Clan William: Poor Walter Woodington, Jailed Again

Capt Thomas Munson > Samuel Munson > Samuel James Munson > William Munson > Samuel II Munson > Freeman Munson >  Amos Munson > Henrietta Munson > Walter Amos Munson

My 2nd great grandmother, Mary Ann Munson's sister Henrietta and her husband Moses, had six
children I could find. The baby, Walter Amos Woodington, was born 21 Aug 1880 in Cassville, Grant County, Wisconsin.

Elevated view of Eau Claire, WI

I found evidence that he did marry in Indiana on 02 Jan 1906 in Warren County to Minnie Kirkendall, who was born in Ohio. I know nothing about her beyond that. I believe she died prior to 1920, possibly in South Dakota. In 1910, the Woodington's were living in Firesteel, Aurora County, South Dakota. Many people had headed to South Dakota for the free land grants, but many returned quickly as the life was hard and rarely prosperous.

There is evidence to suggest that upon his return to Wisconsin, which occurred by at least 1915, that he had a serious alcohol problem. In June of 1915, he received a 30-day sentence for being a drunken vagrant and panhandling. His job in the article was listed as "farm hand."

In May 1916, he was caught up in a sweep by police of chronic panhandlers and drunkards, and received another 30 days.

The only positive thing I found in news articles was on July 18, 1920, he sold Lots 46, 47, and 48 in the Lincoln Park addition in Eau Claire to John Goulette for $150.

The 1920 census has him listed as age 42, widowed, working as a laborer in a rubber company, and living with his brother George in Eau Claire. The place he worked was most likely the new Gillette Safety Tire Company that had opened in 1916 in Eau Claire. I can't imagine he held the job for long.

The Eau Claire Leader published on 18 Aug 1921 that Woodington was again arrested. This time for 90 days in County jail after just coming off a stint of 10 days in jail.

The judge said, "Well, you're not much of a stranger, are you," as Woodington greeted him upon entering the court room. Woodington was by then drinking wood alcohol.

I don't have any proof of death, but the articles end around this time and I would guess he did not live much longer. I'd be interested in any proof of what happened to Walter after that time.

Clan William: Woodington/Munson Line: When Things Go Really, Really Wrong

Capt Thomas Munson > Samuel Munson > Samuel James Munson > William Munson > Samuel II Munson > Freeman Munson >  Henrietta Munson > George Woodington > Clyde Woodington > Neil Woodington

Neil Woodington, right, the day he was convicted

Madison Wisconsin State Journal August 5, 1965

My 2nd great grandmother, Mary Ann Munson's sister Henrietta married Moses Woodington who had left Pennyslvania to move to Wisconsin and pioneer. Generations later, their great grandson, Neil Allen Woodington, who had such an awesome start in life, would bump up against life-changing problems.

He was born 03 Apr 1927 in Altoona, Wisconsin, to Clyde Woodington and his wife Grace Murn Bradley, Clyde was a long-time locomotive engineer of the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad.  Neil attended school in Eau Claire County and was a good student. In 1945, he was awarded a $200 scholarship by the Eau Claire Elks Lodge. He also won the Elks Americanism Essay contest that year.

First divorce

He attended law school at the University of Wisconsin and graduated first in his class in 1950. The guy who graduated second, Robert C. Kelly, would go on to become his business partner and co-defendant at his criminal trial.

He married his first wife, Jeanette M Hall in 10 Sep 1949 in Lamatine in Fond du Lac County; they took out a license on September 4th. Jeanette filed for divorce and it was granted in March 1963. Woodington was ordered to pay $1,100 per month in alimony and child support for their five daughters.He was also ordered to maintain life insurance to benefit the daughters.

His second wife, Betty J. Nedlose, married Woodington on 08 Apr 1963 in Miami, Florida. They had one daughter together. They divorced in 1971.

In the years 1964-1968, Woodington would face his greatest challenges. Two of the companies he ran, Madison American Guaranty Insurance Co. (MAGIC) and Allied Development Corp.found themselves under investigation for potentially filing false statements relating to a stock offering. Those companies later went into bankruptcy. The details of the trial and the ultimate conviction are located below. Woodington, as president, was found guilty of filing a false or misleading financial statement and sentenced to three years in state prison. His partner, Robert Kelly, who was reportedly portrayed by his lawyer as yet another victim of Woodington, was also convicted and sentenced to probation. Woodington stated repeatedly he thought that the investigations started by then Attorney General George Thompson before the election of 1964 was politically motivated. Thompson was a Republican and MAGIC general counsel Clarence Bylsma was a prominent Democrat. Thompson lost the election. Investors and other creditors in the companies lost about $8 million.

Woodington appealed to the State Supreme Court, and while his conviction was upheld, the Court made comment on the harshness of the sentence. Woodington's subsequent appeals failed and he was sent to Waupun State Prison in 1967, shortly thereafter being moved to Thompson Prison Farm in Cambridge. There, he was ultimately granted work release, where he worked as a "financial advisor" for a company set up by Clarence Bylsma in Madison.

Both Woodington and Kelly were disciplined by the State Bar in 1968. Woodington was disbarred for life and Kelly was suspended from practice for six months. An attorney, Jack McManus, who stated he'd provided counsel and advice to Woodington related to his disbarment proceedings, sued him in Nov 1967 for $11,500 in unpaid fees. The fallout from the original trial was significant, driving other litigation such as this regarding the players.

After his release from prison on May 9, 1968, Woodington became what his second wife called, "a promoter." He had moved to New Brighton, Minnesota and was involved with a number of interests such as the Diesel Driving School as well as restaurants co-owned with Fuzzy Thurston, former Green Bay Packer, both in Wisconsin. The restaurants were put under court control and the owners, including Neil Woodington, were barred from entering the restaurants. Woodington was accused of "wrongfully taking money from the corporation, issuing bad checks to employees and suppliers, and grossly mismanaging corporation business." Madison Wisconsin State Journal November 12, 1979

Woodington married Carole McFarland in 1976 in Reno. They divorced 29 Dec 1980. Also in 1980, Woodington moved to Scottsdale, Arizona. He had other business interests under the auspices of The Woodington Group which included such businesses as Dollars and Sense, a direct-mail publishing venture he ran in Colorado. That company would be taken over by several of his children and run into its own legal and criminal issues in the 1990s.

Woodington died on 15 Jul 1989 at his home in Scottsdale at the age of 62.

Sources:
Marriage Licenses; Madison Wisconsin State Journal September 4, 1949
News Notes: Birth of Daughter, Madison Wisconsin State Journal October 5, 1950
Woodington is Divorced; to Pay $1,100 a Month; Madison Capital Times, March 28, 1963
Woodington Given 3 Years; Kelly Placed on Probation, by James D Selk, Madison Wisconsin State Journal August 5, 1965
Appeals to Knowles; Woodington Seeks Reduced Sentence; Madison Capital Times December 31, 1966
Outside Work Permit Granted; Woodington Denied New Trial; Madison Wisconsin State Journal October 19, 1967
In State; Journal: Libel Trial Bylsma Says He Didn't Know of MAGIC Moves; Madison Capital Times February 12, 1968
Woodington Wins Parole on May 9; Madison Wisconsin State Journal May 2, 1968

Five Describe Loans in Atty Bylsma Case; Madison Wisconsin State Journal October 16, 1968
25 Years Ago, Eau Claire Leader Telegram July 17, 1970

Wife Seeks Divorce from Woodington; Madison Capital Times July 8, 1971

McManus Sues: Asks Big Woodington Fee; Madison Capital Times September 11, 1973
Salesman Wanted; Classified Section, Eau Claire Leader Telegram, February 16, 1978

Restaurants Under Court Control; Madison Wisconsin State Journal November 12, 1979

Business News: Dollars and Sense of Colorado...; Colorado Springs Gazette Telegraph June 20, 1982
40 Years Ago, Eau Claire Leader Telegram October 16, 1985
Obituary: Woodington, Neil Allen; Madison Wisconsin State Journal July 19, 1989
Daughters Follow in Dad's Crooked Footsteps; Madison Capital Times May 7, 1997

Wisconsin Divorce Index, 1965-1984

Nevada Marriage Index, 1956-2005
Florida Marriage Index, 1822-1875 and 1927-2001

Sideroad: Harry S Woodington, Deserter

Marine Barracks
League Island, Philadelphia 

Jonathan Woodington (abt 1800) and Sarah Ann Wayman (abt 1818) had a very large family and lived primarily in the Philadelphia area for much of their lives. One son, Moses, married Henrietta Munson - the younger sister of my 2nd great grandmother, Mary Ann Munson, who moved with her family to the Eastern District of Wisconsin in the 1840s from Trumbull County, Ohio.

The youngest Woodington from Johnathon's family, Harry S (Moses' youngest brother), shares a not-so-nice commonality with Mary Ann Munson's grandfather, Freeman Munson. They were both deserters. While Freeman went on to have a happy and productive life, I've yet to locate Harry after his desertion. This is not the Harry I intended to post on who is this Harry's nephew of brother George. I'll get to that next.

Harry was born in about 1866 in Bristol, Bucks County, Pennsylvania. At the age of 23, on 23 Mar 1889, he joined the US Marines and was stationed at League Island Naval Shipyard in Philadelphia, which was located at the confluence of the Delaware and Schuykill rivers. The shipyard was an additional shipyard which began being built up in 1871, meant to augment and eventually replace the shipyard on Front Street in Philadelphia which had been in use since 1776,

I was able to locate all the muster rolls during his brief military career:

29 Mar - 31 Mar 1889: Received instruction in drill

01 Apr - 30 Apr 1889: On drill (that had to be exciting-not!)

01 May - 31 May 1889: On drill

01 Jun - 30 Jul: Regular duties

01 Jul - 18 Jul: Regular duties

18 Jul - 31 Jul: Sick in hospital

01 Aug - 31 Aug: Sick in hospital

01 Sep - 15 Sep: Sick in hospital

15 Sep: Deserted from hospital

Now, we get to the why he was hospitalized and just how serious it was.  Harry had gonorrhea. The disease has been around for hundreds of years, but the bacteria was finally discovered in 1879 by Albert Neisser. Earlier in the 19th century, doctors used shots of mercury to the tip of the penis to help. Later, in the 19th century, gonorrhea was treated with the help of silver nitrate. However, this compound was discontinued and protargol was used which was a type of colloidal silver sold by Bayer from the year 1897. But, not all cases were helped by these treatments and further health problems could set in to the urethra, prostate, and even the liver in men over the short and long term.

In the case of Harry, he spent eight weeks in the hospital where the purge treatment (shooting various solutions, like mercury or saline directly through the tip of the penis through the urethra) and other remedies did not work in short order. By Sep 11, his case was still not beaten. On the 15th, he was granted liberty and never returned to base. On Sep 23, they closed his case and assumed he would not return. His complete treatment record is provided below. 

I've been unable to find any further evidence of Private Harry S Woodington. Now, I'll really get to the Harry Woodington I intended to get to as mentioned in the last post. Two Harry's, completely different lives on opposite coasts.

Clan William: Scandal Sheet: My Father, My Husband, My Sister, My Daughter

Capt Thomas Munson > Samuel Munson > Samuel James Munson > William Munson > Samuel II Munson > Freeman Munson >  Henrietta Munson > Virginia Woodington m Albert Harper > Gladys Harper 

Virginia "Jennie" Woodington married Albert E Harper after the death of his first wife, Lillie Belle.

Albert and Lillie Belle had four children. Those children were grown or mostly grown by the time of Jennie's marriage to Albert in 1913 in Grant County, Wisconsin.

Gladys Harper was the third of the children, born 28 Sep 1893. Gladys Harper briefly married Robert Walter Van Riper of Franklin County, Iowa at about age 15. What was probably a shotgun wedding was not so rare, even in those days, so that in itself wasn't necessarily so scandalous. Their daughter Grace was born on 14 Jul 1909. By 1910, Gladys was living back with her family.The Van Riper’s divorced. 

Gladys married Charles Dewey Hansell in 1916 in Brown County, South Dakota while both residing in Aberdeen. Charles was also from Franklin County, Iowa. In 1920, Gladys and Charles resided in Marmath, Slope County, North Dakota. Gladys gave birth to Lorraine Hansell in about 1922 after their return from The Dakotas to Franklin County. Gladys died on 24 May 1924 in Hampton, Iowa. Charles, acting as father, continued raising his now 15-year-old step-daughter and his thee year old daughter.

On 12 Jul 1927, Charles married his step-daughter Lillian Grace Van Riper in Mason City, Iowa, In what I'm sure was a shocking move to the families. I wonder if they felt the need to leave the area because of the scandal of it all and not return.

They moved with Lorraine to Chicago, where Charles worked in a foundry and later as a waiter.

Charles and Grace had three children while living in Chicago: Betty Lou (1930-1940), George Charles (1932-1948), and Jacqueline Jean (1937-1942). 

The Hansell’s lived in Jefferson County, Wisconsin beginning in the mid-1940s and remained there until their deaths. Their son George was the last surviving child and died at age 16 after an auto accident in Jefferson.

Lorraine, Grace’s half-sister and step-daughter, left home and was boarding in Chicago by the time she was 18. She was married, at least once, to Wallace Craig, whom she married in 1957. No other information is available on what became of her.