Henry Woodward and Elizabeth

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Husband Henry Woodward

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           Born: 22 Mar 1607 - England
     Christened: 
           Died: 7 Apr 1685 - Northampton, Hampshire Co., Ma
         Buried: 

       Marriage: 

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Wife Elizabeth

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           Born: 
     Christened: 
           Died: 13 Aug 1690 - Northampton, Hampshire Co., Ma
         Buried: 

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Children

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1 F Experience Woodward ¹

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           Born:  - Dorchester, Suffolk Co., Ma
     Christened: 
           Died: 
         Buried: 

         Spouse: Medad Pomeroy (      -      )
           Marr: 21 Nov 1661

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2 F Freedom Woodward ²

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           Born: 
     Christened: 1642 - Dorchester, Suffolk Co., Ma
           Died: 17 May 1681
         Buried: 

         Spouse: Jedediah Strong (1637-1733)
           Marr: 18 Nov 1662 2

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3 F Thankful Woodward ¹

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           Born: Abt 1643 - Dorchester, Suffolk Co., Ma
     Christened: 
           Died: 
         Buried: 

         Spouse: John Taylor (      -      ) 1
           Marr: 18 Dec 1662 1

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4 M John Woodward ¹

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           Born: 1649 - Dorchester, Suffolk Co., Ma
     Christened: 
           Died: Abt 1718 - Lebanon, New London Co., Ct
         Buried: 

         Spouse: Ann Dewey (      -      ) 1
           Marr: 18 May 1671 1

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General Notes: Husband - Henry Woodward

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The following account is from pages 125-28 of "The Genealogy of HERBERT CORNELIUS GRAVES" (Clara Edith Baker, 1963), which can be seen at http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=wu.89062881917;seq=7;view=1up. See the full article for sources and footnotes and a list of Henry's children.


Henry Woodward, born March 22, 1607, England; died April 7, 1685, Northampton, Mass.; married Elizabeth, who died Aug. 13, 1690 in Northampton, Mass.

Henry was the son of Thomas Woodward and the grandson of Hugh Woodward (born in 1531). The family lived in Bedfordshire and Upton, Buckingham County, England. Henry's father, Thomas Woodward, married Elizabeth Tysen in Childwell Parish, Lancaster, England May 23,1592 and they had five children. Two of their children, John and Henry, came to America.

Henry was a physician. He came to America from Much Worten, Lancashire, England with Rev. Richard Mather's company. They sailed on the ship James with Capt. Taylor, landing at Dorchester, Mass. Aug. 16, 1635.

Dorchester was first settled in 1630. The year 1636 was important in the history of the town because a large proportion of the first inhabitants left the town for a new settlement (Windsor) on the Connecticut River, and their places were filled by the Rev. Richard Mather and most of the 100 passengers who came with him from England.

Henry was made a freeman at Dorchester and was a member of the Dorchester Church.

"At a meeting of the selectmen of Dorchester 12:4:1657 Thomas Bird brought a note from Henry Woodward, constable, and demanded twenty shillings for a wolf that his son Samuel Greenway killed within our bounds the 5:1:1657, which we do order that they shall be paid the next town rate." It was a common thing to pay for several wolves killed in one year.

On Nov. 14, 1659, the selectmen of Dorchester "empowered William Clarke and Henry Woodward to serch and stake out a Farme of 1000 acres of land granted unto the town of Dorchester for the use of a schoole by the General Court" (granted at Boston, Oct. 18, 1659).

In 1659 Henry, with his wife and four children, moved to Northampton, Mass., where he and William Clarke (also from Dorchester) were granted home lots of 12 acres each. These lots, which were the largest granted by the town at that time, extended from the highway on the east to near Mill River on the west, and joined at or near the present locaton of the main building of Smith College. On June 1, 1659, the selectmen of Northampton were empowered to give "substantial citizens from Dorchester" (William Clarke, Henry Woodward and Henry Cunleife), a tract of about 100 acres of land in addition to their home lots.

Henry was many times placed upon committees of importance and wielded considerable influence as a citizen of worth and respectability. In the year 1660 he was one of the five townsmen of Northampton and one of the three Commissioners to end Small Claims. On March 24, 1661 at the first Court held at Northampton of which there is any record, he was chosen for the Jury. When the "Hampshire Troope of Horse" was founded in March 1663-4, he was chosen Quartermaster, and from that time he was often named on the records as "Quartermaster Mr. Woodward". He was a member of the first board of Tithingmen in Northampton, having been appointed by the selectmen and approved by the county court in March, 1678. Each of the six tithingmen were to take charge of inspecting ten or twelve families. In 1665 the county authorities made an agreement with him to entertain the Court, and he was granted a license to keep an ordinary and to sell liquors. This arrangement was continued unti 1681. Most of the Courts were undoubtedly held at his house during that time. In 1682 he was made constable. He built a mill (not the first).

Henry was one of the founders of the First Church of Northampton, founded June 18, 1661. Their minister, Rev. Eleazer Mather, was the son of Rev. Richard Mather of the Dorchester Church. Elizabeth was an original member, and Henry became one of the seven pillars of the church.

In spite of the fact that Henry was a man of good business capacity and largely engaged in town affairs, an authentic signature by his own hand has not been found. On his will he made his mark, and several other documents in the Probate Office are signed in the same way.

He "was killed in his grist-mill" at Northampton (by lightning it is said), April 17, 1685. His widow made her will the next month and died Aug. 13, 1690 at Northampton.

1 Clara Edith Baker, The Genealogy of Herbert Cornelius Graves, 1963 -- http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=wu.89062881917;seq=273;view=1up;num=125, pg 128.

2 Benjamin W. Dwight, History of the Descendants of Elder John Strong of Northampton, Mass, 1871, pg 769. Repository: http://books.google.com.