Jonathan Wood III

Died at Valley Forge in 1977 after taking a load of supplies from his Father's Mill in Salem County to feed Washington's troops. He saw a friend there who he found ill and stayed there to nurse him. The man had small pox, and Jonathan contracted it and died there, leaving a wife and seven children. Richard Sheppard married his widow in November 1778. John Wood was able to purchase the mill from his brother, William Wood. John Wood left the mill to his grandson, John Wood Maskell. He inherited it on his 21st birthday. Thomas Maskell, son of John Wood Maskell, ran Maskell's Mill later on. He ran it into bankruptcy, and even spent time in jail because he could not pay his debts. I have Anna Maskell Fogg Anderson's diaries written during this time, and she says her brother disgraced the family by his poor decisions and subsequent bankruptcy. He owed a lot of money to his father-in-law, Benjamin Harris. He spent all the money his mother had, and all the money his sister, Hannah, had. Annie gave him no money. Neither did his sister, Ellen. Ellen had to keep her Mother and herself with her money. Thomas Maskell had tried to help civil war widows from proceeds of the mill. The rally to get everyone to sign up for the civil war fight was held at Maskell's Mill, and he felt somehow responsible that all of these friends had been killed. He also had an arsonist set fire to the mill and burned it and two others to the ground. There was no insurance. Hannah Maskell was able to get hold of the property.