Do you go back and review old research? I do now, regularly, because there are so many new clues available online that can be researched and proven (or disproved) because of professionally researched and published articles in scholarly journals.
Recently, I decided to take a new look at my husband’s Woodruff line, which already extended back many generations. There are many thousands of Woodruff descendants today and his line took an unusual path through time – from England to Connecticut/New York to New Jersey to the Carolinas and finally to Kentucky before the surname was lost in the family tree.
Added to that, he has a triple descent through this family so there are a lot of Woodruffs to follow!
Many Woodruff descendants are lucky to have access to several early Woodruff family histories to guide their current research.
My hubby’s line :
John Woodruff (1574-1611) = Elizabeth Cartwright
John Woodruff & Ann (MNU)
John Woodruff the Younger = Hannah Newton
Joseph Woodruff – Hannah Ward
Deacon John Woodruff = Eleanor Donnington
Moses Woodruff = Phebe Marsh
Jennett Woodruff = Samuel Woodruff
Joseph Woodruff = Mary Woodruff
Altezara Jane Woodruff – Hampton Brasher
Emsley Harrison Brasher = Mary Woosley Perkins
Joseph Henry Brasher = Minnie Mae Williams
Pearl Lillian Brasher = Earl Marcus Stufflebean
Edward Earl Stufflebean = Ruby Jewel Sturgell
David Stufflebean
Notice, first, the straight Woodruff line descending down to Altezara Jane Woodruff. That is the first Woodruff line of my husband’s. Next, look at her grandparents – Jennett and Samuel Woodruff, both Woodruffs by birth. That’s a second Woodruff line. Now, look at Altezara’s parents – Joseph and Mary Woodruff. That’s a third Woodruff line in the mix since her mother was also a Woodruff by birth.
In addition to reviewing Woodruff research, there has been further information published that extends Hannah (Newton) Woodruff’s line back a couple more generations and also identifies the family’s English home in the early 1600s.
Therefore, this Woodruff project will proceed in several different directions – back in time through the Newtons, straight up and down through time in Altezara’s father’s line and then branching off twice to attempt to put together all the puzzle pieces and determine just how the Woodruff branches were all related.
It will be interesting with all the new AI help, like FamilySearch’s full-text search, to see if any new real clues emerge to sort out a few difficult portions of the family tree.
The first few posts in the series will examine proof of the ancestral lines of Hannah Newton, wife of John Woodruff the Younger.