Joseph Cobb (1588 - 1654)

Born 1588 in Suffolk, England

Ancestors

Husband of Elizabeth Flinton — married 1623 in Elizabeth City, Virginia

Descendants

Died 1 May 1654 at about age 66 in Isle of Wight County, Virginia Colony

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Biography

Joseph Cobb is a Qualifying Ancestor of the Jamestowne Society

Joseph Cobb was a Jamestown colonist.

Joseph Cobb^[1] was born in 1599 according to his own statement. He is first listed in the Elizabeth City Muster of 1624. At that time he is head of his own household, and stated his age as 25 years old, and that he arrived in Virginia aboard the Treasurer in 1613. This places his date of birth at 1599 and his immigration at the age of 14 years old. His wife Elizabeth states her age as 25 also having arrived on the Bone Bess in 1623. Also listed is one servant John Snowood aged 25. No children are listed. The muster did include all children in the households, so if the Cobb children were there, they would have been listed.^[2]

It stands to reason that Joseph and Elizabeth were married shortly after her arrival in 1623. None of their children could be born earlier than 1624 as the parents were not together prior to that year. All of the children would be born in Virginia.

Ancient Planter

Joseph Cobb is designated an “ancient planter” by the Order of the Descendants of Ancient Planters.^[3]

The term "Ancient Planter" is applied to those persons who arrived in Virginia before 1616, remained for a period of three years, and paid their passage.

They received the first patents of land in the new world as authorized by Sir Thomas Dale in 1618 for their personal adventure.

There were only about 1,232 persons living at 25 locations in Virginia when Joseph Cobb first arrived. This was seven years before the Pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock. ^[4]

Joseph COBB born in 1588 in Suffolk, England. ^[5] He immigrated from Holland between 1615 and 1624/1625 to Virginia. (This is where some researchers confuse the birth place and place of immigration). His will is dated March 1, 1653 in Isle of Wright County, Virginia. He died 1 May 1654.

Joseph Cobb, the first of this family in Virginia came over on the Treasure from London in 1613.^[6] Owned jointly by Captain Samuel Argall and others, the Treasurer is famous as the ship on which Argall made Pocahontas prisoner in 1613, taking her to Jamestown "for the ransoming of so many Englishmen as were prisoners of Powhatan.." (her father). Although Joseph Cobb was not granted land under the status of Ancient Planter in any record now surviving, his date of arrival in the colony would entitle him to be so classed.

No record has been found of Joseph's activities in Virginia between his arrival in 1613 and the muster of Virginia settlers in February 1624/25 in which he is listed at Elizabeth City with his wife Elizabeth, who had come in the Bone Bess in August 1623. ^[7]

In 1629 Joseph Cobb, Gent. and Mr. Farrar Flinton, appraised the goods of Thomas Clarke who died at sea on the Elizabeth of London, May 1625.^[8]

Joseph Cobb received a grant of 400 acres of land in Isle of Wight county, Virginia, 4 August 1637, on a "branch of Warwicksquike River, now called New Town Haven," and on the back creek parting it from the land of John Vaslers, due for the personal adventure of himself, wife, Elizabeth, two sons, Joseph and Benjamin, and four servants;^[9] renewed 1 Sept 1643.^[10]

Deed Dated: November 13, 1713.
Virginia Patent Book 10, p114
Land Patent: Mr. Richard Reynolds of Isle of Wight County, “97 acres of high land & 16 acres of marsh adjoining… on the southwest side of one of the main branches of Pagan Creek in the parish of Newport… which said 97 acres of high land is part of a patent for 400 acres granted to Joseph Cobb late of the aforesd county decd the 1 September 1643 and by Pharaoh Cobb son of the sd Joseph sold & conveyed unto George Williams late also of the said county decd the 4 April 1671 & by Geo. Williams son & heir of the aforesd George sold & conveyed unto the aforesd Reynolds the 6 April 1700 & the sd 16 acres being waste marsh land adjoining the whole bounded as followeth…” (Bounded by “one of the main branches of Pagan Creek”, a pond, “several lines dividing this land from the land of John Joseph Jackman”, and Col. Arthur Smith) …for the transportation of one person to dwell within this our colony of Virginia: Eliza. Wignall.

Joseph Cobb(s) made his will 1 March 1653/54, "aged sixty years, " in Isle of Wight county, mentioning wife Elizabeth Cobbs and children Bemjamin Cobbs, Pharoah Cobbs and Elizabeth Cobbs.^[11]

Birth

1588 Norfolk, Suffolk, Eng

1588 Amsterdam, Holland {citation needed}

Immigration

1613 Arrived in Jamestown Settlement on London Company Ship Treasurer

Marriage

Elizabeth FLINTON

MARRIAGE DATE: BEF 1610

Children:

Benjamin COBB

Pharoah COBB

Elizabeth COBB

Death

Will dated: March 1653, Isle Of Wight Co, VA

Death Date: 1654, Virginia

Will of Joseph Cobb(s)

The Will of Joseph Cobb(s)

This is the last will and testament of me, Joseph Cobbs, aged sixty years of age or thereabouts. Imprimis. I do bequeath unto my well beloved wife Elizabeth Cobbs, one parcel of land containing three hundred acres of land or thereabouts, commonly called Goose Hill Land. And further I do bequeath unto my well beloved wife all movables that are upon the said land, as cattle (to say) , seventeen head of cows and yearlings and three calves, with hogs, young and old, thirty-two or thereabouts. Provided she does marry, ye said children that are left shall have each a child’s portion, and so be divided between them. And further I do bequeath to my son, Benjamin Cobbs, one red cow and her calf. Item. And further I do bequeath to my son Pharoah Cobbs, one cow and her calf, Red. Item. And further I do bequeath to my daughter, Elizabeth Cobbs, one black cow and one black yearling. Item. This is my last will and testament, now living at the mercy of God on my death bed in good sense. As witness my hand this 1st day of March Anno Dom 1653.
Joseph S. Cobbs^[12]

• Fact: Immigrated (1613) 'Treasurer' @ 13y Virginia, United States
• Fact: Burial (April 1653) Colony of Virginia, British Colonial America
• Fact: http://familysearch.org/v1/LifeSketch Sources of Information: "The Cobb Family of Rocky Mount", "Cobb and Cobbs", "The Massengills, Massengales and Variants" by Samuel Evans Massengill, MD, 1931.

"Joseph Cobbs, Planter 1613 came to Virginia on the ship "Treasurer"; 1637 received land grant; Named the plantation "Goose Hill" on Pagan Creek" Hotten's List of Immigrants, 1600-1700: Joseph Cobb, Gent, came to Virginia in the Ship, "Treasurer", 1613. "Cobb and Cobbs, The Early Virginians" by John E. Cobb, Jr., 1976: "In 1613 Richard's son Joseph Cobb, now an English Gentleman, debarked from the London Company's ship, the Treasurer, at Elizabeth City County, Virginia. Here at the mouth of the James River, he joined a few hundred colonists who had somehow managed to escape starvation, disease, and the tomahawk. 1623 he returned to England to make arrangements to bring his wife Elizabeth Flinton, sister of colonial surgeon, Pharoah (Farrar) Flinton. In 1637 he received a land grant of 400 acres in Isle of Wight County for the "importation of himself and his wife, Elizabeth, sons Joseph and Benjamin, and four servants. In 1641 the Flintons joined them on 45 acres in the same county." Isle of Wight County deeds: Joseph Cobb's will mentions wife, Elizabeth, sons, Benjamen and Pharoah; daughter Elizabeth, 1653. Last Will and Testament, 31 March 1653/54: To wife Elizabeth Cobb: 300 acres (Goose Hill Land), 17 head cattle, 32 hogs; To Benjamin Cobb: one red cow and her calf; To Pharoah Cobb: one cow and her calf, red; To Elizabeth Cobb: one black cow and one black yearling. "Thc Cobb Family of Rock Mount, Piney Flats, Tennessee 1613-1972" compiled by Virginia McKinney Turner: This document has Joseph Cobb born in England in 1593. From Elizabeth Shirley Cobb, January 3, 2002: "Joseph Cobbs claimed land on a high rise of ground on the three miles inland from and south of the James River, on 400 acres in a branch of the Warwisksqueke River (now called Pagans Creek), northerly on the back creek called Goose Hill Creek (now called Tormentor), southerly and westerly into the woods and easterly upon said creek, due for the 'adventure' of himself, wife Elizabeth and two sons, Joseph and Benjamin Cobbs. His application for this grant was finally approved by the King August 19, 1637.... The 's' on the Cobb was not dropped until those years. After Jospeh died in 1653 in Isle of Wight County -- the family moved briefly into Smithfield but by the next generation were across the river in North Carolina...The name 'Cobbs' comes from Lyme Regis in Dorset, from a fishing reef of stone which curves out into the south shore of Dorset, called the 'Cobbs' since before the Domeday Book. Cobbs ancestors probably lived close to this reef and took its name in about 1100 AD."

More About JOSEPH COBBS: Grant: 1637, 400 acre tract in Isle of Wight County, Virginia (known as the Goosehill Property) Immigration: 1613, From Amsterdam to Jamestown, Virginia Immigration Ship: The Treasurer Note: Believed to be classed as "Adventurer of Person," and possibly an "Ancient Planter" Probate: March 1653/54 Property: Land known as "Goose Hill"

DNA

Note: By 1650, there were two Cobb families firmly established in Virginia, within just a few miles of each other...the families of Ambrose Cobbs in what is now York County, and that of Joseph Cobb in Isle of Wight County. DNA analysis of descendants of both men has now clearly established these two families were UNRELATED.

Familytree dna for Cobb shows Joseph Cobb Isle of Wight = kits B1196, 269037, 345438. Kit B102147 is grouped separately with Ambrose Cobb b 1603 and does not match Joseph Cobb descendants

DNA Analysis can confirm a relationship IF it is triangulated using three separate individuals that genealogical research assumes are remote cousins, and who all share at a minimum 7 centimorgans of DNA. Because DNA inheritance is random, DNA cannot disprove a genealogical relationship, but can confirm it.

Research Notes

'Note: Do not think all these children are correct; trying to verify (Refer to will) It is speculated that Joseph Cobb immigrated to America, on religious grounds. Note: it was during this period of time that groups of "Separatists" left Holland for the Virginia colonies to avoid persecution. Joseph Cobb and his family were in this group. ^[13] Joseph and his wife, Elizabeth are listed on the rolls of "The National Society Sons and Daughters of the Pilgrims" as qualifying ancestors ^[14] It has been assumed that this line used biblical given names for their children but if one looks closely the only names that appear which could be considered biblical would be Joseph and Pharoah. However, Pharoah is an Egyptian name and would have come from the first known marriage in this line of Elizabeth Flinton whose father was named Pharoah. ^[15]

Notes for ELIZABETH FLINTON: Hottens List of Immigrants, 1600-1700: Elizabeth, Joseph's wife, came on the "Bane Bess", 1625, with her two children, Benjamen and Joseph. Cobb and Cobbs, Early Virginians by John E. Cobb, Jr. notes her arrival in 1623 on the "Bonnie Bess"

More About ELIZABETH FLINTON: Died 2: Abt. 1656, Nansemond County, Virginia Emigration: 1621, From Amsterdam to Jamestown, Virginia Immigration Ship: The Bone Bess

Children of JOSEPH COBBS and ELIZABETH FLINTON are: i. JOSEPH3 COBBS, JR., b. 1610, Amsterdam, Holland; d. Bef. March 01, 1652/53, Isle of Wight County, Virginia. ii. BENJAMIN COBBS, b. 1612; d. Bef. 1656.

More About BENJAMIN COBBS: Name 2: Benjamin Cobb Died 2: Aft. 1653

iii. ELIZABETH COBB, b. 1626; d. Bef. 1656. iv. PHARAOH COBB, b. 1624, Isle of Wight County, Virginia; d. 1701, Nansenond County, Virginia. v. NICHOLAS COBB, b. 1628, Isle of Wight County, Virginia; d. 1686, Isle of Wight County, Virginia. {Citation Needed}

Joseph S, Cobbs, son of Richard Cobbs and Sybil Sheets Cobbs, was born 1588 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, His father, an English military man, met Joseph's mother while on duty in Amsterdam. Joseph S. was about the seventh of sixteen children. In 1609, he married an English lady, Elizabeth Flinton in England and they had two sons before he set sailed for the British colonies in America. The journey for small ships bound for the "new World" took on a average of three months. Joseph S. was in America for over twelve years before being reunited with his spouse, Elizabeth, and his sons. He either sent for them or returned to England and took them back with him to the colonies. His sons were about eleven and thirteen years old. Joseph settled his reclaimed family on Goose Hill, Isle of Wright County in the Colony of Virginia where three more children were born. Decendants of Joseoh S. Cobbs and Elizabeth Flinton Cobbs multiplied and participated in the development of a new country and great migrations which opened a virgin land from "sea to shining sea."

Children: 1. Joseph Cobb, Jr. 1610- 2. Benjamin Cobb 1612- 3. Pharoah Cobb I. 1624-1701 4. Elizabeth Cobb 1626- 5. Nicholas Cobb, Sr. 1628-

NOTE: Much of the history of this family is recorded in "Cobbs of the Tidewater" by Bruce Edwards Montgomery, a well researched book now out of print. This writer was fortunate to have access to a copy during early research. Joseph S. Cobb had a kinsman, probably a cousin, Ambrose Cobbs, in the colonies at the same time. The paths of their descendants often crossed and sorting out their descendants has been a challenge for family researchers. The spelling Cobbs became Cobb with descendants over time. - Blanche Keating Collie, descendant and family researcher

Family links: Parents: Richard Cobbs (1550 - 1600) Sybil Sheets Cobbs (1566 - ____)

Spouse: Elizabeth Flinton Cobbs (1589 - ____)*

Children: Pharoah Cobb (1624 - 1701)*

• Calculated relationship

Burial: Body lost or destroyed Specifically: Burial site unk.

Created by: Blanche Keating Collie Record added: May 31, 2014 Find A Grave Memorial# 130666317

PHARAOH3 COBB (JOSEPH2 COBBS, RICHARD1 COBB) was born 1624 in Isle of Wight County, Virginia, and died 1701 in Nansenond County, Virginia. He married (1) MARY (W/O PHARAOH COBB). She died Aft. 1701. He married (2) ANN BURNETT 1679 in Isle of Wight County, Virginia, daughter of ROBERT BURNETT and JOAN WILLIAMSON. She was born 1635.

Notes for PHARAOH COBB: Sources of Information: "The Cobb Family of Rocky Mount": Date of Birth: circa 1635-1640; Pharoah Cobb's mother Elizabeth Cobb died in 1656 in Nansemond County, VA. Pharoah Cobb died in 1701 in Nansemond County. Therefore it may be assumed that Elizabeth had gone to live with her son Pharoah after the death of her husband, Joseph, in 1653. "Pharoah and his mother sold her land in the Isle of Wight and moved to Nansemond County in 1656. Pharoah sold 140 acres of his inheritance to John Hole of Devon for 1100 pounds of tobacco, in 1686. In Isle of Wight County Will book from 1661-1719 (the date was May 31,1701) Pharoah Cobb's estate was appraised and valued at 9762 pounds and divided into three shares, 3254 pounds each."

More About PHARAOH COBB: Nickname: Farrar Occupation: Planter

Child of PHARAOH COBB and MARY COBB) is: i.EDWARD4 COBB.

Child of PHARAOH COBB and ANN BURNETT is: ii.JOSEPH4 COBB III, b. Abt. 1670, Nansemond County, Virginia; d. 1753, Northampton County, North Carolina.

Sources

1. ↑ Jamestown Society: Cobb, Joseph - A9416; born 1593/4, died 1654 Isle of Wight Co.: (Muster of 1624/5). accessed 15 September 2021
2. ↑ Jamestown 1624/5 Muster
3. ↑ List Ancient Planters
4. ↑ Cameron, Judy, “The Order of Descendants of Ancient Planters,” The Second Boat, Vol. 17, No.1 (1997-1998)
5. ↑ Freepages Joseph Cobb
6. ↑ Benjamin C. Holtzclaw and Mrs. Myron J. Taylor, "Cobb of Isle of Wight county, Virginia", 173
7. ↑ Jamestown 1624/5 Muster
8. ↑ Minutes of the Council and General court of colonial Virginia, 1622-1632 Author: Henry Reed McIlwaine. Publisher: Library board, Virginia State Library 1924. Page: 198 & 199.
9. ↑ Cavaliers and pioneers Author: Neil Marion Nugent. Publisher: Richmond, Press of the Dietz Print Co. Page: 77.
10. ↑ Cavaliers and pioneers Author: Neil Marion Nugent. Publisher: Richmond, Press of the Dietz Print Co. Page: 146. Renewed Patent of 1637 by son Joseph Jr
11. ↑ John Bennett Boddie, Seventeenth Century Isle of Wight County Virginia; A history of the county of isle of Wight, Virginia, during the Seventeenth century, including abstracts of the county records. Chicago Law Printing Company, Chicago, 1938, p. 520
12. ↑ Haywood County Line: The Cobb
13. ↑ Jamestown and Plymouth: Compare and Contrast, Historic Jamestowne, NPR.gov.
14. ↑ National Society Sons and Daughters of the Pilgrims
15. ↑ Cobb Freepages

• https://www.familytreedna.com/public/cobb?iframe=yresults
• The original lists of persons of quality Author: John Camden Hotten. Publisher: London : Hotten 1874. Page: 246.
• The first republic in America Author: Alexander Brown. Publisher: Boston and New York, Houghton, Mifflin and company, 1898. Page: 613. Mention
• Brazoria Roots (Archived by the Internet Archive Wayback Machine 09 Oct 2016)
• Jacobus, Donald Lines. The Granberry Family and Allied Families (E. F. Waterman, Hartford, Conn., 1945) Page 103
• "Family Tree," database, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : modified 29 July 2019, 04:10), entry for Joseph Cobb(PID https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/4:1:LFGH-CMZ); contributed by various users.