[3] Woodford was born in Upland, California, on February 27, 1890, to a family of successful citrus farmers.

[1] He moved with his family to neighboring Claremont in 1909, and graduated from Pomona College (where he was editor of The Student Life[2]) with a degree in chemistry in 1913.

[1][5][6] He subsequently pursued graduate work in soil chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, and received his doctorate in 1921.

[3] Woodford taught many students who went on to have notable careers, including Rollin Eckis, Roger Revelle, Charles A. Anderson, Mason Hill, and R. Dana Russell.

[9] From 1920 to 1940, Pomona graduated more geologists on a per capita basis who became listed in American Men of Science than any other institution.