Descendants of William Woodburn (b. 1730, Ballintemple, parish of Errigal, Co. Londonderry, N. Ireland) In this record, persons are numbered consecutively. If they married and are known to have children, there is a plus sign (+) in front of their name, which indicates that additional information about them can be found in the next generation. I am solely responsible for all errors in this record. Corrections and additions are appreciated. Stephen W. Johnson 222 Parkman Ave. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213
[email protected] September 12, 2013 Descendants of William WOODBURN 12 September 2013 First Generation 1. WOODBURN was born (date unknown). The name Woodburn is apparently of Scottish origin. It may come from the Scottish term for a small stream--"burn"; hence, wooded burn or tree-lined stream. Woodburn, then, would have been the name given to people living in such an area. The main connection appears to be with the Ayrshire and Dumfries areas of Scotland. There, a George Woodburn was shot for being a Covenanter (Scottish Presbyterians in the 17th cen. who subscribed to various conservative covenants) in 1685. It was not unusual, however, for people from Scotland, in times of religious persecution, to flee to Ireland and England. Thus, for example, there are a number of Woodburns in Pennington Hall, Ulverston, Cumbria Co., England. There, a Robert Woodburne, in 1654, served as the attorney for George Fox, founder of ther Quakers, in acquiring land for the first Quaker cemetery. In Ireland, Carrickfergus Co. in Northern Ireland has an area and a police station bearing the Woodburn name. Despite these connections to England and Ireland, the original Scottish connection seems indisputable.