hegnauer.family
H0101 The study's number for this person. Cite it and it will always lead here, whatever the spelling.
· A life in the study

Woodrow Elgia Wilson

Born at Bernice in 1917, served in the army, 1942–45, and died at Puyallup in 1966.

born 29 Aug 1917 at Bernice, Delaware died 2 Nov 1966 at Puyallup, Pierce

Also written Woodrow Elzer Wilson, Elza W. Willson, Elzie W. Wilson

Delaware County, Oklahoma

Woodrow Elgia Wilson was born on 29 August 1917 at Bernice, in Delaware County, Oklahoma, a son of James Israel Wilson and Lucy M. Harris.1–3 He shared his first name with the President of the day. Delaware County lies on the Missouri line, and the census of 1920 gives Missouri as the birthplace of all the children, Woodrow included, but in every later record he is Oklahoma-born, and on his draft card he named the town, Bernice (see Research Notes).1, 4

In January 1920 the census taker found the family, whose name he spelled Willson, on a farm in the Bernice precinct of Delaware County. James, 37, had been born in Arkansas and Lucy, 35, in Missouri, and they had nine children at home: Cyril, 15; Tulla, 13; Helen, 12; Floyd, 10; Odis, 6; Ruth, 4; Jewel, 3; two-year-old Woodrow, entered as "Elza W."; and the baby, Millie.3 Ten years later he was "Elzie W.", so as a boy he seems to have gone by his middle name.4

Grays Harbor

"Wilson was born in Oklahoma and came to the Northwest as a boy," the newspaper wrote when he died.5 By April 1930 the family was living at Junction, in Grays Harbor County, Washington: James, 48, and Lucy, 45, with Floyd, Odis, Ruth, Woodrow, Millie and the youngest, Roy. Woodrow, thirteen, was at school.4 He went as far as the eighth grade, and by 1935 he was living in Aberdeen, the largest town on the harbor, which was to be his home for most of his life.6 His mother, Lucy, died in 1940 and his father, James, in 1941.7

“Wilson was born in Oklahoma and came to the Northwest as a boy,”

Marriage and work in Aberdeen

On 7 October 1939, at Aberdeen, Woodrow married Lucille Lorraine Lueck, known as Lorraine, a Wisconsin-born girl who had turned eighteen the week before.6, 8 When the census taker came the following April, they were renting a house at 318 South Michigan Street for $15 a month. Woodrow, 22, was a laborer on WPA street construction; he had found 28 weeks of work in 1939 and earned $264. Lorraine was 18. Sharing the house were his brother Floyd, 30, and an infant niece, eight months old.6

On 16 October 1940 Woodrow registered for the draft at Aberdeen. He was living on West Curtis Street and working for the Grays Harbor Chair Factory in Hoquiam, and he named his wife, "Mrs. Lucille Lorraine Wilson", as the person who would always know his address, giving her address as 1112 Tecumseh Street. The registrar described him as 5 feet 8 inches tall and 137 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes, and he signed the card "Woodrow Elgia Wilson".1 Woodrow and Lorraine had three children, all born at Aberdeen between 1940 and 1942: a daughter (living), Bonita Jean, known as Bonnie, born on 13 June 1941, and a younger child (living).9

Army service

Woodrow enlisted in the Army at Tacoma on 23 July 1942 as a selectee. The Army recorded a married man from Grays Harbor County with a grammar-school education who had worked in furniture manufacturing, and gave him the service number 39183940.10 He entered active service on 5 August 1942 and served as a private in the 470th Ordnance Evacuation Company,11 a kind of ordnance unit whose work was recovering disabled tanks and vehicles and bringing them back for repair. Where the company served has not yet been traced. While he was away, on 25 April 1943, his three children were baptized together at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Seattle, with Woodrow Elgia Wilson and Lorraine L. Lueck entered as their parents.9 By the autumn the marriage was over: on 19 October 1943, at Chehalis, Lorraine, as Lucille Lorraine Wilson, married Merlin Godfrey.12 He was discharged on 20 October 1945.1, 11

After the war

Woodrow came home to Grays Harbor. By early 1950 he was living at Pittsburg, in southeastern Kansas, and on 18 March 1950, at Bentonville, Arkansas, just across the state line, he married Mary Ann Worek, a Joliet-born daughter of Polish immigrants, then using the surname of her first husband, Chrisman. Both were thirty-two, and a justice of the peace married them.13–14 They had four children, born between 1950 and 1957 (living), and by the mid-1950s the family was back on Grays Harbor.5 The marriage later ended; how and when has not been found. On 24 September 1964, at Aberdeen, he married Ruth Eileen (Lefaive) Evans, born at Portland, Oregon, in 1919, who had been married before.15–16 Four months later Mary Ann married William D. Evans, who was probably Ruth's former husband (see their profiles). Most of his working life was spent in the wood industries of western Washington, from the chair factory at Hoquiam before the war to the Weyerhaeuser Company's White River mill at Enumclaw at the end. In September 1966 he left Aberdeen for Pierce County, and he was living at 14018 80th Street East in Puyallup and working at the White River mill as a millworker.1–2, 5

Death

Woodrow died by suicide at his home in Puyallup on 2 November 1966, at the age of 49.2, 17 He was found the next afternoon by Ruth, from whom he was then estranged, and it is that date, 3 November, that she gave on the application for his military headstone and that is carved on his stone (see Research Notes).5, 11 His funeral was held at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, 8 November, at the Elerding Funeral Home in Aberdeen, and he was buried that day in Fern Hill Cemetery.2, 18 His grave has the flat granite government marker, with a Latin cross, that Ruth requested: "PVT US ARMY / WORLD WAR II".7, 11

He was survived by his wife, Ruth; by two sons and five daughters (living) and six grandchildren; by three sisters, Mrs. Clarence Fulbright (probably Helen) and Mrs. Joe Pearson (Millie), both of Aberdeen, and Mrs. Ruth Martin (Ruth) of Westport; and by a brother, Otis (Odis), of Aberdeen.5

What we know

Proven

  • Birth at Bernice, 1917
  • Marriage to Lucille Lorraine Lueck at Aberdeen, 1939
  • Occupation at Aberdeen, 1940
  • Military service at Aberdeen, 1940
  • Occupation at Hoquiam, 1940
  • Military service at Tacoma, 1942
  • and 6 more
  • 9 homes, from the census and other records

What's still open

  • Name. He signed his draft card "Woodrow Elgia Wilson", and the 1943 baptism register gives the same full name.
  • First marriage. Only index entries have been seen for the marriage of 7 Oct 1939; the Grays Harbor County record itself has not been viewed.
  • Mary Ann Worek. Woodrow married Mary Ann Worek (1918–1994) at Bentonville, Benton County, Arkansas, on 18 Mar 1950; she is entered under her first married name, Mary Chrisman, and both gave their home as Pittsburg, Kansas.
  • 1950 census. Not found. Since the marriage record places the couple at Pittsburg, Crawford County, Kansas, in March 1950, the next search should be the April 1950 census of Pittsburg and Crawford County.

Sources

Sources 1–3

1 U.S., WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 2040

"U.S., WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940–1947," database with images, Ancestry.com, Woodrow Elgia Wilson, serial number 2040, order number 350, registered 16 October 1940, Aberdeen, Grays Harbor County, Washington: address 416 W. Curtis St. (struck through and replaced by 510 E. Market), Aberdeen; age 23; born Aug. 29, 1917, Bernice, Okla.; person who will always know his address, his wife, Mrs. Lucille Lorraine Wilson, 1112 Tecumseh, Aberdeen; employer Grays Harbor Chair Factory, Hoquiam; signed "Woodrow Elgia Wilson"; 5 ft 8 in, 137 lb, light brown complexion, brown hair, brown eyes; stamped "Discharged – U.S. Army – 10-20-45"; image 44045_02_00010-00215; citing National Archives at St. Louis, Record Group 147.

2 Washington State Department of Health, Certificate of Death, 1966

Washington State Department of Health, Certificate of Death, state file no. 25670 (1966), registrar's no. 29, Woodrow E. Wilson: died 2 November 1966 at his residence, 14018 80th St. East, Puyallup, Pierce County (one month there); male; white; married; born 8-29-1917, Oklahoma; age 49; usual occupation millworker, business "Weyerhauser White River"; father and mother "unobtainable"; served in the armed forces, World War II; informant his wife, Mrs. R. E. Wilson, Puyallup; cause asphyxiation due to carbon monoxide poisoning; suicide; no autopsy; certified by the Pierce County coroner, 7 November 1966; burial 8 November 1966, Fern Hill Cemetery, Aberdeen; funeral director Powers Funeral Home, Puyallup; received by the local registrar 7 November 1966; image, Washington State Archives, Digital Archives, "Death Certificates, 1907–2001," reference DE_1966025670 (digitalarchives.wa.gov/Record/View/B5C331E6A6EDAE8AE447CB42F27C2637). Also indexed in the Digital Archives' "Death Index, 1907–1960; 1965–2024" (digitalarchives.wa.gov/Record/View/6D2AC45ABB885F989D62CC55EDC223D3).

3 1920 U.S. Federal Census, Township 5

1920 U.S. Federal Census, Township 5 (Bernice precinct), Delaware County, Oklahoma, E.D. 22, sheet 10A, lines 17–27, enumerated 29–30 January 1920, "Elza W Willson" (son, 2, born Missouri) in the household of James I. Willson (head, 37, born Arkansas; farm), with Lucy M. (wife, 35, born Missouri) and their children Cyril (15), Tulla D. (13), Hellen A. (12), Floyd P. (10), Odis A. (6), Ruth E. (4), Jewel L. (3), Elza W. (2) and Millie M. (under one year), all born Missouri; NARA T625, roll 1458; image 4385099_00298; database with images, Ancestry.com.

Source 4

4 1930 U.S. Federal Census, Junction

1930 U.S. Federal Census, Junction, Grays Harbor County, Washington, E.D. 45, sheet 2A, dwelling 31, family 34, "Elzie W Wilson" (son, 13, born Oklahoma, attending school) in the household of James I. Wilson (head, 48), with Lucy M. (wife, 45) and their children Floyd P. (19), Odis A. (16), Ruth E. (14), Elzie W. (13), Millie M. (10) and Roy K. (9); FHL microfilm 2342222; database with images, Ancestry.com (index read).

Source 5

5 The News Tribune, 1966

"Man Found Dead In His Auto," The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington), 4 November 1966, p. 40 (C-14): Woodrow E. Wilson, 49, of Puyallup, who came to the area from Aberdeen in September, was found dead Thursday afternoon [3 November]; born in Oklahoma, he came to the Northwest as a boy; millworker for the Weyerhaeuser Company's White River mill at Enumclaw; Army veteran of World War II; survived by his wife, two sons and five daughters [names withheld: living], three sisters, Mrs. Clarence Fulbright and Mrs. Joe Pearson, both of Aberdeen, and Mrs. Ruth Martin, of Westport, a brother, Otis, of Aberdeen, and six grandchildren; services to be announced by the Powers Wrigley Clements Funeral Home, Puyallup; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/734891548).

Source 6

6 1940 U.S. Federal Census, Aberdeen, 1935

1940 U.S. Federal Census, Aberdeen, Grays Harbor County, Washington, E.D. 14-18, sheet 5A, household 115, 318 South Michigan [Street], rented at $15 a month: Woodrow Wilson (head, 22, married, born Oklahoma; residence in 1935 Aberdeen; eighth grade; laborer, street construction, WPA; 16 weeks unemployed; 28 weeks worked and $264 earned in 1939), with his wife Lorraine (18), his brother Floyd (30) and a niece (8 months per the image; indexed as 30); roll m-t0627-04340; database with images, Ancestry.com.

Source 7

7 Find a Grave, memorial 43766012, 1917

Find a Grave, memorial 43766012, Woodrow Elzer Wilson (29 Aug 1917 – 3 Nov 1966), Fern Hill Cemetery, Aberdeen, Grays Harbor County, Washington, plot 153/10/9th Addition; photograph of the marker by S Ragland; linked to the memorials of his parents, James Israel Wilson (1882–1941) and Lucy M. Harris Wilson (1883–1940), and his brother Odis Alfred Wilson Sr. (1913–1996) (findagrave.com/memorial/43766012). Indexed in "U.S., Find a Grave Index," Ancestry.com. The photograph is also shared in Ancestry member trees.

Source 8

8 Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1939

"Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1854–2013," database, Ancestry.com, Woodrow E Wilson and Lorraine L Lueck, married 7 October 1939, Aberdeen, Grays Harbor County, Washington; citing the Washington State Archives. Also Washington State Archives, Digital Archives, "Grays Harbor County Auditor, Marriage Records, 1871–Present," document swgrhmc13210 (index entry; no image). A second Ancestry index of the same record (groom's line, record 48143, "Digital Archives ref. swgrhmc13210") gives Woodrow E Wilson, married 7 October 1939, Aberdeen, spouse Lorraine L Lueck (index read 27 September 2026).

Source 9

9 U.S., Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Church Records, 1943

"U.S., Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Church Records, 1781–1969," database with images, Ancestry.com, Immanuel Lutheran Church, Seattle, Washington, register of baptisms, 1943, entries 2286–2288: three children of Woodrow Elgia Wilson and Lorraine L. Lueck, born at Aberdeen between 1940 and 1942, all baptised 25 April 1943, among them Bonita Jean Wilson, born 13 June 1941, Aberdeen (record 4283685; the other two are living and not named here); sponsors Mrs. Signa Jasper and Mr. Hubert Jasper; image 41742_314153-00318; citing the ELCA Archives. The father's index lines include record 154283685, Woodrow Elgia Wilson, spouse Lorraine L Lueck (index read 27 September 2026).

Source 10

10 U.S., WWII Army Enlistment Records, 1942

"U.S., WWII Army Enlistment Records, 1938–1946," database, Ancestry.com, Woodrow E Wilson, service number 39183940, enlisted 23 July 1942 at Tacoma, Washington, as a private; selectee from civil life; born 1917, Oklahoma; residence Grays Harbor County, Washington; white; married; grammar school; civil occupation "unskilled occupations in manufacture of furniture"; height 67 [in.], weight 132; citing the National Archives' Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, 1938–1946.

Source 11

11 U.S., Headstone Applications for Military Veterans, 1942

"U.S., Headstone Applications for Military Veterans," database with images, Ancestry.com, application for a headstone (DD Form 1330) for Woodrow E. Wilson, service number 39183940, World War II: enlisted 5 August 1942 and discharged 20 October 1945 (both corrected in red from the applicant's approximate dates); Pvt., U.S. Army, 470 Ord Evac Co [470th Ordnance Evacuation Company]; decorations none; born Aug. 29, 1917; died Nov. 3, 1966; flat granite marker with a Latin cross, for Fern Hill Cemetery, Aberdeen, Washington; applicant his wife, Ruth E. Wilson, 14018 80th St. East, Puyallup, signed 22 November 1966; consignee Harry Gylland, office manager, Aberdeen; verified 1 December 1966; ordered 29 December 1966; image 2375_13_00009-04135.

Source 12

12 Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1921

"Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1854–2013," database, Ancestry.com, Lucille Lorraine Wilson [née Lucille Lorraine Lueck], age 22, born about 1921, Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, married Merlin Godfrey, 19 October 1943, Chehalis, Lewis County, Washington; father Herbert Lueck; mother Signia [Sigrid] Lueck (index read 27 September 2026; the image not viewed).

Sources 13–14

13 Arkansas, U.S., Marriage Certificates, 1950

"Arkansas, U.S., Marriage Certificates, 1917–1972," database with images, Ancestry.com, statistical transcript of marriage certificate no. 5111, Benton County, Arkansas: Woodrow E. Wilson, 32, of Pittsburg, Crawford, Kansas, and Mary Chrisman, 32, of Pittsburg, Crawford, Kansas, married at Bentonville, 3/18/50, by a justice of the peace; Arkansas Department of Vital Records, 1950, film 2; image 61775_01_00657-01101 (collection 61775, record 91081101).

14 Arkansas, U.S., County Marriages Index, 1918

"Arkansas, U.S., County Marriages Index, 1837–1957," database, Ancestry.com, Mary Chrisman, age 32, born about 1918, of Pittsburg, Crawford, Kansas, married Woodrow E Wilson, 18 Mar 1950, Benton County; FHL film 1994614 (collection 2548, record 3326711).

Sources 15–16

15 Washington State Archives, Digital Archives, 1871

Washington State Archives, Digital Archives, "Grays Harbor County Auditor, Marriage Records, 1871–Present," Woodrow E Wilson and R. E. Evans, married 24 September 1964, Grays Harbor County, Washington, document swgrhmc28102 (index entry; no image) (digitalarchives.wa.gov/Record/View/3E62748F453D48F4704C3B20A3728E6A). Also indexed in "Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1854–2013," database, Ancestry.com, as Woodrow E Wilson and Ruth E Evans, 24 September 1964, Aberdeen, Grays Harbor County.

16 U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1919

"U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936–2007," database, Ancestry.com, Ruth Eileen Evans [also Ruth Eil Wilson; Ruth Windsnes; Ruth Eileen Lefaive], female, white, born 23 March 1919, Portland, Oregon; died 23 September 2005; father George I Lefaive; mother Edith G Brisco; name listed as Ruth Eileen Evans in November 1961, Ruth Eil Wilson in September 1964 and Ruth E Windsnes in August 1967 (index read 27 September 2026).

Source 17

17 Washington, U.S., Death Records, 1917

"Washington, U.S., Death Records, 1907–2017," database, Ancestry.com, Woodrow E Wilson, white, age 49, born 29 August 1917, Oklahoma; died 2 November 1966, Puyallup, Pierce County; certificate 25670 (the parents appear as "Unobtainable Wilson", an index artefact of the certificate's "unobtainable"). A second entry in the same database (record 957203, index read 27 September 2026) gives Woodrow E Wilson, male, residence Puyallup, died 2 November 1966, Puyallup, certificate 025670.

Source 18

18 Wilson, 1966

"Wilson," funeral notice, The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington), 7 November 1966, p. 42 (D-8): services for Woodrow E. Wilson Tuesday [8 November] at 1 p.m. at the Elerding Funeral Home, Aberdeen, burial in Fern Hill Cemetery, under the direction of the Powers Wrigley Clements Funeral Home, Puyallup; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/734893122). Indexed in "U.S., Newspapers.com Obituary Index," Ancestry.com, under a misread name, "Woodrow L. Wilson".

Life in time

29 Aug 1917

Birth , Bernice, Delaware, Oklahoma, United States

proven Sources 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 11, 17

How we know

The town is named only on his own WWII draft card (1940). Every later record gives Oklahoma; the 1920 census alone gives Missouri, which the family trees follow (see Research Notes). No birth record has been found.

The date, 29 Aug 1917, is in every record that states one: his own draft registration (1940), the headstone application and his death certificate (1966), and the Washington death index. It fits his ages in the censuses of 1920 (2) and 1940 (22) and at his death (49). For the place, on the draft card he signed he gave "Bernice, Okla." The censuses of 1930 and 1940, his Army enlistment record (1942), his death certificate and the 1966 newspaper report ("born in Oklahoma") all give Oklahoma. Only the 1920 census gives Missouri. It was taken in January 1920 in the Bernice precinct of Delaware County, Oklahoma, where the family was then farming, and it gives Missouri for all nine children; on his line and his sister Jewel's the word Oklahoma stands in the father's-birthplace column, perhaps a slip for the child's own. Bernice, Delaware County, Oklahoma, is accepted on the weight of the evidence, and Missouri is kept as an alternate. The town rests on his own statement, made at 23; no birth or delayed birth record has been found.

  1. 1917 Birth 29 Aug 1917 · Bernice, Delaware · proven

    The town is named only on his own WWII draft card (1940). Every later record gives Oklahoma; the 1920 census alone gives Missouri, which the family trees follow (see Research Notes). No birth record has been found.

    The date, 29 Aug 1917, is in every record that states one: his own draft registration (1940), the headstone application and his death certificate (1966), and the Washington death index. It fits his ages in the censuses of 1920 (2) and 1940 (22) and at his death (49). For the place, on the draft card he signed he gave "Bernice, Okla." The censuses of 1930 and 1940, his Army enlistment record (1942), his death certificate and the 1966 newspaper report ("born in Oklahoma") all give Oklahoma. Only the 1920 census gives Missouri. It was taken in January 1920 in the Bernice precinct of Delaware County, Oklahoma, where the family was then farming, and it gives Missouri for all nine children; on his line and his sister Jewel's the word Oklahoma stands in the father's-birthplace column, perhaps a slip for the child's own. Bernice, Delaware County, Oklahoma, is accepted on the weight of the evidence, and Missouri is kept as an alternate. The town rests on his own statement, made at 23; no birth or delayed birth record has been found.

    Sources 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 11, 17

  2. 1920 Residence Delaware County, Oklahoma · proven

    Township 5 (Bernice precinct), E.D. 22, a farm family; enumerated 29-30 Jan 1920. "Elza W.", son, 2, in the household of James I. Willson (37, born Arkansas) and Lucy M. (35, born Missouri), with eight brothers and sisters.

    His parents, James I. and Lucy M., and the brothers and sisters named again in the 1930 census and in his 1966 obituary identify the household. His age, 2, fits his August 1917 birth; the given names are reversed ("Elza W." for Woodrow E.; see Research Notes).

    Source 3

  3. 1930 Residence Grays Harbor County, Washington · proven

    "Junction" (E.D. 45), dwelling 31, family 34. "Elzie W.", son, 13, born Oklahoma, at school, in the household of James I. Wilson (48) and Lucy M. (45), with Floyd P. (19), Odis A. (16), Ruth E. (14), Millie M. (10) and Roy K. (9).

    His parents and five of the brothers and sisters of the 1920 household identify it. His age, 13, is a year too many for his birth in August 1917 (he was 12 in April 1930). The index was read; the image has not been viewed.

    Source 4

  4. 1935 Residence Aberdeen, Grays Harbor · proven

    His residence on 1 April 1935, from the 1940 census (Aberdeen; "same house" as in 1940 as the survey read it).

    His own line of the 1940 census.

    Source 6

  5. 1939 Marriage, with Lucille Lorraine Lueck 7 Oct 1939 · Aberdeen, Grays Harbor · proven

    Grays Harbor County marriage record, document swgrhmc13210 (index only; no image seen). She had just turned eighteen. Three children, born at Aberdeen between 1940 and 1942 (not named here), were baptised together in Seattle on 25 Apr 1943. The marriage had ended by 19 Oct 1943, when she married Merlin Godfrey at Chehalis as Lucille Lorraine Wilson; no divorce record has been found.

    Ancestry's index of Washington marriage records and the Washington State Digital Archives' index of the Grays Harbor County auditor's marriage records give the marriage of Woodrow E. Wilson and Lorraine L. Lueck on 7 Oct 1939. The April 1940 census lists his wife Lorraine, 18, born in Wisconsin, and on his draft card of Oct 1940 he named his wife, Mrs. Lucille Lorraine Wilson, as the person who would always know his address. The 1943 baptism register gives the parents of three children as Woodrow Elgia Wilson and Lorraine L. Lueck. Her own marriage record of Oct 1943 gives her as Lucille Lorraine Wilson, née Lueck.

    Sources 1, 6, 8, 9, 12

  6. 1940 Residence Aberdeen, Grays Harbor · proven

    318 South Michigan [Street] (E.D. 14-18), household 115; rented at $15 a month. Head, 22, married, born Oklahoma; had completed the eighth grade. With his wife Lorraine, 18, his brother Floyd, 30, and an infant niece (8 months, born in Washington; image read at the apply stage; the index misreads her age as 30).

    Woodrow Wilson, 22, born Oklahoma, with his wife Lorraine (married to him at Aberdeen in Oct 1939) and his brother Floyd, the Floyd P. of the 1920 and 1930 households. His age fits his 1917 birth.

    Source 6

  7. 1940 Occupation Aberdeen, Grays Harbor · proven

    Laborer, street construction, WPA (a government wage worker); 16 weeks unemployed; 28 weeks worked and $264 earned in 1939.

    His own line of the 1940 census.

    Source 6

  8. 1940 Military service 16 Oct 1940 · Aberdeen, Grays Harbor · proven

    World War II draft registration, serial number 2040, order number 350. 5 ft 8 in, 137 lb, brown hair, brown eyes, light brown complexion. The card was later stamped "Discharged – U.S. Army – 10-20-45".

    His own signed card, with his full name, his birth date and birthplace, and his wife as the person who would always know his address.

    Source 1

  9. 1940 Residence 16 Oct 1940 · Aberdeen, Grays Harbor · proven

    416 W. Curtis Street, struck through on the card and replaced by 510 E. Market [Street], a later change of address.

    His own draft registration.

    Source 1

  10. 1940 Occupation 16 Oct 1940 · Hoquiam, Grays Harbor · proven

    Employed by the Grays Harbor Chair Factory, Hoquiam.

    His draft card names the employer; his enlistment record of July 1942 gives his civil occupation as "unskilled occupations in manufacture of furniture".

    Sources 1, 10

  11. 1941 Daughter born: Bonita Jean Wilson family event

    Their page →

  12. 1942 Residence 23 Jul 1942 · Grays Harbor County, Washington · proven

    His county of residence when he enlisted (Army enlistment record).

    The residence field of his enlistment record.

    Source 10

  13. 1942 Military service 23 Jul 1942 · Tacoma, Pierce · proven

    Enlisted in the Army at Tacoma as a selectee from civil life; private; service number 39183940. Married; grammar school; civil occupation "unskilled occupations in manufacture of furniture"; height 67 in., weight 132 lb. The headstone application gives his entry into service as 5 Aug 1942 (see Research Notes).

    The Army's enlistment record (the National Archives' electronic Army serial number file) gives Woodrow E Wilson, born 1917 in Oklahoma, of Grays Harbor County, married, enlisted 23 Jul 1942 at Tacoma, with the service number that the Army verified on his headstone application. The furniture work matches the chair-factory employer on his draft card.

    Sources 10, 11

  14. 1942 Military service between 5 Aug 1942 and 20 Oct 1945 · proven

    Private, U.S. Army, 470th Ordnance Evacuation Company ("470 Ord Evac Co"); World War II. Entered service 5 Aug 1942; discharged 20 Oct 1945. No decorations listed.

    The headstone application (DD Form 1330), verified against his service record on 1 Dec 1966, gives his service number, rank, unit and the dates, which were corrected in red from the applicant's approximate ones ("Aug. ? 1942", "Sept. ? 1945"). The discharge date is also stamped on his draft card. His death certificate records service in World War II and the newspaper calls him an Army veteran of the war. Where the company served has not been traced.

    Sources 1, 2, 5, 11

  15. 1950 Residence Mar 1950 · Pittsburg, Crawford · proven

    At his marriage on 18 Mar 1950 he and his bride both gave their residence as Pittsburg, Crawford County, Kansas.

    Source 13

  16. 1950 Marriage, with Mary Ann Worek 18 Mar 1950 · Bentonville, Benton · proven

    The statistical transcript of Arkansas marriage certificate no. 5111 (Benton County) records the marriage of Woodrow E. Wilson and Mary Chrisman, both 32 and both of Pittsburg, Crawford County, Kansas, at Bentonville on 18 Mar 1950, by a justice of the peace; the county marriage index agrees and gives her birth year as 1918. Both ages fit exactly (he was born 29 Aug 1917, she 13 Mar 1918), Chrisman was her surname from her first marriage (1937), and her Social Security name history changes from Mary Worek Chrisman to Mary Wilson in 1950. The marriage had ended by Sep 1964, when he remarried; no divorce record has been found.

    Sources 13, 14

  17. 1964 Marriage, with Ruth Eileen Lefaive 24 Sep 1964 · Aberdeen, Grays Harbor · proven

    Grays Harbor County marriage record, document swgrhmc28102 (index only; no image seen); the bride indexed as R. E. and Ruth E. Evans, her surname from an earlier marriage (born Lefaive). They were estranged by Nov 1966, but she was his wife at his death: the informant for his death certificate and the applicant for his headstone.

    The Digital Archives and Ancestry indexes of the Grays Harbor County marriage records give the marriage of Woodrow E. Wilson and Ruth E. (R. E.) Evans at Aberdeen on 24 Sep 1964, and her Social Security record changes from Ruth Eileen Evans to Ruth Wilson in September 1964. She was the informant on his death certificate (Mrs. R. E. Wilson) and signed his headstone application as Ruth E. Wilson, his wife, in Nov 1966; the newspaper report of his death calls her his estranged wife.

    Sources 2, 5, 11, 15, 16

  18. 1966 Residence before Sep 1966 · Aberdeen, Grays Harbor · proven

    He "came to this area from Aberdeen in September" 1966 (newspaper report).

    The newspaper report of his death; his daughters were also "all of Aberdeen" then.

    Source 5

  19. 1966 Residence between Sep 1966 and 2 Nov 1966 · Puyallup, Pierce · proven

    14018 80th Street East, Puyallup, for one month before his death (death certificate; the newspaper prints "80th St. W.").

    His death certificate gives this address as both his usual residence and the place of death, with one month's stay. The newspaper gives the same number on 80th Street, and the headstone application of three weeks later is addressed from it.

    Sources 2, 5, 11

  20. 1966 Occupation before 2 Nov 1966 · Enumclaw, King · proven

    Millworker at the Weyerhaeuser Company's White River mill, Enumclaw ("Millworker", business "Weyerhauser White River", on the death certificate).

    His death certificate and the newspaper report agree on the work and the employer; the newspaper names the mill's town. When he began there is not known; he had moved from Aberdeen in September 1966.

    Sources 2, 5

  21. 1966 Death 2 Nov 1966 · Puyallup, Pierce · proven

    At his home, 14018 80th Street East, Puyallup, in his car; aged 49. Suicide: asphyxiation due to carbon monoxide poisoning, certified by the Pierce County coroner, who gave the time of death as 12:00 a.m.; no autopsy. He was found on the afternoon of 3 Nov 1966, the date on his headstone application and gravestone. Washington death certificate, state file 25670 (1966).

    His Washington death certificate (image read), certified by the Pierce County coroner on 7 Nov 1966, gives death on 2 Nov 1966 at Puyallup, Pierce County, aged 49, with his birth date and his wartime Army service; the Washington death index agrees. The newspaper report of 4 Nov says he was found on Thursday afternoon, that is 3 Nov, and 3 Nov is the date on the headstone application his widow completed three weeks later, and so on the stone, on Find a Grave and in the family trees. The coroner's date, recorded at the time on the official certificate, is preferred; 3 Nov is kept as the date he was found.

    Sources 2, 5, 7, 11, 17

  22. 1966 Burial 8 Nov 1966 · Aberdeen, Grays Harbor · proven

    Fern Hill Cemetery, plot "153/10/9th Addition" (Find a Grave memorial 43766012), after a service at 1 p.m. at the Elerding Funeral Home, Aberdeen, under the direction of the Powers Wrigley Clements Funeral Home, Puyallup. Government flat granite marker with a Latin cross: WOODROW E WILSON / WASHINGTON / PVT US ARMY / WORLD WAR II / AUG 29 1917 NOV 3 1966.

    The death certificate records burial on 11/8/66 at Fern Hill Cemetery, Aberdeen, and the funeral notice sets the service for Tuesday, 8 Nov, at 1 p.m. in Aberdeen, with burial in Fern Hill. The headstone application orders the flat marker for Fern Hill Cemetery, and Find a Grave gives the plot and a photograph of the stone.

    Sources 2, 7, 11, 18

  • proven
  • family event

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Places in this life

10 places, in order
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
  1. 1 Bernice, Delaware County Birth 29 Aug 1917
  2. 2 Delaware County, Oklahoma Residence 1920
  3. 3 Grays Harbor County, Washington Residence 1930 · Residence 23 Jul 1942
  4. 4 Aberdeen, Grays Harbor County Residence 1935 · Marriage 7 Oct 1939 · Residence 1940 · 6 more
  5. 5 Hoquiam, Grays Harbor County Occupation 16 Oct 1940
  6. 6 Tacoma, Pierce County Military service 23 Jul 1942
  7. 7 Pittsburg, Crawford County Residence Mar 1950
  8. 8 Bentonville, Benton County Marriage 18 Mar 1950
  9. 9 Puyallup, Pierce County Residence between Sep 1966 and 2 Nov 1966 · Death 2 Nov 1966
  10. 10 Enumclaw, King County Occupation before 2 Nov 1966

Hollow markers are placed approximately, at the town, county or region.

Family

Father James Israel Wilson 1882–1941 Mother Lucy M. Harris 1883–1940
This page Woodrow Elgia Wilson 1917–1966
Wife · m. 7 Oct 1939 Lucille Lorraine Lueck 1921–2000 Wife · m. 18 Mar 1950 Mary Ann Worek 1918–1994 Wife · m. 24 Sep 1964 Ruth Eileen Lefaive 1919–2005
Daughter Bonita Jean Wilson 1941–1996 Child Living Wilson living Child Living Wilson living Child Living Wilson living Child Living Wilson living Child Living Wilson living
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Records

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Deaths and burials 2 records · 1966
  • 4 Nov 1966 confirmed Obituary “Woodrow E. Wilson” Tacoma, Pierce County Newspapers.com · O06304
  • 7 Nov 1966 confirmed Funeral notice “Woodrow E. Wilson” Tacoma, Pierce County Newspapers.com · O06309
The evidence 21 facts with their grades, 19 sources, and the research notes

Facts

Fact Date Place Grade Sources
Birth 29 Aug 1917 Bernice, Delaware, Oklahoma, United States proven 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 10 , 11 , 17
Residence 1920 Delaware County, Oklahoma, United States proven 3
Residence 1930 Grays Harbor County, Washington, United States proven 4
Residence 1935 Aberdeen, Grays Harbor, Washington, United States proven 6
Marriage with Lucille Lorraine Lueck 7 Oct 1939 Aberdeen, Grays Harbor, Washington, United States proven 1 , 6 , 8 , 9 , 12
Residence 1940 Aberdeen, Grays Harbor, Washington, United States proven 6
Occupation 1940 Aberdeen, Grays Harbor, Washington, United States proven 6
Military service 16 Oct 1940 Aberdeen, Grays Harbor, Washington, United States proven 1
Residence 16 Oct 1940 Aberdeen, Grays Harbor, Washington, United States proven 1
Occupation 16 Oct 1940 Hoquiam, Grays Harbor, Washington, United States proven 1 , 10
Residence 23 Jul 1942 Grays Harbor County, Washington, United States proven 10
Military service 23 Jul 1942 Tacoma, Pierce, Washington, United States proven 10 , 11
Military service between 5 Aug 1942 and 20 Oct 1945 proven 1 , 2 , 5 , 11
Residence Mar 1950 Pittsburg, Crawford, Kansas, United States proven 13
Marriage with Mary Ann Worek 18 Mar 1950 Bentonville, Benton, Arkansas, United States proven 13 , 14
Marriage with Ruth Eileen Lefaive 24 Sep 1964 Aberdeen, Grays Harbor, Washington, United States proven 2 , 5 , 11 , 15 , 16
Residence before Sep 1966 Aberdeen, Grays Harbor, Washington, United States proven 5
Residence between Sep 1966 and 2 Nov 1966 Puyallup, Pierce, Washington, United States proven 2 , 5 , 11
Occupation before 2 Nov 1966 Enumclaw, King, Washington, United States proven 2 , 5
Death 2 Nov 1966 Puyallup, Pierce, Washington, United States proven 2 , 5 , 7 , 11 , 17
Burial 8 Nov 1966 Aberdeen, Grays Harbor, Washington, United States proven 2 , 7 , 11 , 18

Research notes

  • Identity: The records are linked as one man as follows. (1) In January 1920 "Elza W.", 2, is the son of James I. and Lucy M. Willson in the Bernice precinct of Delaware County, Oklahoma.3 (2) In 1930 "Elzie W.", 13, born in Oklahoma, is with the same parents and five of the same brothers and sisters in Grays Harbor County, Washington.4 (3) In 1940 Woodrow Wilson, 22, born in Oklahoma, heads a household in Aberdeen that includes his brother Floyd, the Floyd P. of 1920 and 1930, and his wife Lorraine, whom Woodrow E. Wilson had married at Aberdeen in Oct 1939.6, 8 (4) His draft card, Aberdeen, Oct 1940, gives his full name and signature, his birth on 29 Aug 1917 at Bernice, Oklahoma, and, stamped later, his Army discharge on 20 Oct 1945.1 (5) His enlistment record (1942) gives a man born in Oklahoma in 1917, of Grays Harbor County, service number 39183940.10 (6) The headstone application of 1966 gives that service number, the birth date of the draft card and the discharge date of its stamp.11 (7) His death certificate gives the same birth date, Oklahoma, and service in World War II.2 (8) The 1966 newspaper report says he was born in Oklahoma and came to the Northwest as a boy, and names among his survivors his sisters Mrs. Joe Pearson and Mrs. Ruth Martin and his brother Otis, who fit the Millie, Ruth and Odis of the 1920 and 1930 households.5 The 1943 baptism register ties the full name Woodrow Elgia Wilson to his wife Lorraine.9
  • Name: He signed his draft card "Woodrow Elgia Wilson", and the 1943 baptism register gives the same full name.1, 9 Elsewhere he is Woodrow E. Wilson (the marriage indexes, enlistment record, headstone application, death certificate and newspaper) or Woodrow Wilson (1940 census). As a boy he was "Elza W. Willson" (1920) and "Elzie W. Wilson" (1930), with his names reversed; Elza and Elzie look like spoken forms of Elgia, so he probably went by his middle name as a child.3, 4 The middle name "Elzer", used in the family trees and on Find a Grave, WikiTree and FamilySearch, has not been found in any record; it may be another spelling of the same spoken name.7 This profile uses the name he signed and keeps Elzer as an alternate. Newspapers.com's obituary index has "Woodrow L. Wilson", a misreading of the funeral notice.18 The surname is spelled Willson in 1920 and Wilson in every later record of him.
  • Birthplace (conflict): Missouri is given only by the 1920 census, which the family trees and WikiTree follow. Oklahoma is given by the 1930 and 1940 censuses, his enlistment record, his death certificate and the 1966 newspaper report, and on his own draft card he wrote "Bernice, Okla.", the only record that names a town.3, 4, 6, 10, 2, 5, 1 The 1920 census was taken in the Bernice precinct of Delaware County itself, in January 1920, and gives Missouri for all nine children, including a sister born in 1915 and one born in 1919; on Woodrow's line and on Jewel's, the word Oklahoma stands in the column for the father's birthplace, where the older children have Arkansas, which may be a slip for the child's own birthplace.3 Delaware County lies on the Missouri line beside McDonald County, Missouri, where the family tree places the births of several of his older brothers and sisters, so either state is possible. Bernice, Oklahoma, is accepted on the weight of the evidence and his own statement; Missouri is kept as an alternate. No birth record or delayed birth certificate has been found.
  • Age in 1930: The 1930 census gives 13; his birth in August 1917 made him 12 in April 1930.4 Every other age fits the birth date.
  • The 1940 household: The niece in the household was an infant of eight months, born in Washington (the image was read at the apply stage; the index gives her age as 30). She was probably Floyd's daughter. Because she may be living, she is not named here.6
  • Enlistment date (conflict): The enlistment record gives 23 Jul 1942 at Tacoma; the headstone application, whose dates were checked against his service record, gives 5 Aug 1942.10, 11 Men inducted in 1942 were commonly given a short furlough before they reported for active duty, which would account for the thirteen days between the two dates; this is an inference, not a record. Both dates are recorded.
  • Army unit: The headstone application names the 470th Ordnance Evacuation Company.11 No unit history or morning reports have been consulted. His Army personnel file, if it survived the 1973 fire at the National Personnel Records Center, would give his service overseas, if any.
  • First marriage: Only index entries have been seen for the marriage of 7 Oct 1939; the Grays Harbor County record itself has not been viewed.8 On his draft card of Oct 1940 his wife's address in Aberdeen is not the same as his own; the reason is not known. The births of their younger children and the joint baptism of all three in April 1943 show that the marriage continued at least that long.1, 9 She married Merlin Godfrey at Chehalis on 19 Oct 1943 as Lucille Lorraine Wilson, née Lueck, so the marriage had ended by then, while Woodrow was in the Army; no divorce record has been searched for.12 She later married three more times and died in Grays Harbor County on 2 Feb 2000 (see her profile). Until her death was found (27 Sep 2026) she was treated here as possibly living and named only by her given name.
  • Mary Ann Worek: Woodrow married Mary Ann Worek (1918–1994) at Bentonville, Benton County, Arkansas, on 18 Mar 1950; she is entered under her first married name, Mary Chrisman, and both gave their home as Pittsburg, Kansas.13, 14 (Washington's marriage records, searched first, have no marriage for them: the Digital Archives were searched for a groom Woodrow Wilson, 1935–1966, for the surname Worek, for a bride Mary Farnsworth, and for a Wilson groom with a bride named Mary, 1942–1957.) How the marriage ended has not been found; it had ended by Sep 1964, and Mary Ann was Mary Ann Wilson at her next marriage in Jan 1965 (see her profile). Their four children (living), born between 1950 and 1957, are among the seven children his 1966 obituary lists as survivors; the family tree, WikiTree and FamilySearch give Mary Ann as their mother.5 Neither of them has been found in the 1950 census. Mary Ann's other marriages are on her own profile.
  • Marriage of 1964: Only index entries have been seen.15 The bride, Ruth E. Evans, was born Ruth Eileen Lefaive at Portland, Oregon, on 23 Mar 1919; her Social Security record changes her name from Ruth Eileen Evans to Ruth Wilson in September 1964 and to Ruth E. Windsnes in August 1967.16 Evans was a married name: she had probably married William D. Evans in 1936, and he married Woodrow's former wife Mary Ann in Jan 1965 (see their profiles). She was Woodrow's wife at his death: the informant for the death certificate, which gives his status as married, and the applicant for his headstone. The newspaper report calls her his estranged wife.2, 11, 5 She died in 2005 and is buried at Hoquiam (see her profile). Until her death was established (27 Sep 2026) she was treated here as possibly living and not named.
  • Date of death (conflict): The death certificate, certified by the Pierce County coroner on 7 Nov 1966, gives 2 Nov 1966, with the time of death as 12:00 a.m., and the Washington death index agrees.2, 17 The newspaper report says he was found on Thursday afternoon, 3 Nov.5 The headstone application, completed by his widow on 22 Nov, gives 3 Nov, and that date is on the stone, on Find a Grave, on FamilySearch and in the Ancestry tree.11, 7 WikiTree already had 2 Nov. The certificate's date is preferred; 3 Nov is the date he was found.
  • Cause of death: His death certificate gives the cause as asphyxiation due to carbon monoxide poisoning and the manner as suicide; there was no autopsy.2 The newspaper report is consistent with it.5
  • Residence at death: The death certificate gives 14018 80th Street East, Puyallup, with a stay of one month; the newspaper prints the same number on "80th St. W.".2, 5 The certificate's reading is preferred.
  • Parents: The death certificate gives both his parents as "unobtainable".2 They are identified by the censuses of 1920 and 1930, in which he is the son of James I. and Lucy M. Willson (Wilson), and Find a Grave links his memorial to theirs.3, 4, 7
  • Brothers and sisters: In the census of 1920 his parents' children were Cyril (15), Tulla D. (13), Hellen A. (12), Floyd P. (10), Odis A. (6), Ruth E. (4), Jewel L. (3), Elza W. [Woodrow] (2) and Millie M. (under one year); Roy K. (9 in 1930) was born later.3, 4 The 1966 newspaper report lists three sisters, Mrs. Clarence Fulbright, Mrs. Joe Pearson and Mrs. Ruth Martin, and a brother, Otis.5 Mrs. Joe Pearson is Millie and Mrs. Ruth Martin is Ruth; Mrs. Clarence Fulbright is Helen: in 1940 she and Clarence lived at her mother's address, she was the informant for her mother's death certificate as Mrs. Artlea Fulbright, and her 1979 marriage application names her parents (see her profile). Cyril, Tulla, Floyd and Jewel are not listed, although the family tree has all four living in 1966. The family tree's birth date for Jewel, 16 Jun 1917, cannot be right, ten weeks before Woodrow's birth; her age in January 1920 (3) points to 1916.3
  • Social Security and veterans' records: His death certificate gives a Washington-issued Social Security number.2 No Social Security application of his own has been found in the claims index, he is not in the Social Security Death Index (not expected for a death in 1966), and no entry for him was found in the VA's death file (BIRLS).
  • 1950 census: Not found. Since the marriage record places the couple at Pittsburg, Crawford County, Kansas, in March 1950, the next search should be the April 1950 census of Pittsburg and Crawford County. Searched on Ancestry for Woodrow Wilson born 1917 in Oklahoma, living in Washington, with and without a wife Mary, and for Mary Wilson born 1918 in Illinois with a husband Woodrow; and on FamilySearch for Woodrow Wilson and for male Wilsons born 1916–1919 in Oklahoma, and for Mary Wilson born 1917–1920 in Illinois, all living in Washington. None fits.
  • Not him: Woodrow Wilson, 32, a railroad clerk at Monahans, Ward County, Texas, in 1950, with a wife Elynor (a different man, Amsa Woodrow Wilson); a Woodrow Wilson, about 16, of Auburn High School, Auburn, Washington, in 1932 (Woodrow was then at Junction and left school after the eighth grade); and a "Woodrow Wilson" in a political item in the Delaware Register (Oklahoma), 13 May 1920, which concerns President Wilson.
  • Children: Seven children are known: three with his first wife, born at Aberdeen between 1940 and 1942 and baptised in Seattle in 1943, and four with Mary Ann Worek, born between 1950 and 1957.9 The 1966 newspaper report lists two sons and five daughters, which agrees.5 One daughter of the first marriage, Bonita Jean (Bonnie), born 13 Jun 1941, is deceased: her mother's Find a Grave memorial links "Bonita Jean 'Bonnie' (Wilson) Brockman (1941–1996)" (see her profile).9, 19 The old tree's 13 Jun 1940 for her birth, which clashed with her elder sister's birth, is wrong; the register gives 1941. The other six are living or presumed living and are not named here.
  • Find a Grave (error): His first wife's memorial links as her 1939 husband a "Woodrow Elwyn Wilson (1914–2004)", who is another man; her husband of 1939 was Woodrow Elgia Wilson, 1917–1966.19, 8 A correction should be suggested to the memorial's manager.

Working notes

  • AKA Woodrow Elzer Wilson (trees and Find a Grave only), Elza W. Willson (1920), Elzie W. Wilson (1930); 1920 census gives birthplace Missouri (alternate); found 3 Nov 1966 (headstone date); Pvt, 470th Ordnance Evacuation Co., 1942-45; buried Fern Hill Cemetery, Aberdeen, 8 Nov 1966; Find a Grave 43766012

Sources

  1. 1

    "U.S., WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940–1947," database with images, Ancestry.com, Woodrow Elgia Wilson, serial number 2040, order number 350, registered 16 October 1940, Aberdeen, Grays Harbor County, Washington: address 416 W. Curtis St. (struck through and replaced by 510 E. Market), Aberdeen; age 23; born Aug. 29, 1917, Bernice, Okla.; person who will always know his address, his wife, Mrs. Lucille Lorraine Wilson, 1112 Tecumseh, Aberdeen; employer Grays Harbor Chair Factory, Hoquiam; signed "Woodrow Elgia Wilson"; 5 ft 8 in, 137 lb, light brown complexion, brown hair, brown eyes; stamped "Discharged – U.S. Army – 10-20-45"; image 44045_02_00010-00215; citing National Archives at St. Louis, Record Group 147.

    Ancestry

  2. 2

    Washington State Department of Health, Certificate of Death, state file no. 25670 (1966), registrar's no. 29, Woodrow E. Wilson: died 2 November 1966 at his residence, 14018 80th St. East, Puyallup, Pierce County (one month there); male; white; married; born 8-29-1917, Oklahoma; age 49; usual occupation millworker, business "Weyerhauser White River"; father and mother "unobtainable"; served in the armed forces, World War II; informant his wife, Mrs. R. E. Wilson, Puyallup; cause asphyxiation due to carbon monoxide poisoning; suicide; no autopsy; certified by the Pierce County coroner, 7 November 1966; burial 8 November 1966, Fern Hill Cemetery, Aberdeen; funeral director Powers Funeral Home, Puyallup; received by the local registrar 7 November 1966; image, Washington State Archives, Digital Archives, "Death Certificates, 1907–2001," reference DE_1966025670 (digitalarchives.wa.gov/Record/View/B5C331E6A6EDAE8AE447CB42F27C2637). Also indexed in the Digital Archives' "Death Index, 1907–1960; 1965–2024" (digitalarchives.wa.gov/Record/View/6D2AC45ABB885F989D62CC55EDC223D3).

  3. 3

    1920 U.S. Federal Census, Township 5 (Bernice precinct), Delaware County, Oklahoma, E.D. 22, sheet 10A, lines 17–27, enumerated 29–30 January 1920, "Elza W Willson" (son, 2, born Missouri) in the household of James I. Willson (head, 37, born Arkansas; farm), with Lucy M. (wife, 35, born Missouri) and their children Cyril (15), Tulla D. (13), Hellen A. (12), Floyd P. (10), Odis A. (6), Ruth E. (4), Jewel L. (3), Elza W. (2) and Millie M. (under one year), all born Missouri; NARA T625, roll 1458; image 4385099_00298; database with images, Ancestry.com.

    Ancestry

  4. 4

    1930 U.S. Federal Census, Junction, Grays Harbor County, Washington, E.D. 45, sheet 2A, dwelling 31, family 34, "Elzie W Wilson" (son, 13, born Oklahoma, attending school) in the household of James I. Wilson (head, 48), with Lucy M. (wife, 45) and their children Floyd P. (19), Odis A. (16), Ruth E. (14), Elzie W. (13), Millie M. (10) and Roy K. (9); FHL microfilm 2342222; database with images, Ancestry.com (index read).

    Ancestry

  5. 5

    "Man Found Dead In His Auto," The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington), 4 November 1966, p. 40 (C-14): Woodrow E. Wilson, 49, of Puyallup, who came to the area from Aberdeen in September, was found dead Thursday afternoon [3 November]; born in Oklahoma, he came to the Northwest as a boy; millworker for the Weyerhaeuser Company's White River mill at Enumclaw; Army veteran of World War II; survived by his wife, two sons and five daughters [names withheld: living], three sisters, Mrs. Clarence Fulbright and Mrs. Joe Pearson, both of Aberdeen, and Mrs. Ruth Martin, of Westport, a brother, Otis, of Aberdeen, and six grandchildren; services to be announced by the Powers Wrigley Clements Funeral Home, Puyallup; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/734891548).

  6. 6

    1940 U.S. Federal Census, Aberdeen, Grays Harbor County, Washington, E.D. 14-18, sheet 5A, household 115, 318 South Michigan [Street], rented at $15 a month: Woodrow Wilson (head, 22, married, born Oklahoma; residence in 1935 Aberdeen; eighth grade; laborer, street construction, WPA; 16 weeks unemployed; 28 weeks worked and $264 earned in 1939), with his wife Lorraine (18), his brother Floyd (30) and a niece (8 months per the image; indexed as 30); roll m-t0627-04340; database with images, Ancestry.com.

    Ancestry

  7. 7

    Find a Grave, memorial 43766012, Woodrow Elzer Wilson (29 Aug 1917 – 3 Nov 1966), Fern Hill Cemetery, Aberdeen, Grays Harbor County, Washington, plot 153/10/9th Addition; photograph of the marker by S Ragland; linked to the memorials of his parents, James Israel Wilson (1882–1941) and Lucy M. Harris Wilson (1883–1940), and his brother Odis Alfred Wilson Sr. (1913–1996) (findagrave.com/memorial/43766012). Indexed in "U.S., Find a Grave Index," Ancestry.com. The photograph is also shared in Ancestry member trees.

    Ancestry

  8. 8

    "Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1854–2013," database, Ancestry.com, Woodrow E Wilson and Lorraine L Lueck, married 7 October 1939, Aberdeen, Grays Harbor County, Washington; citing the Washington State Archives. Also Washington State Archives, Digital Archives, "Grays Harbor County Auditor, Marriage Records, 1871–Present," document swgrhmc13210 (index entry; no image). A second Ancestry index of the same record (groom's line, record 48143, "Digital Archives ref. swgrhmc13210") gives Woodrow E Wilson, married 7 October 1939, Aberdeen, spouse Lorraine L Lueck (index read 27 September 2026).

    Online Ancestry

  9. 9

    "U.S., Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Church Records, 1781–1969," database with images, Ancestry.com, Immanuel Lutheran Church, Seattle, Washington, register of baptisms, 1943, entries 2286–2288: three children of Woodrow Elgia Wilson and Lorraine L. Lueck, born at Aberdeen between 1940 and 1942, all baptised 25 April 1943, among them Bonita Jean Wilson, born 13 June 1941, Aberdeen (record 4283685; the other two are living and not named here); sponsors Mrs. Signa Jasper and Mr. Hubert Jasper; image 41742_314153-00318; citing the ELCA Archives. The father's index lines include record 154283685, Woodrow Elgia Wilson, spouse Lorraine L Lueck (index read 27 September 2026).

    Ancestry

  10. 10

    "U.S., WWII Army Enlistment Records, 1938–1946," database, Ancestry.com, Woodrow E Wilson, service number 39183940, enlisted 23 July 1942 at Tacoma, Washington, as a private; selectee from civil life; born 1917, Oklahoma; residence Grays Harbor County, Washington; white; married; grammar school; civil occupation "unskilled occupations in manufacture of furniture"; height 67 [in.], weight 132; citing the National Archives' Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, 1938–1946.

    Ancestry

  11. 11

    "U.S., Headstone Applications for Military Veterans," database with images, Ancestry.com, application for a headstone (DD Form 1330) for Woodrow E. Wilson, service number 39183940, World War II: enlisted 5 August 1942 and discharged 20 October 1945 (both corrected in red from the applicant's approximate dates); Pvt., U.S. Army, 470 Ord Evac Co [470th Ordnance Evacuation Company]; decorations none; born Aug. 29, 1917; died Nov. 3, 1966; flat granite marker with a Latin cross, for Fern Hill Cemetery, Aberdeen, Washington; applicant his wife, Ruth E. Wilson, 14018 80th St. East, Puyallup, signed 22 November 1966; consignee Harry Gylland, office manager, Aberdeen; verified 1 December 1966; ordered 29 December 1966; image 2375_13_00009-04135.

    Ancestry

  12. 12

    "Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1854–2013," database, Ancestry.com, Lucille Lorraine Wilson [née Lucille Lorraine Lueck], age 22, born about 1921, Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, married Merlin Godfrey, 19 October 1943, Chehalis, Lewis County, Washington; father Herbert Lueck; mother Signia [Sigrid] Lueck (index read 27 September 2026; the image not viewed).

    Ancestry

  13. 13

    "Arkansas, U.S., Marriage Certificates, 1917–1972," database with images, Ancestry.com, statistical transcript of marriage certificate no. 5111, Benton County, Arkansas: Woodrow E. Wilson, 32, of Pittsburg, Crawford, Kansas, and Mary Chrisman, 32, of Pittsburg, Crawford, Kansas, married at Bentonville, 3/18/50, by a justice of the peace; Arkansas Department of Vital Records, 1950, film 2; image 61775_01_00657-01101 (collection 61775, record 91081101).

  14. 14

    "Arkansas, U.S., County Marriages Index, 1837–1957," database, Ancestry.com, Mary Chrisman, age 32, born about 1918, of Pittsburg, Crawford, Kansas, married Woodrow E Wilson, 18 Mar 1950, Benton County; FHL film 1994614 (collection 2548, record 3326711).

  15. 15

    Washington State Archives, Digital Archives, "Grays Harbor County Auditor, Marriage Records, 1871–Present," Woodrow E Wilson and R. E. Evans, married 24 September 1964, Grays Harbor County, Washington, document swgrhmc28102 (index entry; no image) (digitalarchives.wa.gov/Record/View/3E62748F453D48F4704C3B20A3728E6A). Also indexed in "Washington, U.S., Marriage Records, 1854–2013," database, Ancestry.com, as Woodrow E Wilson and Ruth E Evans, 24 September 1964, Aberdeen, Grays Harbor County.

    Ancestry

  16. 16

    "U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936–2007," database, Ancestry.com, Ruth Eileen Evans [also Ruth Eil Wilson; Ruth Windsnes; Ruth Eileen Lefaive], female, white, born 23 March 1919, Portland, Oregon; died 23 September 2005; father George I Lefaive; mother Edith G Brisco; name listed as Ruth Eileen Evans in November 1961, Ruth Eil Wilson in September 1964 and Ruth E Windsnes in August 1967 (index read 27 September 2026).

    Ancestry

  17. 17

    "Washington, U.S., Death Records, 1907–2017," database, Ancestry.com, Woodrow E Wilson, white, age 49, born 29 August 1917, Oklahoma; died 2 November 1966, Puyallup, Pierce County; certificate 25670 (the parents appear as "Unobtainable Wilson", an index artefact of the certificate's "unobtainable"). A second entry in the same database (record 957203, index read 27 September 2026) gives Woodrow E Wilson, male, residence Puyallup, died 2 November 1966, Puyallup, certificate 025670.

    Ancestry

  18. 18

    "Wilson," funeral notice, The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington), 7 November 1966, p. 42 (D-8): services for Woodrow E. Wilson Tuesday [8 November] at 1 p.m. at the Elerding Funeral Home, Aberdeen, burial in Fern Hill Cemetery, under the direction of the Powers Wrigley Clements Funeral Home, Puyallup; image, Newspapers.com (newspapers.com/image/734893122). Indexed in "U.S., Newspapers.com Obituary Index," Ancestry.com, under a misread name, "Woodrow L. Wilson".

  19. 19

    Find a Grave, memorial 142828325, Lucille Lorraine Lueck Hildbrand (born 20 September 1921 [sic], Chippewa County, Wisconsin; died 2 February 2000, Grays Harbor County, Washington), Fern Hill Cemetery, Aberdeen, plot F/15/6th Urn Garden; spouses linked include "Woodrow Elwyn Wilson (1914–2004), m. 1939" [the wrong Woodrow Wilson]; children linked Bonita Jean "Bonnie" (Wilson) Brockman (1941–1996) and Hazel Marie (Huff) Christensen (1946–2003) (findagrave.com/memorial/142828325) (memorial read 27 September 2026).