Page 10

Towns of Bloominggrove, Cornwall and Monroe

Page 10

WILLIAM S. WOODHULL.-This gentleman is a descendent of Richard Woodhull who appears to have first settled at Jamaica, on Long Island, about the year 1648, and removed to Setauket, then called Cromwell Bay, in 1656. The name was originally written Wodhull, and pronounced Odel or Odhull, and even to the present time (1847) several branches of the family are so called, which was owing, it is believed, to giving the W a Welsh pronunciation, which is equivalent to OO. It is said that the family from which he descended is very ancient, and may be traced to an individual who came to England from Normandy with William the Conquerer, in 1066.

He was born at Thenford, Northamptonshire, England, on the 13th Sept. 1620. His zeal in the cause of English liberty during the Protectorate, is supposed to have been the cause of his emigrating, as his situation in England would have been an unhappy one on the restoration of the monarchy.

The name of his wife was Deborah. He died in October 1690, leaving issue, Richard, Nathaniel and Deborah. Nathaniel died without issue, and Deborah married John Lawrence of Newtown.

Richard, the eldest son of the emigrant, was born 9th Oct., 1649, and married Temperance, daughter of Rev. Jonah Ford ham of Southampton. He died 18th Oct. 1699, leaving Issue, Richard, Nathaniel, John, Josiah, Dorothy and Temperance. Richard, the eldest, inherited the paternal estate at Setauket, and Nathaniel, from whom the family in this county descended, settled upon lands devised to him at Mastic. He married Sarah, daughter of Richard Smith, 2d of Smithtown, by whom he had issue, Hannah, Temperance, Nathaniel, Dorothy, Sarah, Richard, Ruth, Jesse, Juliana, Deborah and Ebenezer. He died 9th March 1760. Hannah married Mr. Strong of Bloominggrove, and her descendents are numerous. Nathaniel, horn Dec. 30th, 1722, inherited the paternal estate at Mastic. He was known as Gen. Nathaniel Woodhull, took an active part in the early efforts to resist British oppression, but was violently assaulted by a British officer near Jamaica, L. I., and died on the 20th Sept. 1776. Richard received a liberal education, settled and died at New Haven, Conn. His family has become extinct. Ruth married Judge William Smith of Mastic. Jesse, well known in Orange county as Col. Jesse Woodhull, was born at Mastic, Suffolk county, Long Islands on the 10th February, 1735. He settled at Blagg's Clove, Orange county, about 1753, being about 18 years of age. He had about 500 acres, part of which is owned by Wm. Woodhull, the residue by Wm. S. Woodhull. He married Hester, daughter of Capt. Lewis Dubois of Orange county, by whom he had issue, Nathaniel, Richard, Sarah, Renelibe, Hannah, Jesse and Ebenezer. He died on the 4th Feb. 1795, aged about 60 years. His widow died 29th Nov., 1808, aged 74 years and 29 days. Col. Woodhull's son Nathaniel, was born 1st Nov. 1758.- Married Elizabeth, daughter of Leonard Nicoll of New Windsor, and died, leaving no issue, on the 12th April 1799.

Richard, second son of Col. Woodhull, married Hannah, daughter of Judge William Smith; and Ruth Woodhull, before mentioned, of Mastic, by whom he had issue, Jesse, William Smith, Nathaniel Dubois, and Ruth Hester. His widow, born 4th Oct., 1764 died 6th Jan. 1809, aged 44 years 3 months and 12 days.

Jesse, eldest son of Richard and Hannah Woodhull, died 12th Oct. 1800, aged 5 years, 6 months and 12 days. William Smith, the subject of remark, was born 9th Aug. 1796, and now resides on a part of Col. Woodhull's estate in Blagg's Clove. He married Fanny H., eldest daughter of Abraham Schultz, Esq. late of New Windsor, on the 10th Nov. 1825, by whom he has issue, Abraham Schultz, born 21st Nov. 1826, William Henry, on the 4th Nov. 1828, Sarah Jane, on the 9th May 1831, and Jesse, the 17th July, 1833. Sarah Jane died June 28th, 1843.

Nathaniel Dubois was born 30th Nov. 1797, married Frances Mandevill, left issue, Richard William, Francis M. and Jacob. Ruth Hester was born 30th Nov. 1800, and died unmarried the 8th Oct. 1839.

Sarah, eldest daughter of Col. Woodhull, married Col. John Floyd of Smithtown, Suffolk county. Renelibe married Nathaniel Smith of Smithtown, and Hannah, Oliver Smith of Moriches. Jesse received an education, read medicine, made several voyages to the East Indies, and died at Pine Grove, Amite county, state of Mississippi.

Ebenezer settled near Utica, Oneida county, New-York, married there, and is supposed to be now living.

Juliana, daughter of Nathaniel Woodhull of Mastic, married Hezekiah Howell of Bloomninggrove, was the mother of the present Hezekiah Howell of Bloominggrove and Judge Nathaniel W. Howell of Canandaigua. He descendents are numerous Deborah married Isaac Nicoll of Hackensack, N. J. Ebenezer settled in Bloominggrove, married Abigail Howell, and was father to the present Fletcher Woodhull and several other sons and daughters.

On the maternal side they are descendents of Col. William Smith, whose descendents on Long Island are denominated the Tangier Smiths in contradistinction to Richard Smith's family, called Bull Smiths. He was born in England at Higham-Ferrers, Northamptonshire, February 2d, 1655. In 1675 he was appointed Governor of Tangiers by Charles II., which place with Bombay was given to him as a marriage portion by the King of Portugal. But the project of erecting an establishment upon that coast did not succeed. Co. Smith therefore returned to England in 1683. He married Martha, daughter of Henry Tunstall, Esq. of Putney, in the county of Surrey, November 26, 1675. He arrived at New York on the 6th of August, 1686, purchased a large tract of land in Brookhaven, which was erected into a manor called St. George's Manor. He was appointed a justice of the Supreme Court by Governor Slaughter in 1691, and chief justice by Col. Fletcher in 1692. He took an active part in the transpiring events of the colony, and died February 18, 1705.

His surviving children were Henry, William Henry, Patty, Gloriana and Charles Jeffrey. Henry was born at Tangeir, January 19, 1679, and died 1767, aged 88 years.

William Henry Smith, second son of Chief Justice Smith was born March 18, 1690. He settled upon a part of his father's purchase at Mastic on the South side of the island.- His first wife was a Miss Merritt of Boston, by whom he had a son Merritt. His second wife was Hannah Cooper, by whom he had issue, William, Caleb, Elizabeth, Sarah, Martha, Jane and Hannah.

William Smith, eldest son of William Henry, was born in 1720. He was absent from his family and estate during the whole of the Revolutionary war, and spent his time with his friends in Orange county. He was a Judge of the County Court and a member of the Provincial Congress. In 1777 he was elected a Senator under the State Constitution, which office he held till 1783. He died March 17, 1799. His first wife was Mary, daughter of Daniel Smith of Smithtown, by whom he had John (the late senator, John Smith of Suffolk county) and Mary.

His second wife was Ruth, sister of Gen. Woodhull of Suffolk, and Col. Woodhull of Orange county, by whom he had issue, William, Caleb, Mary, Hannah, Elizabeth and Sarah. Hannah married Richard Woodhull of Bloominggrove, Orange county, son of Col. Woodhull, and had issue, Jesse, William Smith, Nathaniel Dubois, and Ruth Hester, as before noticed in the genealogy of the Woodhull family.