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Long before Bob Woodward became a nationally known reporter, his name appeared in the Sandwich newspaper for a much quieter accomplishment: playing piano.

On June 17, 1954, the Sandwich Free Press reported that Mrs. A. E. Woodward and Miss Grace F. Coleman had traveled to Wheaton to attend a recital in which young Bob participated. The notice identified him as the son of Attorney and Mrs. Alfred Woodward. A June 16, 1955, item recorded another recital, again with Bob on the program and relatives from Sandwich in attendance.

These were ordinary family notices. In hindsight, they offer a small glimpse of a boy whose name would someday appear in newspapers around the world.

A Family Connection to Sandwich

Bob Woodward was born in Geneva, Illinois, on March 26, 1943, and grew up in Wheaton. His connection to Sandwich came through his father’s family.

His father, Alfred Eno Woodward, went on to a career in law and the Illinois judiciary. His grandmother, Mabel Coleman Woodward, was remembered locally for her singing and participation in the town’s musical and theatrical life.

Years later, writers recalling Sandwich’s past would identify Mabel by another connection: she was the grandmother of Bob Woodward, the reporter associated with Watergate.

Those references linked two very different worlds—the performances and family gatherings of an Illinois town and the newspaper offices of Washington, D.C.

Finding His Way into Reporting

Woodward’s route into journalism was not immediate. He graduated from Yale University in 1965 and served five years in the United States Navy.

After leaving the service, he considered law school but sought a reporting job at The Washington Post. A two-week trial failed to produce an offer. He then spent a year learning the work at Maryland’s Montgomery County Sentinel before joining the Post in September 1971.

In a 1979 interview published in Georgetown University’s The Hoya, Woodward recalled that early disappointment and the experience he gained at the weekly newspaper. His eventual success followed a first attempt that had fallen short.

Watergate and a National Name

In 1972, Woodward and fellow Post reporter Carl Bernstein pursued the story behind the burglary at the Democratic National Committee’s offices in the Watergate complex.

Washington Post writers Carl Bernstein, left, and Robert Woodward, who pressed the Watergate investigation, are photographed in Washington, D.C., May 7, 1973. It was announced that The Post won the Pulitzer Prize for public service for its stories about the Watergate scandal. (AP Photo)
Photo: Associated Press, via Wikimedia Commons; identified there as public domain in the United States.

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Their reporting helped uncover a larger network of political espionage, campaign misconduct, and efforts to conceal wrongdoing. Newspaper investigations worked alongside congressional inquiries, court proceedings, and other investigations as the scandal unfolded.

The Washington Post received the 1973 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for its investigation of the Watergate case. The award went to the newspaper; Woodward and Bernstein’s reporting was central to its winning coverage.

Their book, All the President’s Men, brought readers inside the reporting process. Its film adaptation introduced an even wider audience to the story, with Robert Redford portraying Woodward and Dustin Hoffman portraying Bernstein.

Woodward continued writing books and reporting on American government and the people who exercise its power.

Sandwich Remembered the Family

As Woodward became famous, local newspaper writers continued to point out his family’s connection to Sandwich.

A July 14, 1976, Sandwich Library News item announcing the addition of The Final Days, by Woodward and Bernstein, included a brief reminder about Woodward: “his father was a Sandwich boy.”

The connection appeared again in columns written by ARCH, the Association to Restore the City Hall–Opera House. In 1983, an account recalling local performers mentioned Mabel Coleman Woodward’s contralto voice and identified her as Bob’s grandmother. Columns in 1986 and 1987 repeated the family connection while looking back at earlier Opera House entertainments.

These passing references suggest an enduring sense of local pride. Writers expected readers to recognize Bob’s name, and they wanted them to remember the family behind it.

A Place in the Sandwich Story

Bob Woodward’s childhood and professional career unfolded elsewhere, but his family’s Sandwich roots remained part of the local record.

The newspaper notices preserve that connection at two very different moments: first, when relatives traveled to hear a boy play piano; later, when local writers recalled his grandmother and reminded readers of her nationally known grandson.

Together, they give Sandwich a small but meaningful place in a much larger story.

Facts at a Glance

• Born: March 26, 1943, in Geneva, Illinois
• Raised: Wheaton, Illinois
• Sandwich connection: His father’s family, including grandmother Mabel Coleman Woodward
• Education: Yale University, 1965
• Military service: United States Navy, 1965–1970
• Joined The Washington Post: September 1971
• Known for: Watergate reporting with Carl Bernstein and books about American government

Continue the Story

Explore more of the Woodward family’s Sandwich history:

• John Woodward — His life and work with the Sandwich Manufacturing Company.
• A. E. Woodward — The family story told in our earlier anchor.
• A. E. Woodward Jr. — The next generation’s story.

For another connection between Sandwich and American journalism:

• Hugh Hough — The Sandwich-born reporter who shared a Pulitzer Prize for breaking news reporting.

More History Awaits

The story continues every day.

Follow Historic Sandwich, Illinois on Facebook for additional photographs, new discoveries, and everyday glimpses into our town’s past.

Research & Sources

Local newspapers

• Sandwich Free Press, June 17, 1954. “Mrs. A. E. Woodward and Grace Coleman Attend Piano Recital.”
• Sandwich Free Press, June 16, 1955. “Town Topics,” reporting a family visit to Wheaton and a recital with Bob Woodward on the program.
• Tri-County Today, July 14, 1976, p. 4. “Sandwich Library News.”
• Tri-County Today, August 24, 1983, p. 4. “ARCH News,” recalling Mabel Coleman Woodward’s singing.
• Sandwich Record, March 12, 1986, p. 9. “ARCH news,” recalling a 1911 Opera House entertainment.
• Sandwich Record, October 7, 1987, p. 17. “ARCH news,” recalling a 1907 entertainment.

Career and biographical sources

• Roberta Oster, “Woodward: Half of Woodstein Still With Post,” The Hoya, November 2, 1979, p. 7.
• Bob Woodward, official biography.
• Harry Ransom Center, University of Texas at Austin, finding aid for the Woodward and Bernstein Watergate Papers.
• The Pulitzer Prizes, The Washington Post, 1973 Public Service award.

Local newspaper references are drawn from the research clippings collected for this article.