadows of the Iraqi War, which flies in the face of all that I have learned and felt about the history of our country. When I was your age, our country and our ancestors had been engaged in the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Mexican American War, World War I, and World War II. My generation, dubbed by many as The Greatest Generation, had been massively engaged in World War II, and my feelings about war and the benefits thereof are prejudiced by my experiences of that time and the time since. As we enter the seventh year of the new millennia, it staggers my powers of mind to recall the events of the 20th that I have experienced and know about.

I was born in the early days of 1920 in rural Alabama, and as I review my life, I become more aware of the short distance of my life between the death of my great-grandfather, James Polk Woodward, and my birth. He died at the age of 34 in 1864, a span of 56 years between us, his life 30 years less than mine at my present age of 86. The influences of the Civil War years were still very much present when I was born, for my grandfather, a war orphan, had reached adulthood and started anew a life in Alabama interrupted by the Civil War and ultimately ending during the war's last days. The devastation left by the war was witnessed by my grandfather's generation and the rebuilding of the South was cast upon their lives and the lives of their children, including my own father, John Lyles Woodard.

The changes I have experienced in my lifetime include the onslaught of the cotton boll, the death of the cotton economy in the South, the life and death of the share-cropper and his entry into farm ownership, and the rise of saw mills as harvesting the Virgin pine and hardwood forests provided timber workers a day's work and a day's pay and another form of economic livelihood. This was the world I was born into, and you will learn more of this as my story moves forward.

When the Great Depression hit the rural South, cash was the least available commodity, and the farm economy provided a subsistence level for millions of otherwise middle class farmers. The orphans of the Civil War and their children were well prepared to meet the needs of the times as they shared what they had and worked daily to feed and clothe their children, send them to school, and hold onto their land, the only wealth they had.

Marginal growth of cotton was succeeded by corn and feed crops for slowly emerging trial-by-error dairy and cattle markets, diversification of soy bean farming, haying, poultry farming for the food market, egg laying operations, and truck and peanut farming. Conservation measures to prevent soil erosion were promoted by economic policies of the Roosevelt years.

The surging immigration and population in our country; expansion of the United States westward; the continuing development of agriculture and industry; the human struggles and victories as well as defeats; the development of the automobile and the airplane and the attendant impact on our mobility; the development of public education; the Great Depression; the Roosevelt years of Federal Government growth, and the attendant disempowerment of the States and their surrender for the sake of Federal dollars; involvement in seven conflicts of war on foreign soils; the rise and weakening of the Great Society of Lyndon Johnson; the Civil Rights Movement led by Martin Luther King; the Roaring Twenties and its counterpart at the end of the century; the Reagan Revolution; and George Bush's New World Order are all part of this epoch. The results of many of these events are still to be played out on the stage of history. Many of them will be like blips on a TV screen, others will continue to be part of the ongoing lives of your and future generations. It is my hope that you will fulfill your part with honesty, integrity, and hard work, as did your forebears that I shall tell you about.

We are now being challenged to find peace as a solution to world issues instead of war, as has been the pattern of the past. Wouldn't it be wonderful to dream that the 21st century would become the century of peace instead of a century of war? Does it really become us as individuals and as a nation to be portrayed as the gunslingers of the world in defense of our constitutional rights? Possibly the most important and most unheeded words I remember after World War II were those of Dwight D. Eisenhower on his departure from the office of the President of the United States when he warned us against being taken over by the Industrial Military Complex. Failure to heed this, in my opinion, sowed the seeds of the deficits of government, which threaten now to overwhelm us. Yet, we must be vigilant against dictators who would rob people of their basic human rights, as we witnessed at the end of World War II with the devastation wrought upon the Jewish people in the holocaust and the purges of Stalin. At the present there is Saddam Hussein in Iraq who is worrisome and the great awakening of China to a new century, where oppression must be watched as masses try to find a way to harness the culture of the past under the aegis of a controlling regime.

Part of my story will be in the form of a personal letter to you, my children, and grandchildren. Part will be in the narrative history of our family. Some of the story will be genealogical and will trace the vital statistics and personal lives as I have been able to piece them together. Other parts will be historical, which will place your ancestors in the times and places they lived. Sometimes I will venture into the realm of imagination to carry you back to a time that reflects the eras your ancestors lived.

Much of this is written from my own memory, and may vary in some instances from the memory of others who may have been in the same place at the same time. I remember it from my perspective, they from theirs. I have no quarrel with theirs and hope they have none with mine. Where I have been unsure of my memory I have tried to compare it with others or to back up my memory with facts from records.

Much of this story is based on research I have done as I trudged through cemeteries on beautiful spring days to the song of a thrush; in summer with heat so stifling and hot that even the snakes who found comfort curled on dew-cooled headstones had long since crawled to the shade of the nearby forest; in autumn amid the golden light between shadows, reflecting the burnished leaves of oak and sweet gum trees; and on winter days, soggy and wet with rain that turns Alabama red clay to a gooey-goo that clings to the soles of shoes, staining the grass and gravel as one tries to leave it behind.

I have enjoyed every moment of these times, reaching into the mysteries of the past, of the people