Brother Oscar Scott Woody was born in Roxboro, North Carolina on 15 April 1871. He was the son of John Frank Woody (b. 1844), a farmer and merchant, and Nancy Cole (b. 1846), both natives of North Carolina. His known siblings were: Pattie (b. 1873), Rosa (b. 1876) Ninnie (b. 1879) and James M. (1882-1951).
He first appears on the 1880 census living with his family in Holloways, Person County, North Carolina. By the early 1890s he was working for the US postal service, serving the railways between Greensboro, North Carolina and Washington, DC. He was listed on the 1900 census living as a boarder in the latter city and was described as an unmarried postal clerk. He was from the office of the Third division of the Railway Mail Service in Washington but left that city to reside in New York around 1909 when he was put in the marine service.
A Freemason, he was raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason in Acacia Lodge No. 16 in Clifton, VA. on August 30, 1903. He was later married in Washington on 5 October 1910 to Leila M. Bullard (b. 1877), a native of Dallas, Texas and niece of the Central Mail Office Detective Harry Warren. The couple remained childless and maintained a holiday home in Clifton, Virginia where they spent extended periods when Brother Woody was not at work.
He traveled to Europe aboard Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse, arriving in Plymouth and was instructed to join Titanic on her maiden voyage. He joined Titanic on 10 April 1912 as part of the postal group and whilst aboard was due to celebrate his 41st birthday on 15 April.
On the night of the sinking, Woody and his fellow postal clerks, assisted by several other crewmen, struggled to bring some 200 sacks of mail up to a higher deck from the flooding mail rooms.
Brother Woody died in the sinking. His body was recovered (#167) and buried at sea.
Over 104 years after being recovered from his body, on November 11, 2006 Woody's water stained Acacia Lodge No. 16 dues card finally made its way back to Virginia and is currently on display at the Grand Lodge of Virginia Museum in Richmond Virginia.
Source: Encyclopedia Titanica
