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Asa Wood was the third of eleven children born to Asa Wood, Sr., and Mary Goodale. He was born on the Wood farm in Upton, Massachusetts, on 7 November 1785.He married Polly Stoddard in Upton on 13 October 1813. She was the daughter of Ezekiel Stoddard and Lucy Foristal and was born in Upton on 19 April 1793, where her parents were locally prominent. Ezekial’s daughter, Polly, was described as, “... a good-looking woman of considerable ability, who took an active part in society and church affairs in Upton.”
Boot and shoe manufacture became a significant cottage industry for Upton in the 18th and 19th centuries. Following his marriage Asa Wood removed to West Milbury in 1813 to join his brother, Amasa, in the shoe business. The firm was known as A & A Wood Company. Eventually, the partnership was dissolved and Asa returned to Upton in 1830. He continued here in the shoe business.
Asa and Polly Wood were the parents of nine children. One of their daughters, Jane Elizabeth Wood, was a school teacher in Upton. She taught many of her brothers and sisters at that school until her death on 1 September 1846. She had contracted measles from her students, which proved to be a fatal illness.
Asa's household in Upton was well furnished, including a sofa, many chairs, glass lamps, rugs and carpeting, curtains, a secretary, two rocking chairs, two buffalo robes, and a refrigerator. His stable included a horse and mare, a sleigh, buggy, wagon, and chaise. This last item was a two-wheeled carriage with a moveable top that could be raised or lowered. From its value ($36.00) it must have been elegant. Asa Wood died in Upton on 24 September 1855, in his 70th year. He made no will. His wife, Polly, was appointed administratrix of his estate.
Polly Wood survived her husband by over 20 years. As she passed her 80th birthday, however, she must have become senile, for in 1874 she was declared “insane” by the probate court. She was placed in the guardianship of her son, George F. Wood, who returned from Kentucky to care for her. She died shortly thereafter in Upton, on 22 September 1876, at the age of 83.