Dr. John Woodson

1586 - 1644  (58 years)

• Name	John Woodson
  Title	Dr.
  Birth	1586	Devonshire, England   [1, 2]
  	or Dorsetshire, England
  Gender	Male
  Occupation	1619	England
  	Surgeon
  Immigration	16 Apr 1619  [1, 3]
  	On the ship 'George', commissioned as a surgeon to a company of soldiers
  Land Grant	Aft 1620	VA   [1]
  	200 acres 30 miles north of Jamestown - settle on what is now known as \'Flowerdew Hundred\'
  Census	16 Feb 1623	Charles City Co, VA
  	Flowerdew Hundred - with Sarah and 6 slaves
  Census	20 Jan 1624	Jamestown City, VA
  Misc Fact	1644	VA   [1, 2]
  	Indian attack and Dr Woodson murdered, Sarah hid sons in a washtub and a potato hole
  Death	18 Apr 1644	Henrico Co, VA   [1, 2]
  Findagrave.com	30 Jun 2023
  	See Notes
  Burial	Unknown
  Person ID	I2047	Butler Family Tree
  Last Modified	6 Jun 2026

  
  

  Family	Sarah Winston,   b. 1595, Devonshire, England d. 17 Jan 1659, Henrico Co, VA (Age 64 years)
  Marriage	Bef 1619	Dorsetshire, England
  Children	1. John Woodson,   b. 1632, Henrico Co, VA d. Between 20 Aug and 01 Oct 1684, Henrico Co, VA  [Father: natural]  [Mother: natural]   2. Robert Woodson, Sr,   b. 1634, Curles, Henrico Co, VA d. Between 1707 and 1711, Henrico Co, VA (Age 73 years)  [Father: natural]  [Mother: natural]   3. Deborah Woodson,   b. 1640, Henrico Co, VA  [Father: natural]  [Mother: natural]
  Family ID	F596	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	6 Jun 2026

  
  

• Event Map

  Birth - 1586 - Devonshire, England Marriage - Bef 1619 - Dorsetshire, England Occupation - Surgeon - 1619 - England Land Grant - 200 acres 30 miles north of Jamestown - settle on what is now known as \'Flowerdew Hundred\' - Aft 1620 - VA Census - Flowerdew Hundred - with Sarah and 6 slaves - 16 Feb 1623 - Charles City Co, VA Census - 20 Jan 1624 - Jamestown City, VA Misc Fact - Indian attack and Dr Woodson murdered, Sarah hid sons in a washtub and a potato hole - 1644 - VA Death - 18 Apr 1644 - Henrico Co, VA  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Photos » Slide Show		Woodson-John--Flowerdew Plantation
  		Woodson-John--Flowerdew Plantation Map-2
  		Woodson-John--Gun used in Indian Raids
  		Woodson-John-Dr-Sr-1.jpeg
  		Woodson-John-Dr-Sr-2.jpeg

  
  

• Notes

  - Listed on Jamestowne Society in Williamsburg, VA - much info obtained from the book 'Genealogies of Kentucky Families from The Register of the Kentucky Historical Society' - much info obtained from the book 'Historical Genealogy of the Woodsons and their Connections' --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- found at findagrave.com on 6/30/2023 Dr John Woodson Sr. Birth: 1586 England Death: 18 Apr 1644 (aged 57-58) Prince George County, Virginia, USA Burial: Lost at War. Specifically: Native Americans made a sudden attack upon the Virginia settlements on 18 Apr 1644 and killed about three hundred of the colonists, John Woodson being among those killed. Memorial #: 240506595 Bio: Dr. John Woodson was born in 1586 in Devonshire England. He matriculated from St. John's College on March 1,1604 at the age of eighteen. Dr. John Woodson married Sara Winston and they sailed from England on the ship "George" arriving in Jamestowne Virginia 16 Apri1 1619. Governor Yeardly and his wife were also on this ship and they became very good friends. John was a surgeon for the Militia in 1623 and has been asked by Governor Yeardley to come to America for their soldiers. The children of John and Sara were probably born at Fleur de Hundred some thirty miles north above Jamestown on the south side of the James River which is now called Prince George County. John "Tub" Woodson b. 1632 Robert "Potato Hole" Woodson Sr. b.1634 These boys were known as "Tub" and "Potato Hole" because when the Indians came to their home, Sara hid John under a washtub and Robert got into the hole were potatoes were stored. It was during this raid which began on the 18th day of April that Dr. John Woodson was killed on the second day of the Indian massacre as he hurried home. His sons, John and Robert, were 10 and 12 years old at that time. The shoemaker, Ligon, was at the house and helped Sara in the killing of the Indians. John Woodson was killed in sight of home. It has been written that Sara and Ligon killed nine Indians. The photo of the gun is the weapon Ligon used in his fight with the Indians. Family Members Parents Alexander Woodsonne 1554-Unknown Spouse Sarah Isabelle Woodson 1595-1659 Children John Woodson 1632-1684 Robert Woodson 1634-1707 Created by: CMWJR (50059520) Added: 11 Jun 2022 URL: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/240506595/john-woodson Citation: Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/240506595/john-woodson: accessed 30 June 2023), memorial page for Dr John Woodson Sr. (1586-18 Apr 1644), Find a Grave Memorial ID 240506595; Lost at War, Native Americans made a sudden attack upon the Virginia settlements on 18 Apr 1644 and killed about three hundred of the colonists, John Woodson being among those killed.; Maintained by CMWJR (contributor 50059520). --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- found at findagrave.com bef 6/30/2023 Dr John Woodson Birth: 1586 Devon, England Death: Apr. 18, 1644 Prince George County Virginia, USA Dr. John Woodson was born in 1586 in Devonshire England. He matriculated from St. John's College on March 1,1604 at the age of eighteen. Dr. John Woodson married Sara Winston and they sailed from England on the ship "George" arriving in Jamestowne Virginia 16 Apri1 1619. Governor Yeardly and his wife were also on this ship and they became very good friends. John was a surgeon for the Militia in 1623 and has been asked by Governor Yeardley to come to America for their soldiers. The children of John and Sara were probably born at Fleur de Hundred some thirty miles north above Jamestown on the south side of the James River which is now called Prince George County. John "Tub" Woodson b. 1632 Robert "Potato Hole" Woodson Sr. b.1634 These boys were known as "Tub" and "Potato Hole" because when the Indians came to their home, Sara hid John under a washtub and Robert got into the hole were potatoes were stored. It was during this raid which began on the 18th day of April that Dr. John Woodson was killed on the second day of the Indian massacre as he hurried home. His sons, John and Robert, were 10 and 12 years old at that time. The shoemaker, Ligon, was at the house and helped Sara in the killing of the Indians. John Woodson was killed in sight of home. It has been written that Sara and Ligon killed nine Indians. The photo of the gun is the weapon Ligon used in his fight with the Indians. Family links: Spouse: Sarah Winston Woodson (1595 - 1659) Children: Robert Woodson (1634 - 1707)* *Calculated relationship Burial: Unknown Created by: Bette Keene Scavone Record added: Apr 06, 2011 Find A Grave Memorial# 67993655 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- found at http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=marthaellen&id=I1097 •ID: I1097 •Name: John (Dr.) Woodson •Sex: M •Birth: 1586 in Dorset, England •Reference Number: 1101 •Occupation: physician •Death: 18 APR 1644 in Henrico, Virginia, USA 1 •Note: Dr. John and Sarah came to the Virginia Colonies 29 January 1619/1629 on the Shiip George. The Muster records shows John Woodson and wife Sarah with "Corne, 4 bushells; Powder, 1 lb; Lead, 3 lb; Peece fixt, 1; Sword, 1" Dr. John was a surgeon and was serving a company of soldiers from England. He settled in Flowerdew Hundred, also known as Peirsey's Hundred. This land lay on the south side of the James River. It was there that Dr. John lost his life and the stories passed down were varied about the different Indian attacks. One story said that Sarah threw mattresses in the fire place and lit them to keep the Indians from coming in that way. The most common story is that Sarah saved her sonsm, John, and Robert, by hiding one under a tub and the other in a "potato hole". When John was killed, Sarah remarried a Mr. Johnson and the inventory of her estate was recorded in January 1660 in Henrico County. HintsAncestry Hints for John (Dr.) Woodson 4 possible matches found on Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Marriage 1 Sarah Winston •Married: BEF 1619 in England Children 1.Has Children Robert Woodson b: 1634 in Curles, Henrico Co., VA 2.Has No Children John Woodson b: ABT 1632 Sources: 1.Title: Records of Patti Black, genealogist ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  

• Sources

  [S47] See Misc Docs Pics, In Grateful Rememberance. [S25] Findagrave.com. [S43] Military documents.