Happy Birthday!
WILLIAM STRUDWICK ANDERSON
BIOGRAPHY and GENEALOGY
(1848-1927)
Marengo and Baldwin County, Alabama.
William Strudwick Anderson, lawyer and circuit judge, was born February 27, 1848, at Demopolis the son of Decatur C. and Rebecca (Strudwick) Anderson. His grandfather, Samuel Y. Anderson, though a Kentuckian by birth, moved, in early life, to Pulaski, Tennessee, where he spent the remainder of his days. He left a son who was destined to greatly honor the family name by reason of distinguished public service, and a brilliant career in the profession of law.
Decatur C. Anderson, born and reared at the old Tennessee homestead, removed, about 1840, to Demopolis, Ala., and eleven years later took up his abode in Mobile. In that city, he rose to distinction both as a lawyer and statesman, being long ranked as one of the leaders of the bar, as well as a broad-minded and progressive legislator. He served his county in the legislature several terms and was honored by election as speaker of the house. During the Civil War, he was appointed one of the receivers of public property, and few men were more honored in the party councils and civil administration of the State. He continued in active practice in Mobile almost to the hour of his death, which occurred in 1890. In early manhood, he married Rebecca Strudwick, daughter of Samuel Strudwick, who served as a soldier during the War of 1812 and was a citizen without reproach in all the relations of life.
William Strudwick Anderson was one of the children of this union had excellent educational advantages during his earlier years, four of which were spent under Prof. Henry Tutwiler at Green Springs school.
About the close of the war, he entered the Virginia military institute at Lexington for one term; returned to Mobile to study law in his father’s office; in 1872 graduated in law at Cumberland university, Lebanon, Tennessee and in the same year was admitted to the bar. He immediately located in Mobile in practice with his father, and continued until 1895 when appointed circuit court judge to fill an unexpired term of Judge James T. Jones. He was elected Judge in 1898 and served six years.
He was an elder in the Jackson Street Presbyterian church; a Knight of Pythias; an honorary member of the “Mobile Cadets” in which organization he was formerly first lieutenant.
On February 7, 1882, to Warrene Anderson, (b. Sep 12, 1862 Jackson, Miss. – d. Jan 7, 1932, Mobile, Alabama) daughter of Warren P. and Martha Anderson, whose ancestors were of Virginia and Kentucky ancestry. Warren P. Anderson served in the Seminole War, was president of one of the earlier railroads, and gave promise of a life of usefulness, when his career was ended by death while he was still a young man.
He passed away December 11, 1927, at Bay Minette, Baldwin County, Alabama at the age of 79. Warrene died Jan 7, 1932, in Mobile, Alabama.
SOURCES
- History of Alabama and Dictionary of Alabama Biography, Volume 3 By Thomas McAdory Owen, Marie Bankhead Owen
- Alabama Deaths and Burials, 1881–1952.” Index. FamilySearch, Salt Lake City
- Notable men of Alabama: personal and genealogical, Volume 1 By Joel Campbell DuBose
Start researching your family genealogy research in minutes. This inexpensive Ebook has simple instructions on how to get started with FREE sources. Download WHERE DO I START? Hints and Tips for Beginning Genealogists with On-line resources to your computer immediately with a FREE APP below and begin your research today!
Reviews
“This book was very informative and at a very modest price. One web site I may have missed in your book that has been very helpful to me is genealogybank.com. I found articles about several of my ancestors in their newspaper archives. Thank you for your great newsletter and this book.”
“The book was clear & concise, with excellent information for beginners. As an experienced genealogist, I enjoyed the chapter with lists of interview questions. I’d recommend this book to those who are just beginning to work on their genealogies. For more experienced genealogists, it provides a nice refresher.”
You have NO idea of the delight I had in discovering this man’s name today. You see, I am the great-granddaughter of Decatur Curran Anderson of Tallahassee, whose father was William. I had nothing to go on when I started really diving into this genealogy full time in December. I had undergone chemo and radiation in October, and my once-brilliant brain has been so patient with me but it’s GOOD—I can’t do any other kind of work right now, because of slowly coming back to life. I really am good.
I have avoided genealogy my entire life because I left the Deep South at age 18, to move to coastal California. From there, I went back to Nashville, to Madison, Wisconsin; to Houston; Fort Myers; up and down California—until I wound up meeting a handsome Mexican-Irish guy in the Catskills and we fell in love and moved to Boulder, where our baby girl was born.
And now I find that I am related to this man, because his grandfather was Samuel Y. Anderson and Pulaski. I am so happy, because one of my other relatives—Anna Jane Anderson—wrote a book about the Caroline Brevard DAR. She would be thrilled to know that the pieces of the puzzle fit together.
Now I just need help finding the parents of Alexander Patton, who married Sarah Jane Butler, whose father was Col. Robert Ormond Butler. (I am not certain his middle name is valid, but I’ve seen it that way more often than not.)
As it turns out, Samuel Y. Anderson did not spend his last days in Pulaski. He and his wife appear in the household of Jesse Bramlitt and Mary C. (Anderson): they lived in Tishomingo, Mississippi.
Nobody in Decatur or William Anderson’s offspring knew of the youngest child of Samuel, but her name was Mary, and she was born in 1826. None of any of the FOUR Anderson offspring from Samuel Young Anderson know of each other as kin. I found the eldest Anderson: Robert Charles, born in 1809 to Lydia Powell.
I haven’t found a bad apple yet in the Andersons.
Uh-oh. Samuel Young Anderson was born in Virginia, not Kentucky.