Woods, Frank H. (Frank Henry), 1905-1980.

This collection, additions to the Woods Family Papers which was assembled and preserved by Frank H. Woods Jr. for a proposed family history, includes information on Henry Ruiter (1742-1819) and his descendants.

The Woods Papers reflect the lives and activities of six generations of the family, and although many family members are represented, Fanny Woods, Elias Woods, Frederick Moffatt Woods and Frank H. Woods Sr. predominate.

From the description of Woods Family papers - additions, 1842-1980. (Newberry Library). WorldCat record id: 698382066

Chicago businessman and philanthropist.

Frank H. Woods Jr. was a successful businessman and civic-minded citizen of two cities: Lincoln, Nebraska, where he was born, and Chicago, where he lived and was active in the arts, community and philanthropic circles. As one of the three sons of Frank H. Woods, Sr., founder of the Lincoln Telephone and Telegraph Company, Frank, Jr. was first associated with that company in 1937 when he became a board member, a position he held as chairman from 1958 until his retirement in 1979. In 1941 his parents endowed the Woods Charitable Fund, Inc., a private philanthropic foundation dedicated to support education, charities, the arts and humanities of Nebraska. After graduating from Yale, Frank Woods, Jr. settled in Chicago where he began his business career and where he continued the work of the Woods Charitable Fund both in Nebraska and in Illinois. He joined his brothers, Thomas and Henry, and his father, in management of the family-owned Sahara Coal Company in Chicago, becoming its president in 1944 and chairman in 1978. Woods was a longtime board member of several large corporations involved in coal mining, office equipment, and electrical and telephone equipment. Besides the Sahara Coal Company, Woods served from 1933 to 1961 as director of the Automatic Electric Company of Chicago, chairman of the board of the Addressograph-Multigraph Corporation of Cleveland from 1958 to 1978, and as a director of the Chicago Harris Trust and Savings Bank from 1958 to 1975. All his life, Frank H. Woods, Jr. was extremely active in the arts and in charitable and community affairs. He was trustee and life member of the Art Institute of Chicago, life trustee of the University of Chicago, on the board of the Chicago Horticultural and Zoological Societies, president and former director of the Council on Foundations, and either on the board or active in many other non-profit organizations. In the fall of 1949, Illinois Governor Adlai Stevenson named him chairman of the Governor's Committee on the Mid-Century White House Conference for Children and Youth, and he headed the Illinois delegation to Washington. Among his many interests was the Willa Cather Pioneer Memorial and Educational Foundation in Red Cloud, Nebraska, to which the Woods Charitable Fund made a long-time commitment. Woods received many honors and awards, including advanced honorary degrees from Lake Forest College and the University of Nebraska. A descendant of Boone County, Illinois, pioneers, he was deeply interested in his family's history and he did extensive genealogical work. Married to Louise Brewer in 1935, they had four children: Lisa, Lucia, Brewer and Amy. At his death in 1980, the accolades and memorials indicated how highly he was esteemed as an inspiration and example, not only as a successful businessman but also as a family man, a philanthropist, and a dedicated supporter of the arts and his community.

From the description of Frank H. Woods, Jr. papers, 1890-2000, bulk 1935-1980. (Newberry Library). WorldCat record id: 698382510

Woods family descendants of Revolutionary War Loyalist Henry Ruiter (1742-1819) of Canada, include Fanny Woods, Frederick Moffatt Woods, Frank H. Woods Sr., and Frank H. Woods Jr.

Born in Boone County, Ill. in 1822, Fanny Woods was the granddaughter of Ruiter and a prolific poet. Her eldest son, Frederick Moffatt Woods, served in the Civil War with the Elgin Light Artillery and later moved to Lincoln, Neb., where he was involved in agricultural matters and cattle breeding. His son, Frank H. Woods Sr., founded and ran the Lincoln Telephone and Telegraph Company, and was active in other businesses in Lincoln, Chicago, and Cleveland. Born in Lincoln in 1905, Frank H. Woods Jr. was a prominent Chicago businessman and Lake Forest resident. In writing a history of his family, he gathered this collection of papers, many of which had been preserved by Fanny Woods.

From the description of Woods family papers, ca. 1775-1975 (bulk 1820-1975). (Newberry Library). WorldCat record id: 51972476