Woodward, William Elliot (1825-1892), He was born October 29, 1825 in Oxford, Maine, son of Captain Caleb Woodward and his second wife, Hannah Cary. During his early career he lived in Middletown, Connecticut, 16 miles south of Hartford where he was engaged in the insurance business. He married Clarissa Eliza Roys on June 26, 1848 while in Norfolk, Connecticut. That same year he moved opening the Mount Pleasant Apothecary Shop at 258-260 Dudley St. corner of Dearborn, Roxbury, Boston Highlands, Massachusetts. A pharmacist by trade he began collecting coins and other curios early on. In 1851 they had a son born on April 12th whom they named Harlow Elliot Woodward. September 1856 they had a second son, Clarence Elliot Woodward. On February 3, 1858, W. Elliot Woodward became a member of the New England Historic Genealogical Society. Their third child Claribel only lived about 12 to 18 months and was buried on July 22, 1861.
William Elliot was both a collector and a dealer but also sold stamps, books, antiques and other collectibles and was a real-estate developer. His interest in books included reprinting antique documents and publication. In 1864 he reprinted Records of Salem Witchcraft, copied from the original documents, in two volumes. Also in 1864, he issued a Catalogue of a Choice Collection of American and English Books. In October 1864 he held his Fifth Semi Annual Sale. In 1865, W. Elliot had printed two volumes by Franklin Benjamin Hough (1822-1885). One was "Washingtoniana or, Memorials of the death of George Washington, giving an account of the funeral honors paid to his memory, with a list of tracts and volumes printed upon the occasion, and a catalogue of medals commemorating the event." The other was "Bibliographical list of books and pamphlets, containing eulogies, orations, poems or other papers, relating to the death of General Washington, or to the honors paid to his memory." Also in 1865, he had published works edited by Samuel Gardner Drake (1798-1875). One was "Annals of Witchcraft in New England and Elsewhere in the United States, From Their First Settlement." Another was "The History of the Indian Wars in New England from the First Settlement to the Termination of the War with King Philip, in 1677."From the Original Work, by the Rev. William Hubbard, Carefully revisited, and accompanied with an historical preface, life and pedigree of the author, and extensive notes." In 1869 he published Bibliotheca Americana. In 1870 he published Henry Phillips, Historical Sketches of Paper Currency of the American Colonies Prior to the Adoption of the Federal Constitution.
In 1865, he had published works edited by Samuel Gardner Drake (1798-1875). One was "Annals of Witchcraft in New England and Elsewhere in the United States, From Their First Settlement." Another was "The History of the Indian Wars in New England from the First Settlement to the Termination of the War with King Philip, in 1677."From the Original Work, by the Rev. William Hubbard, Carefully revisited, and accompanied with an historical preface, life and pedigree of the author, and extensive notes."
W. Elliot published another work compiled by Samuel Drake, "The witchcraft delusion in New England; its rise, progress, and termination, as exhibited by Dr. Cotton Mather in The wonders of the invisible world, and by Mr. Robert Calef in his More wonders of the invisible world." He also published this year, "Memoir upon the Late War in North America, Between the French and English, 1755-60? by Pierre Pouchot."
The year 1869 saw the publication by L. B. Weston of W. Elliot's 668-page "Bibliotheca Americana. Catalogue of the library of W. Elliot Woodward of Boston Highlands, Mass.
In 1870, W. Elliot published Henry Phillips' (1838-1895) "Historical sketches of the paper currency of the American colonies prior to the adoption of the Federal Constitution ; first series." The "second series" was published in 1909.
