Woodley Williamson Chandler (1800-1854)

   After a brief break,  I return with another oddly named Chautauqua County resident and politician, Woodley Williamson Chandler. A Virginian by birth, Chandler died in Levant (located just outside of Falconer) 158 years ago today on April 2, 1854. Although his political achievements are comparatively minor to some of the other individuals posted here, Chandler was nevertheless a prominent citizen of our county for many years. 

  Woodley W. Chandler was born in Amelia County, Virginia on February 14, 1800, and during his adolescence resided in several different states, including Tennessee, Louisiana, and Ohio. He resettled in Chautauqua County in 1823 and soon after arriving struck up a friendship with Elial Todd Foote (1791-1877), a prominent Jamestown resident, politician, and judge. Foote soon helped Chandler find employment in the county, and within a short time, Chandler had purchased land (once owned by Judge Foote) and established a "carding and cloth dressing" business. 
   In 1824 Woodley Chandler married Ms. Phebe Winsor and the couple eventually had six children, who are listed as follows: Martin (who later became a Sheriff in Minnesota), Nancy, Phebe, Winsor, John, and Williamson. 

  In addition to his connections with local cloth manufacturing, Chandler is also listed as being instrumental in the surveying of streets and village lot designs in the eastern part of Jamestown. During his short life, Chandler was named to local public offices, serving at various times as the Town Supervisor of Poland (1843-1844) and Justice of the Peace. He is also mentioned as an early trustee for the Jamestown Academy. His obituary (featured in the Jamestown Evening Journal in 1854) mentions that Chandler filled these offices "with a conscientious fidelity and to the satisfaction of the people."
   Woodley Chandler's main inclusion here rests on his candidacy for the New York State Assembly in 1842. In that year, Chandler (along with fellow Chautauqua residents Elijah Miller and Erastus Holt) faced off against Adolphus Freeman Morrison, Odin Benedict, and Emory Force Warren. As you can read for yourself in the snippet below, Chandler, Miller, and Holt ended up on the losing end of the campaign! This blurb on the election appeared in the 1845 work Sketches of the History of Chautauque County, and one should also note that the book was authored by one of the men who defeated Chandler, Emory Force Warren.

   In the years preceding his legislative defeat, Chandler resettled in the Levant area outside of Falconer, where he eventually built a farm. During his residence here he had a hand in the building of the Levant schoolhouse, as well as the Levant Cemetery, which is located nearby. Woodley Williamson Chandler died at age 54 on April 2, 1854, and was buried in the aforementioned Levant Cemetery. A few days ago I made a trip to his resting place to seek out his gravestone. 

   The Chandler family stone is remarkably well preserved for being nearly 160 years old and contains the names of both Woodley, his wife Phebe, and all of their children. I also must venture a comment on the picture of Woodley located at the top of his article here. This portrait was discovered in Andrew Young's 1875 History of Chautauqua County and is very likely the only picture of him you will ever see. I was absolutely flabbergasted to find that a portrait of this man existed.

 Woodley's wife Phebe survived him by a number of years, dying on April 4, 1876, at age 69. Two of the Chandler children also died young like their father. Phebe (the fourth eldest child) died at age 40 in 1865 and Winsor ( the fifth eldest child) died on April 4, 1863, at age 31. Dates of death for the remaining Chandler offspring could not be found.

 All of the children's names are on the side of the stone facing the road. If one decides to drive through the Levant area, one only need glance up the hill of the Levant Cemetery to see the Chandler monument, which is quite conspicuous by its sheer size!

  Woodley and Phebe are actually buried under these two stones, marked "Mother and Father". These stones haven't fared so well in regards to the years of wear. There are also two other stones embedded in the ground on the left of the above picture, one of which is marked "Chandler". No clue is given as to who rests underneath these stones, but my guess is it may be one of the Chandler children.