The month is ending, but there are so many Woodruff lines that, although Joseph and Mary (Woodruff) Woodruff, our next chronological generation, were the parents of the child who daughtered the name out of my husband’s family tree, there will be some loose ends to tie up before my current research on this family comes to a close. In fact, the Woodruffs will spillover into early October!
The origins of Samuel Woodruff, born c1761, place unknown, are currently a mystery. However, this man is the father of Mary Woodruff who married Joseph Woodruff, who himself was the son of another Samuel born c1762 who married Jennet Woodruff, daughter of Moses Woodruff!
Are you confused yet?
The name of the wife of the mystery Samuel Woodruff is unproven, but theorized to have been Mary Dinsmore. That supposition – which is all it is – comes about because Samuel’s son, David Woodruff, named a son Dinsmore Woodruff and, of course, Samuel’s oldest known daughter was named Mary. Hence, people have decided his wife was Mary Dinsmore. That may or may not be. As already said, the name of his wife is unproven.
What is probably certain, though, is that Samuel Woodruff married at least twice.
Let’s follow the records he created in his lifetime.
In 1810, this appears to be Samuel Woodruff living in Spartanburg County, South Carolina:
We have one male over 45 (Samuel), so born no later than 1764, one female, also over 45 (his unknown wife) so born no later than 1764.
Next, we have a female, 16-25, who I believe is his daughter Mary Woodruff, born in the 1780s and slightly older than her husband, Joseph. It appears Joseph and Mary married c1811, which is just about the time when Samuel headed to Hopkins County, Kentucky. In 1850, the census taker recorded her birth year as c1782, but I think being unmarried at her age in 1810, the family might have shaved a few years off Mary’s birth year. Or, her age might be slightly too old as reported in 1850.
There is one male, 16-25 (son David, born c1789), a second male, 16-25 (son John, born c1794), male under 10 (son Hiram, born c1806), male under 10, male under 10 (son Robert, born c1809) and female under 10 (daughter Virginia, born c1800).
That leaves one male under 10 who could possibly have died young.
In 1820, Hopkins County, Kentucky, we have:
In 1820, there is an adult male, an adult female and two children at home who are unidentified.
Male over 45 – Samuel Woodruff
Male over 45
Female over 45 – Unknown Wife
Female 26-44
Male 16-18 [16-25] [born 1802-1804]
Male 10-15 [born 1805-1810] Hiram, born c1805
Male 10-15 [born 1805-1810] Robert, born c1809
Male under 10 [born 1811-1820]
Female under 10 [born 1811-1820] Jane, born c1812
Female under 10 [born 1811-1820] Mildred, born c1819
By 1830, the Woodruff family had been long settled in Hopkins County, Kentucky. Notice that the female over 45 in 1810 is gone fro the household and the eldest female is now 40-49, indicating a second marriage for Samuel:
The family configuration is now:
Male, 60-69 – Samuel Woodruff [born 1751-1760]
Female, 40-49 – Unknown Wife [born 1771-1780]
Female, 20-29 – [born 1801-1810]
Male, 20-29 [born 1801-1810] Robert, born c1809
Male, 15-19 [born 1811-1815]
Female, 10-14 [born 1815-1820] Mildred, born c1819
Female, 5-9 [born 1821-1825] Parthenia, born c1824
Female, 5-9 [born 1821-1825] Sarah, born c1825
Female, under 5 [born 1826-1830] = Mildred, born c1819
Male, under 5 [born 1826-1830]
Since Samuel apparently remarried, this appears to be a blended family.
Samuel also makes an early appearance in the land and tax records in Hopkins County. Samuel Woodruff first appears on the 1812 tax list, along with David Woodruff, his son, both taxed with no land. They are also found in 1813, with the 1814 list illegible, and, by 1815, Samuel is shown with 140 acres of land in the name of George Cornwell. He seemed to like where he lived because in 1816, George Cornwell sold 140 acres of land on the Tradewater River to Samuel Woodruff {Deed Book 1:341]. In 1819, Samuel added to his land holdings when Adam Smith and wife sold him a further 52 acres of land. [Deed Book 3:11]
That totals 192 acres of land owned by Samuel Woodruff.
Most of the tax lists are clear and easy to read. However, there are some tops and bottoms of pages that are torn or illegible. Samuel Woodruff has been found in all the extant tax lists of Hopkins County between 1812 and 1839 with the exceptions of 1823 and 1824, shown with anywhere from 184 acres to 145 to 130 acres to no land in 1837, 1838 and 1839.
Samuel Woodruff isn’t found in tax or census records in 1840. Furthermore, there is no male of his age living in the households of any of his children in Hopkins County. I think he died in late 1839 or before the census taker came around in 1840. I think his presumed second wife also died in the 1830s.
Unfortunately, Hopkins County had two courthouse fires, one in 1829 and one in 1864. Two of the record sets that appear to have burned are court minutes and probate records before 1848. Wills survived, but apparently not the probate books.
However, Samuel, in spite of not being on the tax list with any land, doesn’t appear in the land records selling any of it except on 25 January 1837 when he sold 80 acres to Thomas Robinson of Caldwell County, Kentucky, who was married to Nancy Woodruff. More on this couple in a minute. Samuel signed with his mark Samuel (SW) Woodruff and no wife released dower. His second wife must have died between the 1830 census and late 1836. Witnesses were Samuel’s son, David Woodruff, and David’s son, Dinsmore Woodruff. The deed was recorded on 29 May 1837.
That leaves about 112 acres of Samuel’s land that is unaccounted for. More to come on that below in this post.
There are a couple of records that help us out, at least partly, in determining more about the life and family of Samuel Woodruff.
Will Book 5, pages 365-367 provide an inventory of the estate of Samuel Woodruff, deceased. It is dated 11 November 1844. John Woodruff was the administrator and the estate was appraised by James L. Day, Benjamin Davis and James Wright. For whatever reason, it was not produced and recorded in court until the April 1847 session. Not total was provided in the inventory, but it was valued at just under $60.00, worth around $2000 in today’s dollars.
Much more help was provided in the second document filed in the land deeds. [Deed Book 14:176-178] The Hopkins County Circuit Court ordered the sale of land owned by Samuel Woodruff, deceased, because it could not be equitably divided among the heirs, with the indenture entered into on 20 January 1849.
Unfortunately, while Samuel’s heirs are named, it doesn’t distinguish between children and grandchildren. They are named in this order, with my notes added:
John Ezell & Mildred, his wife [born c1819; married 1841]
Thomas Robertson & Nancy, his wife [born c1812; married 1837]
Joseph Woodruff and Polly, his wife [born c1780s]
John Keyser & Virginia his wife [bornc1800; married 1817]
Wilkinson Laffoon & Parthenia his wife [born c1824; married c1840]
John N. Laffoon and Sarah his wife [born c1830; married c1845]
Hiram Woodruff [born c1806]
John Woodruff [born c1794]
Robert Woodruff [born c1809]
Not so identified, but these last four names are the children of Samuel’s son, David [born c1789; died 1841 leaving a will naming these children:
Dinsmore Woodruff
William P. Woodruff
Israel Davis & Dicey his wife
Jane Woodruff
Some papers have been lost pertaining to this case because the land record mentions that land sold was in Exhibits 1 & 2 (which were original deeds from George Cornwell and Adam Smith to Samuel Woodruff), but land exempted from the sale was in Exhibits 3 & 4.
The land was finally sold on 4 September 1848 and “was supposed to contain 111 1/2 acres.” Remember, above, when I mentioned that about 112 acres of land was not accounted for in sales by Samuel? Well, this court ordered sale pretty much answers the question of what happened to it. Samuel’s son, John Woodruff, was the highest bidder and paid $151.00 with John Davis as his security.
Whatever items were in Exhibits 3 & 4, exempted from sale, were not explained, but Samuel’s land is accounted for.
From the above list of heirs, we can piece together the children of Samuel Woodruff – at least those surviving in the 1840s.
Children with Unknown Wife #1:
1. Mary, born c1785, South Carolina; died c1851, Hopkins County, Kentucky; married Joseph Woodruff, c1811
2. David, born c1789; died 1841, Hopkins County, Kentucky; married Elizabeth Jones, 16 August 1814, Hopkins County, Kentucky
3. John, born c1794; died before 23 January 1865, when B.D. Woodruff and Larkin Campbell qualified as his executors, Hopkins county, Kentucky; married Fanny Davis, 22 January 1818, Hopkins County, Kentucky
4. Virginia (Jenny/Jane), born c1800; died after 1860, probably Hopkins County, Kentucky; married John Keyser, 20 July 1817, Hopkins County, Kentucky
5. Hiram, born c1806; died 29 December 1865, Hopkins County, Kentucky; married Lydia Fox, c1829
6. Robert, born 28 August 1809; died 6 May 1885, Hopkins county, Kentucky; married (1) Sarah Davis, c1829 (2) Martha Page, 1 January 1855, Hopkins County, Kentucky
The remaining three heirs of Samuel had to be by a second wife, as his first wife would have been too old to have children when these were born:
7. Mildred, born c1819; died 4 September 1900, Hopkins County, Kentucky; married John A. Ezell, 11 May 1841, Hopkins County, Kentucky
8. Parthenia, born c1824; died 23 April 1891, Hopkins County, Kentucky; married Wilkinson Laffoon, c1840
9 Sarah Elizabeth, born c1829; died 17 January 1919, Hopkins County, Kentucky; married John Nash Laffoon, 8 September 1845, Hopkins County, Kentucky
I would love to know who the parents were of this Samuel Woodruff and/or learn the names of either of his wives. However, marriage records in Spartanburg County, South Carolina are sparse. I also have to wonder if the reason a second marriage isn’t found in Kentucky for Samuel has to do with the 1823 and 1824 yeas where he doesn’t appear on the tax list.
Could he possibly have buried his first wife back in South Carolina or, after her death at least, returned there to maRry his second bride?
If readers can share documents that add more details about this family, please leave a comment!