• Born: 6 Mar 1857, Salisbury MD
• Died: 1939

  General notes:

Jeweler and watchmaker

  Events in his life were:

• Apprenticed circa 1875 to Amos Wilson Woodcock in Salisbury MD
  

• He worked circa 1878-1879 as a jeweler and watchmaker in Easton MD

• Notice: Denton Journal, on 1 Nov 1879, in Denton MD.
  Arrest for Alleged Arson.
  Easton, Md., Oct. 29. -- About 2 o'clock this morning State's Attorney Charles H. Gibson had J. L. Woodcock arrested and lodged in jail on suspicion of attempting to burn his store. Woodcock is a watchmaker and jeweler, and has always stood well in the community. Much of his stock, it is reported, was removed from the store before the alleged arson was committed. He rents the store of Mrs. Elizabeth K. Robinson. While most of the people of the town were attending Dr. Viller's lecture, Tuesday night, Mrs. Robinson's family, who live in the rear of the store, heard sawing and driving of nails going on in the store, and it afterwards appeared that a hole had been cut in the floor eighteen inches square under the counter, and under it, in the cellar, a large quantity of combustible material, saturated with coal oil, was collected and fired. Sheets and bed-covers weee [sic] nailed over the windows. The fire was discovered by the night watch some time after Woodcock left the store. By the prompt action of the fire department the property was saved. The store is in the business centre of the town. Cans containing coal oil were found near the hole cut in the floor. The heat melted the handles off the tin cans, but fortunately the oil did not ignite. Woodcock will have a hearing before a magistrate to-morrow. His father is a highly esteemed citizen of Salisbury, Maryland.
  
  On April 24, 1880, he was found guilty of the arson and sentenced to eight years in the state penitentiary. After serving eighteen months, he was pardoned by the governor.

• He appeared on the 1880 census taken at Baltimore MD, listed as a watchmaker.

• Notice: Denton Journal, on 10 Mar 1888, in Denton MD.
  His Many Offences: Wiley Jesse Woodcock's Latest Movements.
  Jesse L. Woodcock is again in serious Trouble. His trial in Denton a few years ago on the charge of an attempt to burn an occupied house in Easton, in order to obtain the insurance money on his stock of jewelry, is still fresh in the minds of the people here who remember the great court case. Woodcock is a good-looking young jeweler, and, it appears, lost none of his questionable business methods by a term in the penitentiary to which he was sentenced by Judge Wickes. The present charge is that he defrauded his employer of $1,000. Woodcock's history, since his pardon by the Governor, has been eventful. He went to Philadelphia and started a new game. He advertised to "furnish valuable information" to all who would send him ten cents. He invariably kept the money and neglected to send the "valuable information." His swindling game was soon detected, and after arrest and trial he was sentenced to another year in jail.
  After his release, a watchmaker and jeweler of Philadelphia, knowing his ability as a workman and salesman, gave him employment. This was about a year ago and Woodcock did so well that he was sent on the road to sell goods and form watch clubs, his house making a specialty of the latter business. The young man worked the club business extensively and formed clubs in Wilmington, New Castle, Stanton, Kiamensi and DuPont, with great success. Recently, however, his employer found Woodcock was forming the clubs in his own name, collecting the monthly instalments and keeping the money. He went to Wilmington to investigate, but Woodcock made matters worse by going to the patrons and warning them not to pay any attention or give any money to the informant. The latter, to secure himself, went before Squire Monaghan on Friday and swore out a warrant for Woodcock's arrest for Embezzlement. Constable Dillin took the warrant, and learned that the culprit boarded at the house of Mrs. Crossan, at the Southwest corner of Seventh and King streets. He was absent, however, until Sunday night, when he returned, and Monday morning Constable Dillin went to the house at 6.30 o'clock and arrested him while he was in bed. The prisoner, trembling with excitement and dismay, was locked up in the police station.
  Meanwhile Detective Miller, of Philadelphia, had been in Wilmington for two or three days, also looking for Woodcock, but for another offence, committed in Philadelphia. He agreed to go back to Philadelphia without a requisition and left for that city, in charge of Detective Miller.
  

• He appeared on the 1900 census taken at Salisbury MD, listed as a commercial traveler.