[1] He was the oldest of nine children and grew up on the family's antebellum estate "Elmwood," where he spent much of his childhood exploring the nearby woods and fields looking for natural curiosities.

His father was a Confederate captain during the American Civil War, as well as a regarded historian and member of the North Carolina legislature.

[2] Ashe also took an interest in ornithology during his college years and amassed an impressive collection of eggs and stuffed birds during that time.

[3] While with the survey, Ashe also took on special projects for the newly formed United States Forest Service.

He later served as the chief of the Forest Service's land acquisition force for the eastern and southern regions of the United States.

[3] In 1906, Ashe married Margaret Haywood Henry Wilcox (1856 – 1939), a distant cousin and widow, and he became stepfather to her children.

[1] Ashe also perfected commercial longleaf pine cultivation, and he published widely in forest economics, management, and research.

[3] On November 17, 1936, the W.W. Ashe pine tree nursery was dedicated in southern Mississippi within the De Soto National Forest.