USA > West Virginia > Encyclopedia of contemporary biography of West Virginia. Including reference articles on the industrial resources of the state, etc., etc. > Part 15
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ment and keeping at bay the trained troops of Tarlton and Cornwallis, and such as elicited the encomiums of their distinguished general. Shortly after the occurrence before mentioned, he with others of his company was transferred to the division of the army then in Virginia, when he returned still acting in the capacity of Sergeant to the company to which he was then attached; having joined the division of the army then in Virginia under General Wayne, (the Marquis de Lafayette holding the supreme com- mand) he was in July of the same year present at the celebrated action of Jamestown, when the Americans, owing to a misapprehension of the Marquis, with a great disparity of numbers, encountered the whole British army under Lord Cornwallis; the misapprehension consisted in his supposing that the main force of the enemy had crossed the river, and that only a detach- ment remained on the side, when the attack was commenced; the mistake, however, was dis- covered after considerable slaughter on both sides, and the American forces were orderly conducted to a place of safety. After the last- named event, Colonel Woods marched with a portion of the army to Amelia County; while there and in camp, he was entirely prostrated with a disease, then greatly prevalent, and after remaining for two months, received an honora- ble discharge from under the hand of Brig .- Gen. William Campbell; and in consequence of his feebleness, one of the soldiers was ordered to wait upon and accompany him to his home; he was prevented from accompanying the army to Yorktown, where the surrender of Cornwallis in the following month, (October) to the allied forces, in effect closed our great Revolutionary struggle for independence. Thus did Colonel Woods, while comparatively a youth, volunteer his services for the freedom of his country from the yoke of British tyranny. After the close of the Revolutionary war, having married, he re- moved to the western part of the State, settled in Ohio County-the whole of northwestern Virginia was then a frontier settlement, sub- ject to the constant incursions and murderous depredations of the Indians-he cast in his lot among the inhabitants, and contributed his aid for years, not only here, but in the neighboring State of Ohio, to protect the defenceless against the barbarous attacks of the savages. In the
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war with the Indians, he served in almost every grade of office from a sergeant to a field officer. Colonel Woods led an active life, and spent a number of his earlier years as a public surveyor, in surveying the lands in this district of the State. A few years after his removal to the West, he purchased the farm, within two miles of the present city of Wheeling, upon which he had lived for fifty years, and upon which he died. Long connected with the scenes and pursuits of a life in the country, nothing could induce him to remove to town. In the year 1788, he was chosen a delegate from Ohio County to the Vir- ginia convention, called by the people for the purpose of deliberating on the propriety of adopting the present Federal Constitution, which was then submitted to the State for their consideration ; he immediately repaired to Rich- mond, and took his seat as a member of that body; he witnessed the mighty display of elo- quence and patriotism, then elicited by the con- flict of great minds, engaged upon a subject of the most momentous importance to the coun- try. The debates of the convention, containing the speeches of Madison, Henry, Mason, and others, still form valuable comments upon the Constitution of the United States. Colonel Woods gave his aid and his vote in favor of its adoption and long lived to realize the blessings of its practical operation, and to approve of the course which he then pursued; he may possibly have been the last surviving member of that distinguished body. He subsequently served his country at intervals for several years as a member of the Legislature of Virginia. He enjoyed a personal acquaintance with many of the distinguished fathers of our country, and many years after the occurrence had the pleas- ure of meeting and conversing with the illustri- ous Lafayette upon the disastrous scenes of Jamestown, in which they both had personally engaged. Colonel Woods was early commis- sioned a Magistrate of Ohio County, and for a long time preceding his death, was the presid- ing Justice of the County Court. During the war of 1812, when Virginia was called upon for her quota of troops, acting under his commission of Colonel of the Fourth Regiment of Virginia militia, he organized and mustered into service; and in obedience to orders, commenced his march to the place of rendezvous. After ad-
vancing some seventy or eighty miles, his orders were countermanded, the government in the mean time being determined upon a treaty of peace, and the soldiers were disbanded and re- turned to their homes .* Colonel Woods returned to his farm, and by the gradual advance of prop- erty, purchased by him in early times, became possessed of an ample estate. A few years after the establishment of the North Western Bank of Virginia, he was chosen to the presidency of that institution, which office he held for upward of twenty successive years, until his death. He acted for several years (until his resigna- tion) as Pension Agent, or almoner of the gov- ernment to many surviving soldiers of the Rev- olution, to whose comfort and support he often contributed from his own means. His political principles were formed with the formation of our government; and believing the principles and views of national policy advocated by the great Whig party of the present day to be in accordance with those of the wise and patriotic founders of our institutions, he always gave that party his cordial support. He was truly a Virginian and one attached to the soil and in- stitutions of his native State; hospitable and kind in his residence, and liberal to all who stood in need. He was a man of enlarged intel- ligence and close observation, and employed much of his time, especially in later years, in acquiring the knowledge furnished by the stand- ard works and publications of the day. In his private character, in all his transactions with men, and in all his public trusts, he maintained throughout his life an unblemished reputation for the strictest integrity. Of a cheerful and communicative disposition, he was courteous and affable in all his intercourse with his fel- low-men. He was temperate and regular in all the habits of his life, and perhaps for more than fifty years, the morning sun never found him in
* Hon. J. J. Woods has a printed list of the Virginia Mi- litia, being the result of a law passed by the General Assem- bly, January 28, 1804, "to reduce into one " the several acts governing the militia of the State and completing a full and revised statement of the force, giving every regiment and company with the names of commissioned officers. Colonel Woods, of the Fourth Regiment of Ohio County Militia, was in the Tenth Brigade, Brig .- Gen. Benj. Briggs commanding. The date of his commission was December 5, 1809. The Tenth Brigade belonged to the Third Division, Maj .- Gen. John Smith, of Frederick, commanding. This large printed sheet, making several folios, is dated Richmond, June 26, 1812.
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CONTEMPORARY BIOGRAPHY OF WEST VIRGINIA.
his bed. He maintained throughout his life, at home and abroad, the republican style and sim- plicity of the times in which he was born and reared. It is not pretended in a sketch like this, to present anything in detail, but simply to notice some of the prominent acts and features in the life and character of the departed; while the unobtrusive virtues of his private life will be long felt and remembered by those who were intimately associated with him. But he has gone from among us, gone from the scenes and associations with which he had been so long conversant and usefully employed. His last end was peace; he died in the faith, sustained by the hopes of the Christian religion."
" NORTH WESTERN BANK OF VIRGINIA, Main St., Wheeling.
ARCH. WOODS, President, J. LIST, Cashier.
DIRECTORS.
A Woods W W Shriver G W Thompson
Z Jacob O W Mitchell Thos Johnston
Thos Paull D Steenrod A F Woods
Meeting on Thursday of each week."
The foregoing is a copy of the standing notice of the bank as it appeared in the Times and Advertiser at the time of Colonel Wood's death. The names were printed without either periods or commas. There was no change made until Friday, December 25, when the name of T. Johnston appeared at the head of the list in place of A. Woods and T. Sweeney in the place of T. Johnston. The name of Arch. Woods as President therefore continued in print from the time of his death to December 25, but whether the changes appearing in the advertisement on that day had been made at the first bank meet- ing following his death (October 29) or on December 24, the Thursday preceding Christ- mas Day, there is no evidence in the Times to determine. For a period, then, of twenty years Colonel Woods' name had appeared unbrokenly as the President of the bank, and on December 25, 1846, it gave place to that of his successor. There was no "local" mention made whatever either to the deceased President or to the bank management. Yet this is not so strange, after all, considering what a sleepy affair the Times and Advertiser was compared with Wheeling papers of to-day. The best part of the Times was taken up with advertisements of " panaceas,"
" health restorers,"" consolidated lotteries," etc., in astonishing profusion, together with every conceivable business advertisement, and all mixed together in the most reckless arrange- ment. The average amount of reading matter in the Daily Times (and the weeklies would be about the same) was about five columns on the second page, out of a total of twenty-eight col- umns. News of the Government at Washing- ton, the messages of President and Governor, speeches of Webster, etc., were given in full, and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was al- ways fully reported (it enables the reader to realize what a comparatively venerable institu- tion it is as he glances over the solid columns of reports and meetings held forty-six years ago!). But Wheeling local news-there was none printed outside of paid advertisements of busi- ness firms. It is therefore in order that no men- tion was made of Colonel Woods' death, and there was not even so much as an advertise- ment notice of the resolutions of condolence passed, if there were any, as most probably there were, at the time of the bank meeting fol- lowing his death. His unknown Boswell, who may have been a bank official, could have given much more that we should like to have known about Colonel Woods-about his brothers, his wife and numerous family-a deficiency of state- ment which he alludes to in closing his friendly tribute; but we shall not have a word of fault- finding to add, and we regret that his name as biographer is not known to us. The writer has had access to a package of historical documents that belonged to Colonel Woods which have come into the possession of his grandson, Hon. J. J. Woods. Several have been copied and added as foot-notes, being accurate verifications of the obituary .* The autograph of Colonel Woods is
*"To Col. Commandant of Ohio County Militia.
"I congratulate you and my country on the restoration of an honorable peace."
General Jackson afterward became a United States Judge and resided in Clarksburg. Both in military legislation and civil life he was a highly representative man .- (EDITOR.)
Adjutant-General Chirboone W. Gooch sent out "General Orders" under date of Richmond, February 20, 1815, declar- ing that "Peace between the United States and Great Britain having been announced, the necessity for carrying into effect the law of the last session of the General Assembly 'autho- rizing the raising of a Regular Force for the defence of the State,' no longer exists. The Courts Marshal of the several Regiments are, therefore, advised to adjourn and not reas- semble until further orders." The paper concludes with a
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taken from a private letter addressed to "The Hon. Daniel Sheffey, a member of Congress, Washington City." This letter bears date 28th of March, 1812. The writing is noticeable for neatness and the lines are as straight as if ruled paper had been used instead of plain; while the punctuation is very good. The signature is rather crowded in the lower corner of the sheet, and is smaller than he usually signed bank paper and contracts, but identical as to style. The letter had been sealed, but probably not sent, or else a copy had been made for the mail, as no marks of transmission are visible; possibly it may have been returned by Mr. Sheffey, but more likely it is the original draft, as Colonel Woods kept hand-made copies of all his letters. The Rev. Edgar Woods, of the Presbyterian Church, living at Charlottesville, Va., is a cousin of Hon. J. J. Woods, and on August 5, 1880, wrote him at considerable length upon the sub- ject of family history. These extracts are se- lected as of more or less public interest bearing upon the early life and first settlement of Col- onel Woods and his brothers in Ohio County : "Now I will tell you what I know, chiefly from what Grandfather Woods told me; some items also came from Grandmother Woods. You are right-the names of our great-grandfather and
patriotic outburst commemorative of the fact that "There has been no instance to which the voice of Virginia has been raised to secure any exclusive advantage to herself. There has been no call upon her to make a sacrifice of State inter- est for the preservation of National Character or Rights, which she has not obeyed." ...
" BROOKS COURT HOUSE, 11th Augt, 1814.
"SIR: I have to request you to forward me as soon as possi- ble the strength of your Regiment, the names of commis- sioned officers therein and dates of their commissions-in this you will be guided by the blank forms already furnished by Gen'l Briggs. .
"I cannot forward to you the orders for detailing your quota of men under the general orders of the 20th July last, until I receive your return.
"I am, dear sir, with esteem, your most obedt,
" JOHN CONNELL, " Col. Comdt. roth B. V. M.
"Col. Arch'd Woods,
"4 Regiment V. M."
" WASHINGTON, Feb'y 16th, 1815.
"I have the pleasure to inform you that by an order from the Secretary of War dated on this day, I am instructed to communicate that the Militia recently ordered to march from the toth and 20th Brigades of Virginia Militia are dis- charged from a compliance with the said orders.
"I have the honor to be your most obt.,
"J. G. JACKSON, " Br. Gen'l."
mother were Andrew and Martha. I know noth- ing of the latter. Andrew was born in Pennsyl- vania and removed from there with his father's family to Albemarle County, Va. He received a liberal education and designed entering the Presbyterian ministry, but the failure of his health prevented it. He became a farmer, owned a farm in the western part of this county, near the base of the Blue Ridge, sold it in 1766 (the deed of sale is on record in Charlottesville), and moved over to Botetourt County. He had born in this county four (4) sons, and I don't know how many daughters. The daughters of the family I know nothing definitely about. The sons were in order of age, James, Robert, Andrew, and Archibald. When the three first were born I don't know. Archibald was born in 1764, and was therefore two years old on the re- moval to Botetourt. The old people died in Botetourt, when, I don't know. I see from your letter Andrew was living as late as 1787 and Martha as late as 1793. James the eldest son also died in Botetourt, I think I heard Grandma Woods say, very suddenly, if I am not mistaken, while sitting at the table, and, if I am not also mistaken, before his father. I also heard her say that both Andrew and his son James acted as ruling elders in the Presbyterian Church in Botetourt. . Robert the second son of An- drew, about the close of the Revolutionary War received the appointment of surveyor of Ohio County, which at that time embraced the whole northwestern corner of the State. He conse- quently moved to Wheeling, whither also, either at the time or shortly afterward, he took his brother Andrew as his assistant. Robert was the father of Robert and Andrew P. Woods. Andrew married a Mitchell, I think, and was the father of Andrew (the father of Brison and Luther Woods). Samuel, moved first to Ohio, then to Missouri, and then to California, where his family now live. Robert, lived near Urbana, Ohio, and may be living yet, and Alfred, who lived so long at West Wheeling is now, I believe, in Wheeling. Archibald joined the Revolutionary Army at about six- teen, at the time Cornwallis invaded Virginia from the South. Lafayette was commanding in Virginia and Campbell was the name of his colo- nel. In the lower portion of the State, where his part of the troops were stationed, he fell sick
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with dysentery, which prevailed in the army largely, and another soldier was detailed to take him home. He lay very sick for a long time, and when he finally recovered he was re- garded by his friends as having the consump- tion. He made a journey to Kentucky for his health, going in company of a kinsman (how near I know not) named Greene Woods, who permanently settled there. Archibald returned to Virginia, but had a strong yearning for Ken- tucky. Shortly after he joined his two brothers at Wheeling, going out there somewhere about 1784 or 5. He was elected to the Constitutional Convention with Ebenezer Zane in 1788, and it was always one of his favorite topics to descant on the abilities and merits of the distinguished men who were members of that Convention. Though he voted against Patrick Henry, yet he was the great object of his admiration, his beau ideal of an orator. He was married about that year, or the next, to Ann Pogue. . . . The last time I saw dear old Grandmother Woods I questioned her in regard to these points, but unhappily it was too late, her hardness of hear- ing and her failure of memory rendered my inquiries entirely in vain. I mentioned that Grandfather had a strong yearning for Kentucky after going thither in his youth. This feeling continued strong long after he had attained suc- cess near Wheeling. He first lived up on your father's farm on Short Creek, built the house where your father now lives about 1800, and moved there, and as late as 1805, determined to move back to Kentucky. A flat boat was built, things were getting in readiness for the embar- kation, when in the fall of that year, a freshet occurred, which was long known as the 'Pump- kin Flood' and which carried off the boat and that providential interference effectually put an end to the design." . Colonel Woods was without doubt a dominant personage in the pol- itics of his time-first as a Federalist and then Whig up to his death. He left among his effects a stout hardwood cane, having a large silver handle. Upon one side is engraved in the silver a log cabin, on the other a cider barrel. This cane very likely was presented by a political association during the picturesque and famous "log-cabin-and-hard-cider" Presidential cam- paign of Gen. William Henry Harrison, in 1844.
JOSEPH J. WOODS.
HON. JOSEPH JACOB WOODS (grandson of the foregoing), Speaker of the West Vir- ginia House of Delegates in 1883 and again in 1889, and ex-State Senator, was born in Ohio County, W. Va., on December 15, 1851. He is descended from an old Virginia family of his- torical achievements during the days of the Revolution, and for several generations directly identified with the history and development of Ohio County. A great-grandfather of our sub- ject, Andrew Woods, was Sheriff of Botetourt County, Va., under a commission bearing date October 18, 1777, signed by Patrick Henry. This interesting and very valuable historical document Mr. Woods happily retains possession of, and highly prizes it as an heirloom of the family .* Mr. Woods' grandfather, Col. Archi- bald Woods, was a native of Albemarle County, Va., and entered the Continental army when a mere boy, toward the close of the Revolution- ary War, and served until peace was gained. About the year 1790, he with two brothers- Andrew and Robert-came to the Ohio Valley, then the "Western frontier," and the Colonel settled on land two miles east of the site of the city of Wheeling; the brothers also settled with- in the present bounds of Ohio County (see " His- tory of Upper Ohio Valley"). Col. Ebenezer Zane laid out the site of Wheeling in town lots in 1793; and by act of Assembly passed Decem- ber 25, 1795, it was established a town with eight trustees, among whom were Andrew Woods, Archibald Woods, and Robert Woods. Thus the three brothers were identified with the very early history of Wheeling; and Col. Archibald
* This yellow parchment is well preserved, the printing very clear and bright. It is dated 18th day of October, 1777, and signed P. Henry, Jr. An uncle of the Governor was of the same name, hence the junior, which was observed until the uncle's death. The commission called for a bond of £500 with two sureties for the office of Sheriff and £1,000 for the office of Collector of the public revenue. The document meas- ures 8x12, the printing being lengthwise. In a grant of land or patent issued to Andrew Woods in 1785, Governor Henry signed P. Henry, indicating that his uncle had died since 1777. There are also two patents issued to Andrew Woods by Lord Dunmore, both under date of December 7, 1774. They begin with "George the Third by the Grace of God of Great Britain, France, and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith," etc. The name of " Dunmore" in large uniform let- ters is at the bottom of the parchments. There is also a pa- tent to Andrew Woods issued by Lieut .- Gov. Beverly Ran- dolph, dated September 6, 1787.
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Woods ultimately became a leading citizen and banker .* The act of incorporation of the famous North Western Bank of Virginia was passed in February, 1817, and among the Commissioners appointed for receiving subscriptions to the stock in Wheeling and vicinity was Archibald Woods. The books for receiving subscriptions were to be opened in the following November, and it is supposed that the bank began business early in 1818. Noah Zane was first President, and the first Cashier was Thomas Woods, a son
* The mantle of romance fell upon the shoulders of Andrew Woods in this way. He married the childless widow of Major Samuel McColloch (the General Putnam of the South), who was killed and horribly mutilated on July 30, 1782, near Girty's Point. He and his brother John were on a scouting tour and were surprised by the Indians, who killed the Major on the first fire. John escaped on the Major's horse, his own having gone down in the same volley. The Indians scalped and mutilated the great fighter, and ate of his heart to gain some of his wonderful courage. The following extract from a letter of Dr. J. C. Hupp, in the Sunday Leader of Wheeling, is valuable and interesting history. It is dated October 14, 1877 : "Several years after the murder of her husband, Mrs. Mary McColloch married Andrew Woods, a brother of the late Archie Woods. By this marriage she had three sons, Andrew, Samuel, and Alfred, and three daughters. Jane, the eldest daughter, became the wife of the late Rev. James Hoge, D.D., of Columbus, Ohio; Margaret, the second daugh- ter, married the late Dr. Martin Luther Todd, of Belmont County, Ohio ; Mary A. E., the youngest daughter, became the wife of Dr. Archibald S. Todd, of Wheeling, W. Va. One of her sons, Alfred Woods, now of Bellaire, Ohio, and one son-in-law, Dr. A. S. Todd, of Wheeling, still survive. They having seen the pioneer heroes and heroines of their youth, one by one, gathered to their fathers, now stand the last of a race who learned from their lips those thrilling inci- dents of pioneer life, and from whom the writer received the facts herein chronicled. It is worthy of mention that Mrs. Woods sacredly kept possession of the unfaltering old war-horse that carried Major McColloch safely over the prec- ipice at the brow of Wheeling hill, in his celebrated 'leap' for life when hemmed in by the Indians; and that by her di- rections the noble old steed was very tenderly cared for so long as he lived, and when he died he was honored with a decent burial upon the McColloch farm, on the waters of Short Creek. Mrs. Woods, for a series of years, resided in a two-story wooden house which stood at the corner of what is now known as Fourteenth and Chapline Streets, near the spot where now stands the residence of A. Allen Howell, Esq. (since transformed into the Fort Henry Club House). Although for eighteen years before her death she was af- flicted with paralysis, there remained with her a clear and active intellect. She died February 19, 1826, aged nearly sixty-six years. And what is a remarkable coincidence, An- drew Woods, her husband, died on the same day of the same month, in the year 1831, in the seventy-third year of his age. In the year 1851 the remains of Andrew Woods and those of his wife, Mrs. Mary Mitchell McColloch Woods, together with the remains of all others there buried, were removed by order of the City Council from their resting-place in the 'old graveyard' near the spot where stands the State Capi- tol, in the city of Wheeling (now the City Building). Their ashes rest in the family burying-grounds of Dr. A. S. Todd, in the Wheeling Peninsula Cemetery."
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