Complex sentence: Woolsey was born on the Breeze Hill plantation in Aiken, South Carolina, as Elizabeth (Elsa) Gammell Woolsey, but in later years took her middle name which she shortened to "Gamel", a Norse word meaning "old".
Split into simpler sentences: Woolsey was born on the Breeze Hill plantation in Aiken, South Carolina, as Elizabeth (Elsa) Gammell Woolsey. In later years she took her middle name which she shortened to "Gamel", a Norse word meaning "old".