BIOGRAPHIES - WOODFORD, John Thornton Jr., Bourbon County, Kentucky From: Bob Francis http://www.shawhan.com Date: 07 Feb 2000 The biographies are taken primarily from William Perrin's "The History of Bourbon, Scott, Harrison and Nicholas Counties, Kentucky" and E. Polk Johnson's "The History of Kentucky and Kentuckians," Vol. III. Many Bourbon County, Kentucky, researchers have pointed out mistakes and they are notated. Name: John Thornton WOODFORD Jr. _________________________________________ Birth: August 12, 1847 Death: 1920 Age: 72 Father: John Thornton WOODFORD (1812-1892) Mother: Elizabeth Hawes BUCKNER (1821-1904) Spouses _________________________________________ 1: Nannie CHENAULT Birth: August 20, 1853, Madison County, Kentucky Father: Anderson CHENAULT Mother: Margaret OLDHAM Marriage: February 13, 1872 Children: Margaret; Thornton; Catesby; Chenault; William; Lucy Clay JOHN T. WOODFORD,1 farmer, and stockraiser; P. O. Paris. The Woodford family trace their genealogy to one William Woodford, a native of England; he was a merchant, and moved to Caroline Co., Virginia, at an early day. His estate was called Windsor; he was thrice married. First to a Mrs. Whitaker, daughter of an East India merchant; his second wife was widow Battaile, both of whom died childless. Sept 2, 1732, he niarried Ann, daughter of John Coche, Secretary of State, under the Colonial Government. Her mother’s name was Catesby, sister of Marsh Catesby, a writer on Natural History. The eldest son of William and Ann Woodford was William, who was born October 6, 1734; he was an officer under the Colonial Government, with the rank of Brigadier-General. He married Mary, daughter of John and Mildred Thornton. Mildred was a Miss Gregory, daughter of Mildred Washington, sister of Augustine Washington, which relation made General George W. her nephew. Thomas was the second son of William and Ann; he was educated in Cambridge for the ministry, but afterwards became a sea Captain, and died childless. Henry also died a sea Captain. The third generation is John Thornton Woodford (eldest son of William and Mary Thornton Woodford); who was born at Windsor, July 29, 1763. In 1786, he married Mary Turner Taliaferro, who was born March 13, 1772. The fourth generation was William, who was born March 25, 1787; he married Ann Maria Archer, Dec. 1809. She died 1831; he, May 18, 1840. They had the following children: John T., born August, 1812; Samuel B. A., born 1815, he married Martha Holliday; William T., born 1817, he married Mary Halleck; Lucy, born 1821, married W. T. Buckner; Thomas, born 1823; Sallie T., born 1826, married William Buckner. The fifth generation comes John T., who was born August 12, 1812, he married Elizabeth H. Buckner, in Caroline Co., Va., August, 1812, and emigrated to Kentucky, locating in Clark County, 1825, and to Bourbon County, North Middletown, in 1834, where he remained until 1843, when he came to Paris Precinct, and purchased land, where he now resides, and has since remained. He has over 800 acres of land, situated in the extreme south part of the precinct; he has been engaged in farming and stock raising-raising short horn cattle and Cotswold sheep. In February, 1840, he married Miss Buckner, daughter of William Buckner. This union has been crowned with a family of nine children, viz: Sallie, wife of Capt. E. F. Spears, Mary L., wife of Col. E. F. Clay, Buckner, now of Blue Lick, in Fleming County; John T. Jr., near Mount Sterling; Henry, Attorney at Law at Mt. Sterling; Benjamin and Catsby of this County, and Maria. JOHN T. WOODFORD,2 present proprietor of the Woodford stock farm at Mount Sterling, Kentucky, is a scion of old pioneer families in this state and he has well upheld the prestige of the honored name which he bears, the while lie has, like his father and grandfather, contributed his quota to the civic and industrial progress and upbuilding of this section of the state. Mr. Woodford was born in Bourbon county, Kentucky, on the 12th of August, 1847, and is a son of John T. and Elizabeth Hawes (Buckner) Woodford. John T. Woodford, Sr., was a native of Virginia, the date of his birth being August 21, 1812, and he was summoned to eternal rest at his home in Paris, Kentucky, in 1892, at which time he was in the eightieth year of his age. The paternal grandparents of him whose name introduces this article were William T. and Maria (Archer) Woodford, both of whom were born in Virginia, whence they came to Clark county, Kentucky, in 1827. At the time of the death of William T. Woodford, his widow removed with her children to Montgomery county, where with the aid of her sons she managed to eke out a fair livelihood for herself and family. Afterwards John T., Sr., initiated his independent career by clerking in a store at North Middletown, Bourbon county. In 1839 was solemnized his marriage to Elizabeth Hawes Buckner and he then became identified with agricultural pursuits. In this line of enterprise his success was of unqualified order and at one time he owned and operated a farm of nine hundred acres located five miles south of Paris. His finely improved land was devoted to diversified crops and he was also largely interested in stock-raising, handling cattle, hogs and sheep. His life in every connection was eminently successful and he gained and retained to himself the high regard of his fellow citizens. Politically he was a staunch adherent of the Democratic party. Mrs. Woodford was born in Bourbon county, this state, in 1821, and she was a daughter of William T. and Sallie (Clay) Buckner, both of which families have long been prominent in connection with public affairs in the Blue Grass state. She was summoned to her eternal rest in 1903, at the age of eighty-three years. Mr. and Mrs. Woodford became the parents of nine children, and of the number seven are now living, namely, Sallie, who is the widow of E. F. Spears, resides at Paris, Kentucky; Buckner also maintains his home at Paris; John T., of this sketch, is the next in order of birth; Catesby is a prominent racehorse breeder of Bourbon county; Henry M. is a resident of Montgomery county; Benjamin resides in Bourbon county; and Maria L. is the wife of W. L. Yerkes, of Paris. John T. Woodford, Jr., was reared to the, sturdy discipline of the home farm and after due attendance in the schools of his native county he attended the Kentucky University at Lexington. In 1874, in Montgomery county, he initiated farming operations on his own account. Today his landed estate consists of five hundred acres of land in Montgomery county and two hundred acres in Bourbon county. The fine farm on which he resides is modern in every particular, from the magnificent, spacious residence to the large, comfortable barns, For the past thirty-five years Mr. Woodford has been successfully engaged in the breeding and training of fancy saddle horses and it may be stated with authority that he has bred more saddle horses than any other one man in Kentucky. Mr. Woodford’s reputation as a horse breeder and as a man of his word is widespread. His fair and honorable methods and sterling integrity have ever accrued to his credit and he is recognized as a loyal and public-spirited citizen whose contributions to progress and development have been of distinctive order. He keeps on hand an average of seventy-five head of fancy saddle horses and he has a herd of registered Jersey cows which he retains for his own use. Mr. Woodford is a Democrat in his political proclivities and is ever alert and enthusiastically in sympathy with all measures and enterprises advanced for the general welfare of the community. Both he and his wife hold membership in the Christian church. On the 13th of February, 1872, Mr. Woodford was united in marriage to Miss Nannie Chenault, who was born in Madison county, Kentucky, on the 20th of August, 1853, and who is a daughter of Anderson and Margaret K. (Oldham) Chenault. Anderson Chenault was likewise born in Madison county, the date of his birth being January 8, 1812, and he died on the 27th of March, 1884. Mrs. Chenault was a native of the same county and her birth occurred on the 15th of October, 1829. She is still living on the Chenault farm, located two miles south of Mount Sterling. Residing with her is her son William O. and family. Mr. and Mrs. Chenault became the parents of seven children and of the number five are living—Nannie, who is the wife of Mr. Woodford, of this sketch, as already noted; William O., who resides with his mother; Mollie W., who is the wife of J. S. Bogie, of Montgomery County; Margaret, who married W. J. Dearing, an attorney for the Louisville & Nashville Railroad, with headquarters at Louisville, Kentucky; and Lucy C., who wedded Bishop Clay, of Lexington, Kentucky. The paternal grandparents of Mrs. Woodford were Reverend David and Mary (Tribble) Chenault, natives of Virginia, whence they came to Kentucky about 1780 and purchased four thousand acres of land in Madison county. He was a devout minister of the Baptist faith and after many years service in behalf of the spiritual welfare of his fellow men he passed to his reward in 1851. His devoted helpmeet and companion died in 1862, in her eighty-fourth year. Anderson Chenault was reared to maturity and educated in his native county (Madison) and in 1832 he settled on a tract of eighty acres in Montgomery county. This land was covered with heavy timber but it was eventually cleared and raised it to a high state of cultivation. His first crop was corn. This he fed to hogs, which he sold for tile sum of four hundred and five dollars. With this money he purchased an old negro, called Uncle Jim. Uncle Jim became so attached to his new home that he ignored his freedom after the war and continued to serve the Chenault family with all the old-time faithfulness until his death, some years ago. Mr. Anderson Chenault became a most successful agriculturist owning at one time twelve hundred acres of land. He was originally a Whig in political matters but at the time of the Civil war he became a Union man and after the close of the war, a Democrat. He had in his possession forty slaves and he believed in gradual emancipation. He was active until his death and Mrs. Chenault, in spite of her eighty-one years, is yet active. To Mr. and Mrs. Woodford were born eight children, six of them are living, namely: Margaret C., who is the wife of William W. Gay, of Bourbon county; Thornton, who remains at home; Catesby, of Bourbon county, Chenault, William B., and Lucy Clay, all of whom remain at the parental home. Sources 1. Perrin, pp. 498-499 2. E. Polk Johnson, The History of Kentucky and Kentuckians, Vol. III, Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago, Ill., 1912, pp. 1347-1348 ------------------------------ USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free genealogical information on the Internet, data may be freely used for personal research and by non-commercial entities as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may not be reproduced in any format or presentation by other organizations or persons. 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