The Woodhull family of America began with the emigration from England of Richard Lawrence Woodhull in the early 1600s, who settled on Long Island, New York in Setauket. Woodhulls have played major roles in American life for centuries, from serving in the military and providing espionage services to George Washington during the American Revolutionary War (the Culper Spy Ring), and service in the US Civil War, to leadership in local and national politics and academia.