William Woodrow Peasley (1913 - 1999)

Born 12 Jun 1913 in Bloomington, McLean, Illinois, United States

Ancestors

Son of James Arthur Johnson and Lucy Frances (Knight) Peasley

Husband of Nettie A. (Kerchner) Mahar — married 28 Sep 1933 (to about 1938) in Odell, Livingston, Illinois, United States

Husband of Esther Virginia (Hagenson) Peasley — married 6 Jul 1940 in Clinton, Clinton, Iowa, United States

Died 7 Mar 1999 at age 85 in Clinton, Clinton, Iowa, United States

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Biography

This profile is part of the Peasley Name Study.

Woodrow was born William Woodrow Peasley on the 12th of June 1913 in Bloomington, Illinois. Official records will name him as the youngest son of Granville and Lucy Francis Peasley. However, DNA evidence has revealed that his biological father is actually James Arthur Johnson. He was most often known by his middle name to close family. It is unknown where he spent his early life, as his whereabouts on the 1920 and 1930 census are unknown. His son states that he did not complete school, though, stopping at 8th grade after his father, Granville, died.

At some point in his life, Woodrow unofficially changed his first name from William to Joseph.

On the 28th of September 1933, Woodrow married Nettie A. Kerchner in Odell, Illinois. The couple had three children together.^[1] Their marriage ended some time around 1938. Woodrow moved the Iowa some time after this.

Woodrow remarried to Esther Virginia Hagenson on the 6th of July 1940 in Clinton, Iowa.^[2] The couple had 5 children together and remained married the rest of their lives.

Woodrow worked a variety of jobs in his life. He was provider for the family and would even work multiple jobs at a time. These jobs included an insulation installer for Rockwool Installation, and over the road trucker for Northwestern Steel in Sterling, and in the LP industry for Dri-Gas. Woodrow eventually retired from Thermogas Company. Despite being a smoker most of his life, Woodrow was a relatively healthy man.

Woodrow passed away on the 7th of March 1999 in Clinton, Iowa from a ruptured abdominal aneurysm he was diagnosed with years earlier.^[3] He is buried in the Clinton Lawn Cemetery in Clinton alongside his second wife.^[4]

Woodrow was remembered as a great father and husband who took time to spend with his children and his wife. He enjoyed fishing trips as well as summer vacation trips with his family. His son considered him the smartest man he knew despite Woodrow not completing school, having a lot of life experience in its stead. He always had a big smile and endless jokes, often to the point that he was the life of Peasley family reunions.

DNA Confirmation

• Relationship to both parents is confirmed by an AncestryDNA positive test match between Steve Peasley and a living Armstrong relative, first cousins. Their closest common ancestors are James Arthur Johnson and Lucy Francis Knight, their grandparents. Estimated AncestryDNA match: 9% with 637cM shared across 24 segments.

Sources

1. ↑ Ancestry.com U.S., Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s-current Lehi, UT, USA, Ancestry.com Operations Inc. 2020
2. ↑ Ancestry.com Iowa, U.S., Marriage Records, 1880-1951, Lehi, UT, USA Ancestry.com Operations Inc. 2004
3. ↑ "United States Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:J259-JMZ : 9 January 2021), Joseph W Peasley, 07 Mar 1999; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).
4. ↑ "Find A Grave Index," database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVV3-6T26 : 9 June 2021), Joseph Woodrow Peasley, ; Burial, Clinton, Clinton, Iowa, United States of America, Clinton Lawn Cemetery; citing record ID 6366729, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com.

• Peasley, Steven. Personal Recollection as remembered Jul 2022 via conversations over Facebook.

• Kirkley, Jackie. Personal Recollection as remembered Jul 2022 via conversations over Facebook.