Hello and welcome back to The Hogue Connection! I’ve heard a few folks say, when asked about their family heritage, “I’m not sure, 57 varieties I guess.” That probably applies to many of people who haven’t dug into their family trees.
Most people know that as a phrase describing the product line of one of the largest food manufacturers in American history. The H.J. Heinz Company of Pittsburgh, PA. Henry John Heinz himself coined that phrase back in 1892. At the time, his company had about 60 items. Turns out his favorite number was 5 and his wife’s was 7.
The Heinz Company played a big part in the history of Jane’s family. I thought we’d look at one of her maternal lines, the Woodsides, and do a bit of a tribute to that branch of our tree.
The Original Immigrant, Hugh Woodside…

Hugh Woodside (1826-1895)
Hugh Woodside was born on 28 Oct 1826 in Derrykeighan, Antrim, Ireland . His parents were Robert Woodside (1792-1877) and Elizabeth Nevin (1795-1863). We was the fifth of 8 siblings, 6 brothers and two sisters. On 5 June 1845 he emigrated to Philadelphia, PA. He lived with or near brothers Robert and James here. Hugh became a naturalized citizen on 22 Sep 1851. It is believed that he moved to Allegheny City, north of downtown Pittsburgh, PA, shortly thereafter.
Hugh married Mary Jane Paisley on 17 Nov 1859, and their first child Samuel was born 16 Sep 1860. Hugh was a clerk and bookkeeper for various merchants during this time. Their third child, Nevin Graham was born on 10 Jan 1864. Hugh and Mary Jane’s second child, Robert, passed away in August, aged two. In 1873, Hugh went into the slate roof business. Hugh Woodside passed away at his residence, 5184 Liberty Ave, East End, Pittsburgh, on 10 Dec 1895. He is buried in the Allegheny Cemetery.
Nevin Graham Woodside Joins the H.J. Heinz Company…

Nevin started work as a clerk in the jewelry business as a teenager. Later, working for August Locke in Pittsburgh, he went into outside sales. He was very successful at his job; traveling up and down the Ohio and Mississippi rivers plying his wares. Locke soon went bankrupt and closed the company, however, so Nevin was out of work. In October of 1885, he went to Henry Heinz and applied for a job. Heinz’s main product at the time was horseradish. He asked Nevin if he could sell his product and Nevin said “I can”. He was given the east coast sales territory that ran from Maine to Florida.
Heinz, around 1889, moved the successful salesman Woodside to Chicago to manage the sales in that region. In 1891, Nevin married Elizabeth Wrigley Winterbotham and settled in the Chicago suburb of Oak Park to raise a family. Their son, Hugh Nevin was born here on 4 Jan 1894. Tragedy struck when Elizabeth died on 6 Dec 1897 at the young age of 29. The two Woodsides were on their own until 6 May 1902, when Nevin married Ruth Miller Winterbotham, Elizabeth’s older sister. Their son, William Winterbotham Woodside, was born 10 Jan 1905. Again, luck was not on the family’s side when Ruth passed away on 12 July 1906, aged 40.

N.G. Woodside (1864-1948)
57 Varieties = 57 Years

First Board of Directors Meeting, H.J. Heinz Company, 1909 N.G. Woodside, third from left.
The Chicago move did not work out so well for Nevin in his personal life. However, despite the tragedies, he was still doing a great job for the H.J. Heinz Company. In 1900, Henry Heinz incorporated his company and in 1905 went international when he built his first plant in London. He appointed Nevin to the new Board of Directors as Vice President in 1909. The Woodside family relocated back to Pittsburgh. The company that boasted about “57 Varieties” was becoming one of the largest food manufacturers in the world.
H.J. Heinz died in 1919, and his son Howard succeeded him. Nevin became Vice President of Sales in 1923. It was around this time that his oldest son, Hugh Nevin was hired on with the company. Hugh took a post as manager of the pickle sales division and relocated from Pittsburg to Portage, Columbia County, Wisconsin. N.G. Woodside remained in his V.P. spot until he retired on 10 May 1943, after 57 years of service.

Heinz Employees with Over 20 Years of Service, 1911. H.G Woodside, bottom row, far left.
Nevin spent his remaining years in Pittsburgh, passing away suddenly at his home, 930 N. Sheridan Ave, East Liberty, on 12 Mar 1948. He is buried in a family plot with both of his wives (and near his in-laws) in the Forest Home Cemetery, Forest Park, IL.
The Heinz Legacy Continues…
In 1915, Hugh Nevin Woodside was attending the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. He was living with his father in Pittsburgh when he enlisted in the U.S. Army. He attended the 1st Officers Training Camp at Fort Niagara, NY., about 15 April 1917. On 10 Jun 1918, he married Kathryn Citerley Smith in Buffalo, NY. Hugh served overseas in the Argonne Forest from 1 Sep 1918 until 31 Dec 1918. He was honorably discharged at the rank of Captain.
Hugh and Kathryn’s first child, Nevin Graham (known as Bud) was born in Buffalo on 14 Jul 1920, and child #2, Howard Bush (Howie), was born on 14 Aug 1921 in Pittsburgh. The family moved to Portage before the birth of their daughter, Gertrude Citerley (don’t call her that…she went by Jeanne) on 18 Dec 1923. Jeanne is Jane’s mom. As mentioned above, this small town is where Hugh started his service with The H.J. Heinz Company.
57 Varieties and Many Memories…
Hugh’s career with Heinz wasn’t quite as long as his father’s. He retired around 1960 at age 65, after about 37 years of service. Hugh remained active in several organizations in the Portage area. He was president of the Chamber of Commerce, president of the Portage Country Club, and commander of the local American Legion. He was the Grand Marshall of many parades in Portage. His wife Kathryn died in 1963. Hugh Nevin Woodside died from complications of cancer on 9 Oct 1975. He is buried in a family plot at Silver Lake Cemetery in Portage, alongside his wife, father-in-law and grandson.

Hugh (1894-1975) and Kathryn Smith (1893-1963) Woodside
This post would not be possible without the dedicated genealogical research done by Cousin Bill, William Winterbotham Woodside II, on the Woodside, Miller and Winterbotham families. Bill passed away on 1 Dec 2023. He is deeply missed. Thanks for reading my article, 57 Varieties, and paying tribute to the Woodside family and their careers at the H.J. Heinz Company of Pittsburgh, PA. This is a very important branch of our family tree. The Heinz pics are from the Heinz Collection at TheHenryFord.org. See you again on the next post here at The Hogue Connection! If you would like to return to the Home Page, click here.

The Woodsides, 1935ish (Hugh and Nevin, back row, Jeanne, Bud, Howie, Kathryn, front row.)
Very cool. Thank you for sharing! I had heard some of theses stories but it’s really neat to read the full history!
Hi Andrea! Thanks for reading. It’s nice to get your Grandma’s story down finally.
Uncle Mike
Thx Mike! It’s great to see these details in one place.
It’s fun trying to keep the Hugh, Nevin, and Graham names sorted out
Thanks, Kathy…I think I have it mainly sorted out now!
Mike