In my mind, Bailey Wood represents the beginning of my ancestors in Southern West Virginia, but I cannot say for sure that he was the first one there.
Undoubtedly, there are numerous descendants of Bailey and Nancy Wood throughout West Virginia and beyond. I would love to find out where he came from and who his parents were, as well as who Nancy’s parents were. I have tried to connect Bailey Wood to the early explorer Abraham Wood, but have had no luck. The reason I tried to make that connection is because Abraham Wood’s land in early Virginia was near the land of Temperance Bailey and Bailey Creek (which most likely has nothing to do with Bailey Wood).
The earliest dates of Bailey Wood in Greenbrier County are for the births of his three oldest children: Susannah in 1776, William in 1777, and Nancy in 1780, but documentation is lacking. [Correction: Greenbrier did not become a county until 1778.]
The earliest confirmed record showing Bailey Wood in Greenbrier County was in 1781. He was a charter member of Greenbrier Baptist Church. Ann Wood is mentioned, and it is assumed she was his wife since later records mention Nancy, and Nancy is a nickname for Ann. One can speculate that James Wood was either the father or a brother of Bailey Wood. The Minutes of the Greenbrier Baptist Church show that Bailey Wood was an active member.
Greenbrier Baptist Church records mention Bailey Wood assisting Rev. John Alderson in 1783.
In 1782, he was included on the Greenbrier County Personal Property Tax List, with two cattle. His son Bailey Wood, Jr., was born about 1785.
He appears in the First Census of the United States, 1790, as Baily Wood of Greenbrier County. The records for Greenbrier County in the first Virginia census were created from tax records, 1783-1786.
He is on the tax list for 1787, and in 1788, he got a land grant for 450 acres on the Greenbrier River. His daughter Susannah Wood married Richard Skaggs in Greenbrier County, on March 10, 1789, according to the records of Rev. John Alderson (see below). Richard was the son of Thomas Skaggs who lived on Wolf Creek.
In 1790, son James Wood was born and then daughter Katherine Wood in 1794. In 1796, the Greenbrier County Property Tax List showed Bailey Wood with three horses. That same year, the last Wood child, Elizabeth, was born.
No Bailey Wood nor any of his children are mentioned in Greenbrier County Wills 1780-1865, compiled by Pauline Haga. None of them are mentioned in The Greenbrier Heritage, by William Olcott. However, Bailey Wood/Woods is mentioned in Greenbrier Co., W. Va. Court Orders, 1780-1850, as are many other Wood(s) individuals. See below. The numbers refer to the actual page numbers, not the number in the page viewer.
Regarding the Court Order Index shown above, on page 186, it appears that Bailey Wood served on a jury in 1795. In another case, he was the defendant in a lawsuit filed by James Guinn. Elizabeth Wood was a witness for James Guinn. I don’t know who this Elizabeth Wood was, but it was Bailey Sr., not Bailey Jr. In court in 1796 (page 196), Bailey Wood, James Graham, Israel Kean, and Conrad Keller were ordered to “view the road from Keller’s to the forks of Wolf Creek and report to the court the conveniences and inconveniences thereof.” This would also have been Bailey, Sr. In court in 1797 (page 209), it was ordered that “the road from forks of the road on Wolf Creek to Keller’s be altered according to the report of James Graham, Israel Keen, Baily (sic) Wood, and Conrod (sic) Keller.”
In 1796 (page182) Elijah Wood served on a jury. I know of several Elijah Woods, but none were born by this time. Who was this Elijah Wood? On page 94 (view 105), and p. 100 (view 111), the James Wood mentioned was the Lt. Governor of Virginia. There is no known relationship between him and Bailey Wood. The James S. Wood mentioned in court in 1830 on page 352 (view 363) is not the Lt. Governor, but I don’t know how he is related, if he is. It could be Bailey’s son James; however, there is a James Wood in Monroe County in the 1820 census that could also be him. I don’t think it is because the one in the census had three children and James, son of Bailey, only had one child by 1820, as far as I know.
Greenbrier was huge at that time, and included the area that became Monroe County in 1799. There is no other Wood on the list of the “First Census”, but there is someone by the name Andrew Woods, probably not related. There were several families associated with Bailey Wood’s family who appear on this early list: William Johnston (there are THREE on the list), Richard Hicks, William Hicks, John Scaggs, Richard Scaggs, and Thomas Scaggs, so they all arrived in Greenbrier County before Monroe County was formed in 1799. There is no McGraw, Halstead, or Withrow on this early Greenbrier census list though these are all families often associated with Bailey Wood Sr. or his children.
After Monroe County was formed, son William Wood married Mary Ann McGraw in 1800. Her parents were Martin and Margaret McGraw, who gave permission. Rev. John Alderson performed the marriage.
Historical records indicate that, in 1792, Bailey was a “squatter” in the area that eventually became Fayette County. He started a church there called Hopewell Baptist Church. In my opinion, he was likely sent there specifically to start this church. This is known as “church planting”. Greenbrier Baptist Church records show that Bailey Wood was dismissed October 30, 1802. He had already moved by that time, but if Ann was his wife, why did she stay on the church roll until 1825? There are other Woods on the church membership roster, but I do not know who they are.
In March of 1803, William and Elizabeth (Hicks) Johnston transferred about 100 acres to Bailey Wood for five shillings. Later that year Bailey Wood sold about 127 acres on the Greenbrier River to William Graham for $1. In March 1804, Bailey Wood and wife Nancy Wood sold 323 acres to Robert Gwinn for five shillings.
In May of 1806, Bailey’s daughter Nancy married Martin McGraw, Jr., son of Martin and Margaret McGraw. They were married by Rev. John Alderson.
In 1807, Bailey Wood Jr. married Lucretia Skaggs, who was the daughter of John Skaggs and Catherine (Hicks) Skaggs of Wolf Creek.
This map is not dated, but it must be during the time period 1804-1814 because Mason County was formed in 1804 and it is on the map. Tyler County was formed in 1814, and it is NOT on the map.
To be continued….. (In Part 2, I will write more about Bailey Wood and supply more documentation.)