Henry Woodward (colonist)
Encyclopedia
Henry Woodward often referred to as Dr. Henry Woodward, was the first British
colonist of colonial South Carolina
. He was instrumental in establishing relationships with many Native American Indians
in the American southeast
. He was a pioneer in initiating trade, primarily in deerskins
and slaves, with many Indian towns and tribes.
. His ancestry may have been Scottish
. His father was William Woodward (b. 1704) and his mother was Esther Martin (b. 1704).
In 1666, Henry Woodward accompanied Captain Robert Sandford's exploration of the South Carolina coast. Woodward volunteered to remain in the Port Royal Sound
vicinity and live among the Cusabo
Indians, to establish relations and learn their language. For this he was granted, temporarily, "formall possession of the whole Country to hold as Tennant att Will" by the Lords Proprietors.
and held captive for about a year. As a prisoner he was well-treated. He professed Catholicism and was made official surgeon. During this time he learned about the thriving Spanish-Indian trading system. This experience helped him in rapidly establishing an English trading system after he regained his freedom.
Woodward escaped in 1668, after the English buccaneer
and privateer
Robert Searle raided St. Augustine. For about two years Woodward served as surgeon on privateer vessels in the Caribbean
before being shipwrecked on Nevis
in August of 1669. He then took passage on the Carolina fleet of 1669-1670, which established Charleston, South Carolina
. Henry Woodward became an interpreter and Indian agent for the fledgling colony. Starting in 1670, Woodward began taking a series of expeditions into the interior, making contact with various Indian groups. While a few Spanish expeditions had explored the interior of the American southeast in the sixteenth century, Woodward was the first British colonist to do so.
Indians were initially hostile to the new colony of South Carolina. In October of 1674 some Westo Indians visited Woodward, who was widely known among the Indians, at St. Giles plantation on the head of the Ashley River. They requested he travel with them to their village (Hickauhaugau) on the Savannah River
. During this visit Woodward initiated a trading relationship between Carolina and the Westo. While in Hickauhaugau Woodward witnessed the arrival of two Shawnee
Indians. These Shawnee had probably migrated to the Apalachicola River
region in the 1640s in order to trade with the Spanish and perhaps to escape the Iroquois wars in the north. Using sign language, the Shawnee warned the Westo of impending attack from the "Cussetaws, Checsaws, & Chiokees," earning the goodwill of the Westo. Later the Apalachicola Shawnee migrated to the Savannah River area, approached Henry Woodward privately and established a relationship that eventually doomed the Westo. These Shawnee became known in South Carolina as the "Savannah" Indians. When war broke out between the Westo and South Carolina in 1679, the Savannah Shawnee assisted South Carolina. By 1680 the Westo had been decimated and the Savannah Shawnee moved into their lands along the lower Savannah River.
In April of 1677, South Carolina's Lords Proprietors, claiming a monopoly on Indian trade, forbade all trade with the Indians and the Spanish, except by their official agents. The destruction of the Westo left Woodward out of favor with the colony's Lords Proprietors. In 1682 Woodward got shot in the head but still manage to travelled to England, where he not only obtained a pardon, but an official position as Indian agent for the Lords Proprietors. Woodward agreed to conduct the Indian trade for the proprietors in return for 20% of the profits.
area of South Carolina in 1684. The Scots of Stuarts Town and the English of Charles Town never got along. The Scots asserted their independence by initiating their own Indian trade, establishing a strong alliance with the powerful and newly arrived Yamasee
Indians. In 1685, Henry Woodward found himself arrested in Stuarts Town while passing through the area on mission to the "proto-Creeks
" of the Chattahoochee River
. His arrest was apparently due to the desire of Lord Cardross
of Stuarts Town to control trade with the Creek. Woodward was soon released and seems to have assisted the Stuarts Town Scots and their Yamasee Indian allies. Although part of the English Charles Town faction, Woodward may have been Scottish himself.
The Yamasee, backed by the Stuarts Town Scots, conducted a series of devastating raids on the Spanish mission province of Guale
and then proceeded to invade the province of Timucua
in Florida, bringing back many Indian slaves to sell to the Scots of Stuarts Town. Woodward, once back in Charles Town, was among those who loudly denounced the Stuarts Town settlement for these events. The Yamasee raids soon brought a Spanish counterattack that destroyed Stuarts Town. It is likely, however, that Woodward profited from the Yamasee raids, and even assisted. In denouncing the Scots he was probably taking the Charles Town side in the political dispute between Charles Town and Stuarts Town.
By 1684 the Spanish mission province of Guale was in ruins and generally abandoned.
, visiting the Indian towns along the lower Chattahoochee River
such as Coweta
and Cussita (later to be key towns of the Creek Nation). He led a dozen other Charles Town traders to the Chattahoochee Indians. These traders took over the business after Woodward's death.
During these trips Woodward discovered some Chickasaw
Indians who had married into the Chattahoochee River "proto-Creek" groups. The ties between the Chickasaw and the proto-Creeks were fairly strong, which helped the English to discover a new market among the Chickasaw to the far west. Woodward was involved in this initial stage of English-Chickasaw relations, but he died before the first adventurous traders traveled to Chickasaw territory in the early 1690s.
The lower Chattahoochee River region had previously been contacted by Spain and was considered a potential mission province known as the Apalachicola Province. A visit by Woodward in 1685 sparked a Spanish reaction. Lieutenant Governor Antonio Matheos led a force of 6 Spanish soldiers and as many as 200 gun-toting Apalachee
Indians from Mission San Luis de Apalachee
in western Florida to the lower Chattahoochee towns. The English traders hid or fled. The following year, 1686, Matheos returned with a larger force, marching from town to town and confiscating firearms, deerskins, and other trade goods. Matheos offered the towns of "Apalachicola Province" the chance to submit to Spanish authority. Eight towns did so. The four that did not, including Coweta and Cussita, were burned to the ground. Following this, the four towns grudgingly pledged their obedience to Spain. Within years, English traders from South Carolina were again active among these towns, but, in 1690, Henry Woodward died in Charles Town.
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
colonist of colonial South Carolina
Province of Carolina
The Province of Carolina, originally chartered in 1629, was an English and later British colony of North America. Because the original Heath charter was unrealized and was ruled invalid, a new charter was issued to a group of eight English noblemen, the Lords Proprietors, in 1663...
. He was instrumental in establishing relationships with many Native American Indians
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
in the American southeast
Southeastern United States
The Southeastern United States, colloquially referred to as the Southeast, is the eastern portion of the Southern United States. It is one of the most populous regions in the United States of America....
. He was a pioneer in initiating trade, primarily in deerskins
Deerskin trade
The deerskin trade between Colonial America and the Native Americans was one of the most important trading relationships between Europeans and Native Americans, especially in the southeast. It was a form of the fur trade, but less known, since deer skins were not as valuable as furs from the north...
and slaves, with many Indian towns and tribes.
Early life
Not much is known about Henry Woodward's early life. He is thought to have been born in BarbadosBarbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
. His ancestry may have been Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
. His father was William Woodward (b. 1704) and his mother was Esther Martin (b. 1704).
In 1666, Henry Woodward accompanied Captain Robert Sandford's exploration of the South Carolina coast. Woodward volunteered to remain in the Port Royal Sound
Port Royal Sound
Port Royal Sound is a coastal sound, or inlet of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the Sea Islands region, in Beaufort County in the U.S. state of South Carolina...
vicinity and live among the Cusabo
Cusabo
The Cusabo were a group of historic Native American tribes who lived along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean in what is now South Carolina, approximately between present-day Charleston and south to the Savannah River, at the time of European encounter. English colonists often referred to them as the...
Indians, to establish relations and learn their language. For this he was granted, temporarily, "formall possession of the whole Country to hold as Tennant att Will" by the Lords Proprietors.
Captured by Spanish
In 1667 Woodward was captured by the Spanish of [Spanish Florida], taken to St. Augustine, FloridaSt. Augustine, Florida
St. Augustine is a city in the northeast section of Florida and the county seat of St. Johns County, Florida, United States. Founded in 1565 by Spanish explorer and admiral Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, it is the oldest continuously occupied European-established city and port in the continental United...
and held captive for about a year. As a prisoner he was well-treated. He professed Catholicism and was made official surgeon. During this time he learned about the thriving Spanish-Indian trading system. This experience helped him in rapidly establishing an English trading system after he regained his freedom.
Woodward escaped in 1668, after the English buccaneer
Buccaneer
The buccaneers were privateers who attacked Spanish shipping in the Caribbean Sea during the late 17th century.The term buccaneer is now used generally as a synonym for pirate...
and privateer
Privateer
A privateer is a private person or ship authorized by a government by letters of marque to attack foreign shipping during wartime. Privateering was a way of mobilizing armed ships and sailors without having to spend public money or commit naval officers...
Robert Searle raided St. Augustine. For about two years Woodward served as surgeon on privateer vessels in the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
before being shipwrecked on Nevis
Nevis
Nevis is an island in the Caribbean Sea, located near the northern end of the Lesser Antilles archipelago, about 350 km east-southeast of Puerto Rico and 80 km west of Antigua. The 93 km² island is part of the inner arc of the Leeward Islands chain of the West Indies...
in August of 1669. He then took passage on the Carolina fleet of 1669-1670, which established Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
. Henry Woodward became an interpreter and Indian agent for the fledgling colony. Starting in 1670, Woodward began taking a series of expeditions into the interior, making contact with various Indian groups. While a few Spanish expeditions had explored the interior of the American southeast in the sixteenth century, Woodward was the first British colonist to do so.
Westo and Shawnee
The WestoWesto
The Westo were a Native American tribe encountered in the Southeast by Europeans in the 17th century. They probably spoke an Iroquoian language. The Spanish called these people Chichimeco , and, Virginia colonists may have called the same people Richahecrian...
Indians were initially hostile to the new colony of South Carolina. In October of 1674 some Westo Indians visited Woodward, who was widely known among the Indians, at St. Giles plantation on the head of the Ashley River. They requested he travel with them to their village (Hickauhaugau) on the Savannah River
Savannah River
The Savannah River is a major river in the southeastern United States, forming most of the border between the states of South Carolina and Georgia. Two tributaries of the Savannah, the Tugaloo River and the Chattooga River, form the northernmost part of the border...
. During this visit Woodward initiated a trading relationship between Carolina and the Westo. While in Hickauhaugau Woodward witnessed the arrival of two Shawnee
Shawnee
The Shawnee, Shaawanwaki, Shaawanooki and Shaawanowi lenaweeki, are an Algonquian-speaking people native to North America. Historically they inhabited the areas of Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Western Maryland, Kentucky, Indiana, and Pennsylvania...
Indians. These Shawnee had probably migrated to the Apalachicola River
Apalachicola River
The Apalachicola River is a river, approximately 112 mi long in the State of Florida. This river's large watershed, known as the ACF River Basin for short, drains an area of approximately into the Gulf of Mexico. The distance to its farthest headstream in northeast Georgia is approximately 500...
region in the 1640s in order to trade with the Spanish and perhaps to escape the Iroquois wars in the north. Using sign language, the Shawnee warned the Westo of impending attack from the "Cussetaws, Checsaws, & Chiokees," earning the goodwill of the Westo. Later the Apalachicola Shawnee migrated to the Savannah River area, approached Henry Woodward privately and established a relationship that eventually doomed the Westo. These Shawnee became known in South Carolina as the "Savannah" Indians. When war broke out between the Westo and South Carolina in 1679, the Savannah Shawnee assisted South Carolina. By 1680 the Westo had been decimated and the Savannah Shawnee moved into their lands along the lower Savannah River.
In April of 1677, South Carolina's Lords Proprietors, claiming a monopoly on Indian trade, forbade all trade with the Indians and the Spanish, except by their official agents. The destruction of the Westo left Woodward out of favor with the colony's Lords Proprietors. In 1682 Woodward got shot in the head but still manage to travelled to England, where he not only obtained a pardon, but an official position as Indian agent for the Lords Proprietors. Woodward agreed to conduct the Indian trade for the proprietors in return for 20% of the profits.
Stuarts Town and the Yamasee
A group of Scots founded a settlement, called Stuarts Town, in the Port Royal SoundPort Royal Sound
Port Royal Sound is a coastal sound, or inlet of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the Sea Islands region, in Beaufort County in the U.S. state of South Carolina...
area of South Carolina in 1684. The Scots of Stuarts Town and the English of Charles Town never got along. The Scots asserted their independence by initiating their own Indian trade, establishing a strong alliance with the powerful and newly arrived Yamasee
Yamasee
The Yamasee were a multiethnic confederation of Native Americans that lived in the coastal region of present-day northern coastal Georgia near the Savannah River and later in northeastern Florida.-History:...
Indians. In 1685, Henry Woodward found himself arrested in Stuarts Town while passing through the area on mission to the "proto-Creeks
Creek people
The Muscogee , also known as the Creek or Creeks, are a Native American people traditionally from the southeastern United States. Mvskoke is their name in traditional spelling. The modern Muscogee live primarily in Oklahoma, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida...
" of the Chattahoochee River
Chattahoochee River
The Chattahoochee River flows through or along the borders of the U.S. states of Georgia, Alabama, and Florida. It is a tributary of the Apalachicola River, a relatively short river formed by the confluence of the Chattahoochee and Flint Rivers and emptying into Apalachicola Bay in the Gulf of...
. His arrest was apparently due to the desire of Lord Cardross
Lord Cardross
Lord Cardross is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, since 1695 a subsidiary title of the earldom of Buchan. It was created in 1606 for John Erskine, 18th Earl of Mar, with remainder to his heirs male and assignees whatsoever and with the power to nominate his successor...
of Stuarts Town to control trade with the Creek. Woodward was soon released and seems to have assisted the Stuarts Town Scots and their Yamasee Indian allies. Although part of the English Charles Town faction, Woodward may have been Scottish himself.
The Yamasee, backed by the Stuarts Town Scots, conducted a series of devastating raids on the Spanish mission province of Guale
Guale
Guale was an historic Native American chiefdom along the coast of present-day Georgia and the Sea Islands. Spanish Florida established its Roman Catholic missionary system in the chiefdom in the late 16th century. During the late 17th century and early 18th century, Guale society was shattered...
and then proceeded to invade the province of Timucua
Timucua
The Timucua were a Native American people who lived in Northeast and North Central Florida and southeast Georgia. They were the largest indigenous group in that area and consisted of about 35 chiefdoms, many leading thousands of people. The various groups of Timucua spoke several dialects of the...
in Florida, bringing back many Indian slaves to sell to the Scots of Stuarts Town. Woodward, once back in Charles Town, was among those who loudly denounced the Stuarts Town settlement for these events. The Yamasee raids soon brought a Spanish counterattack that destroyed Stuarts Town. It is likely, however, that Woodward profited from the Yamasee raids, and even assisted. In denouncing the Scots he was probably taking the Charles Town side in the political dispute between Charles Town and Stuarts Town.
By 1684 the Spanish mission province of Guale was in ruins and generally abandoned.
Trade with Chattahoochee River Indians
Starting perhaps as early as 1675, and definitely by the mid-1680s, Woodward was traveling to the southwest of modern GeorgiaGeorgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, visiting the Indian towns along the lower Chattahoochee River
Chattahoochee River
The Chattahoochee River flows through or along the borders of the U.S. states of Georgia, Alabama, and Florida. It is a tributary of the Apalachicola River, a relatively short river formed by the confluence of the Chattahoochee and Flint Rivers and emptying into Apalachicola Bay in the Gulf of...
such as Coweta
Coweta
Coweta can refer to:* Coweta, one of the principal towns of the Creek Nation* Coweta, Oklahoma, United States**Coweta Public Schools**Coweta High School* Coweta County, Georgia, United States...
and Cussita (later to be key towns of the Creek Nation). He led a dozen other Charles Town traders to the Chattahoochee Indians. These traders took over the business after Woodward's death.
During these trips Woodward discovered some Chickasaw
Chickasaw
The Chickasaw are Native American people originally from the region that would become the Southeastern United States...
Indians who had married into the Chattahoochee River "proto-Creek" groups. The ties between the Chickasaw and the proto-Creeks were fairly strong, which helped the English to discover a new market among the Chickasaw to the far west. Woodward was involved in this initial stage of English-Chickasaw relations, but he died before the first adventurous traders traveled to Chickasaw territory in the early 1690s.
The lower Chattahoochee River region had previously been contacted by Spain and was considered a potential mission province known as the Apalachicola Province. A visit by Woodward in 1685 sparked a Spanish reaction. Lieutenant Governor Antonio Matheos led a force of 6 Spanish soldiers and as many as 200 gun-toting Apalachee
Apalachee
The Apalachee are a Native American people who historically lived in the Florida Panhandle, and now live primarily in the U.S. state of Louisiana. Their historical territory was known to the Spanish colonists as the Apalachee Province...
Indians from Mission San Luis de Apalachee
Mission San Luis de Apalachee
Mission San Luis de Apalachee was a Spanish Franciscan mission built in 1633 in the Florida Panhandle, two miles west of the present-day Florida Capitol Building in Tallahassee, Florida. It was located in the descendent settlement of Anhaica capital of Apalachee Province...
in western Florida to the lower Chattahoochee towns. The English traders hid or fled. The following year, 1686, Matheos returned with a larger force, marching from town to town and confiscating firearms, deerskins, and other trade goods. Matheos offered the towns of "Apalachicola Province" the chance to submit to Spanish authority. Eight towns did so. The four that did not, including Coweta and Cussita, were burned to the ground. Following this, the four towns grudgingly pledged their obedience to Spain. Within years, English traders from South Carolina were again active among these towns, but, in 1690, Henry Woodward died in Charles Town.
External links
- Beginnings of the Fur Trade in the Carolinas, Native American Voices, Digital History.