Mildred Cason (~1790-1876) – Obediah Woodall’s Wife

Mildred Cason, Obediah Woodall’s wife, was probably born about 1790 in Buckingham County, Virginia. She was the daughter of William and Sarah “Sallie” (Beasley) Cason. Mildred does not have a birth record, but in the 1850 census her age was listed as 55 years old. That would have made her birth year about 1795. However, the 1860 census also had her age as 55, so that would have made her birth year about 1805.

I have not been able to locate Mildred in the 1870 census and she died on 19 June 1876 in Buckingham County, Virginia. She did appear in the death register of Buckingham County and her age was listed as 86, which would make her birth year about 1790. The informant for her death was her brother, Fuqua Cason.

Children of Obediah and Mildred?

Did Mildred have any children? If she was born about 1790, she was probably the 16 to 25-year-old female on Obediah Woodall’s census listing in 1810. She would have been about 20 at that time. There was a male child listed as under 10 years old. The male that was listed as 16 to 25 years old could not have been hers. In the 1820 census, a male child was listed in the 10 to 15-year-old range. I have not been able to find Obediah in the 1830 census and by the 1840 census just Obediah and Mildred were listed.[1] So it is possible that the younger child in the 1810 and 1820 census records was her son.

Was the young male listed in the 1810 and 1820 census records Obediah F. Woodall that was later found in Iowa? It is possible, but I have not found any documentation connecting the two families yet.

Was James Woodall Mildred’s son? It is possible if James was the young male in the 1810 census. However, that appears to make him younger than other records where his age is listed, such as the 1850 census where he was listed as 48 years old. The only document found that names both Mildred and James is the sale of Obediah’s estate in 1850. Mildred sold the land to James, who then sold the land to Wilson Gilliam. James and his family moved to Putnam County, Virginia sometime between 1840 and 1850. Was Mildred James’ mother? She might have been, but she did not move with his family to Putnam County and there was not any further mention of James in her papers.

Mildred’s Will

Mildred signed her will on 16 January 1873 in Buckingham County.

Mildred (Cason) Woodall, Will, 1873

Transcription of Mildred Woodall’s Will

I Mildred Woodall of the County of Buckingham State of Virginia, do
make and ordain this my my last Will and Testament in the manner
following to wit. I wish my Executor hereafter named to pay my just debts.
I give to Mary E. Bagby one bed and furnature. I give to Arthur
Bagby the land on which I former lived together with all my houshold
furnature except the bed given to his daughter Mary, stock and every thing that
I possess. I appoint my friend Arthur Bagby my Executor. Given under my
hand this 16 Jany 1873.

Witness                                                          Mildred (her X mark) Woodall
James H. Routon
E. J. Gilliam

Who was Arthur Bagby? Arthur married Mildred’s niece, Martha Frances Cason. So the Mary E. Bagby mentioned in her will is her great niece.

Relationship of Mildred Woodall to Arthur Bagby and Mary E. Bagby

We know who Mildred’s parents and husband were, but in many areas of her life there still unanswered questions.

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Notes and Sources:

[1] The 1840 census listing for Obediah had a 2 in the 5 to 10-year-old male range. The number was smudged and the total number of persons was 3, which covered Obediah, Mildred, and a young male slave. So the 2 was likely an error.

Roger G. Ward, Land Tax Summaries & Implied Deeds, Vol. 3 (Athens, Georgia: Iberian Publishing Company, 1994).

U.S. federal census. Year: 1810; location: Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 826.
U.S. federal census. Year: 1820; location: New Canton, Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 118.
U.S. federal census. Year: 1840; location: Southern District, Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 372.
U.S. federal census. Year: 1850; location: District 2, Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 414A.
U.S. federal census. Year: 1860; location: District 1, Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 876.

Buckingham County, Virginia, Will Books, 1869-1927, Vol. 1. FHL database and images online (http://familysearch.org), film 1,907,128. Entry for Mildred Woodall, page 325-326.

Virginia Deaths and Burials, 1853-1912. FHL database online. (http://familysearch.org), film 2,056,973. Entry for Mildred Woodall, 19 Jun 1876, ref. 64.

Children of Obediah Woodall (~1770-1849)

Children of Obediah Woodall – (~1770-1849)[1]

In trying to uncover Obediah’s children I’ve found that using a timeline helps clarify who was where and when.

About 1770 – Obediah was born

1800 – Obediah was on a Tax list in Buckingham County

1810 – Obediah was in the 1810 census in Buckingham County

1 male less than 10 (James?)
1 male 16 to 25 – (possibly a child from an earlier marriage)
1 male 26 to 44 (Obediah 40)
1 female 16-25 (Mildred 20)

1815 – Obediah is listed as owning property adjacent to David Woodall in Buckingham County

1820 – Obediah was in the 1820 census in New Canton, Buckingham County

1 male 10 to 15 (James?)
1 male older than 45 (Obediah 50)
2 females older than 45 (Mildred 30, 2^nd woman)

1821 – Obediah bought land from David Woodall

1830 – I have not been able to locate Obediah in the 1830 census

1832 – Obediah listed as owning part of David Woodall’s estate

1840 – Obediah was in the 1840 census in Buckingham County

1 male 60 to 69 (Obediah 70)
1 female 40 to 49 (Mildred 50)

1841 – Obediah owned property on Duckers Creek

1844 – Obediah sold land to several people

1847 – Obediah bought land on Stage Road

1849 – Obediah died in September

1850 – Land was sold to James Woodall by M[ildred] Woodall

James Woodall

James Woodall’s birth date varies from 1800 to 1810 through his census listings from 1850 to 1880 censuses. If he was born in 1800, Mildred was probably not his mother. Her death record and census records place her birth anywhere from 1790 to 1805. Even if she was born in 1790, it is unlikely that she would have had a child before 1805. It is possible that James was her son if we go by the later date of 1810. (I will discuss Mildred in a later post.)

So if James is the younger child on the 1810 census, was the male 16 to 25 another child of Obediah’s by an earlier wife? James is not old enough in any of the records I have seen to have been the male 16 to 25. So far I have not seen any records that can clarify who this person is or their relationship to Obediah.

Obediah Junior and Senior

Then we have Obediah Junior. Some of the land records and censuses list Obediah (1770) as Obediah Senior. The same record sources list an Obediah Junior. However, in this case, it appears that the Obediah Junior is Isaac’s son. Isaac is Obediah’s brother who is also living in Buckingham County. Obediah Junior fits into Isaac’s 1820 and 1830 census records. Then in 1840, he is listed as the head of household with his own family which contains a 60 to 70-year-old man. Isaac would have been about 65 at that time and he does not have his own listing.

In the 1850 census, Obadiah Woodall, age 40, had living with him Isaac Woodall, age 82. Also, in 1835, Obadiah Woodall, Junior bought land on Duckers Creek adjacent to Isaac Woodall from Isaac Woodall.

These are good indicators that this Obediah, born about 1810, was the son of Isaac and not Obediah Senior (1770).

Obediah F. Woodall in Iowa

There was an Obediah F. Woodall that was living in Iowa from before 1850 until he died in 1894. He claimed Virginia as his birth place. Several family trees have listed him as the son of Obediah (1770). However, I have not found any documents or records that connect the two men.

William Richard Woodall (1800-1888)

I have not been able to find any records for a William Richard Woodall for these dates in Buckingham County. There was a William Woodall in Campbell County in 1850, but the dates do not quite line up. I have searched both for Richard and William with no results.

When I looked at the family trees online that list William Richard Woodall as a son of Obediah (1770), their only documentation is each other.

There was a William Richard Woodall born in 1864 in West Virginia who was Obediah (1770) Woodall’s great grandson.

DNA Possibilities

There is a Y-DNA project for the Woodall family. I have not seen the original numbers, but I have seen some of the derivative work.

Two men claim descent from Obediah Woodall (1770), but both are descended through James Woodall and then through James’ son, Obediah Woodall born in 1837. I have not seen any other men who claim descent through another child of Obediah (1770).

Hopefully, at some point, a direct male descendant of Obediah F. Woodall from Iowa takes the Y-DNA test, then we may know whether he was a son of Obediah (1770).

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Notes and Sources

[1] For the sake of this discussion I will be using 1770 as Obediah’s birth date. There are some people who use 1765 as his birth year. From various records, it looks as if Obediah’s brother, Isaac, was born about 1765.

Roger G. Ward, Land Tax Summaries & Implied Deeds, Vol. 2 (Athens, Georgia: Iberian Publishing Company, 1994).
Roger G. Ward, Land Tax Summaries & Implied Deeds, Vol. 3 (Athens, Georgia: Iberian Publishing Company, 1994).

U.S. federal census. Year: 1810; location: Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 826.
U.S. federal census. Year: 1820; location: New Canton, Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 118.
U.S. federal census. Year: 1840; location: Southern District, Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 372.
U.S. federal census mortality schedule. Year: 1850; location: District 2, Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 126.

U.S. federal census. Year: 1820; location: New Canton, Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 139, for Isaac Woodall.
U.S. federal census. Year: 1830; location: Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 294.
U.S. federal census. Year: 1840; location: Southern District, Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 372.
U.S. federal census. Year: 1850; location: Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 396A.

U.S. federal census. Year: 1850; location: District 7, Dubuque County, Iowa; p. 13B for Obediah F. Woodall.

Obediah Woodall – (ca. 1770 – 1849) – Part 3

When last we visited Obediah, his father, David, had died leaving Obediah about 140 acres on Duckers Creek in about 1830.

In 1840, Obediah was listed in the census in the Southern District of Buckingham County.

U.S. federal census. Year: 1840; location: Southern District, Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 372.

1 male 60 to 69 years old (Obediah 70)
1 female 40 to 49 years old (Mildred 50)
1 male slave 10 to 23 years old
3 persons total

Obediah, now listed as Senior, was noted in 1841 as still owning 120 acres on Duckers Creek. He sold land in 1844 to George Duncan, M.B., and Archibald Gill. Then in 1847, he bought 119 and 1/2 acres on Stage Road from Francis Thornton.

Obediah’s mother-in-law, Sarah (Beasley) Cason, and her family were attempting to prove that William Cason, her husband, was a Revolutionary soldier and that she should receive a pension. This was in accordance with the Act of Congress of the 7th July 1838 that “granted half pay and pensions to certain widows.” Sarah died in 1840 before the case was proved and for a while, her son, Fuqua, continued with the attempt.

In 1846, Obediah signed an affidavit to help with the case.
Transcript:

The affidavit of Obediah Woodall taken
to establish the Pension Claim of Sarah
Cason widow of William Cason Decd.
who states that he lived in the neigh=
borhood of William Cason deceased
in his life time in the County of
Buckingham State of Virginia and
help make his Coffin and bury him
when he died and from the best
of his recollection he believes he the
said Wm Cason died on the
Second monday in March 1816
but does not recollect the day of
the months and the reason why
he recollects it was on the second
Monday is, that he died on
Buckingham Court day which
comes on the second monday of
of the month

Obediah (his X mark) Woodall

State of Virginia Buckingham County SS
The foregoing affidavit of Obediah
Woodall was sworn to and subscribed
before me a Justice of the Peace in
and for the County and State aforesaid
in due form of law. — I further
certify that he is a creditable person
and that his statement is entitled
to full credit — Given under my
hand this the 17th day of January 1846.

Ch M Shimay [initialed]

(See original Obediah Woodall Affidavit, 1846.)

Obediah died in September 1849. The only record I have found of the event is the 1850 Mortality census record. It lists:

Obadiah Woodall, 80 years old, Male, born Buckingham, died September, farmer, died of Palsey

1850 Mortality Census, Obediah Woodall

In 1850, Mildred Woodall sold 119 and 1/2 acres to James Woodall, Obediah’s son.

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Notes and Sources:

Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, microfilm publication M804, (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration), roll 495, pension number R1672,  for Sarah Cason, widow of William Cason, Virginia. (http://www.fold3.com: 2017)

Roger G. Ward, Land Tax Summaries & Implied Deeds, Vol. 3 (Athens, Georgia: Iberian Publishing Company, 1994).

U.S. federal census mortality schedule. Year: 1850; location: District 2, Buckingham County, Virginia; p. 126.