Ambrose Cobbs of Virginia
A Word Of Caution
Let us begin by doing our bit to
correct an oft-repeated error. 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.
Now, where were we...!
Ambrose Cobbs
1603-1655
Ambrose COBBS "the Emigrant" was
born about 1603 in Petham, Kent. He died before January 15, 1656 in Bristol Parish, Henrico
County, Virginia. He was the third son named in his
father's Will to share gavelkind from his estate.
He was married to Ann WHITE (daughter of
Robert WHITE and Susanna BOULDEN) on April 18, 1625 in Norton Parish, Kent. At the time of her marriage, her parents
were both deceased and she was living in Willesborough, under the government of
Thomas Cobbs, the brother of her groom Ambrose. Thomas had married her sister Susan
White in 1619.
Ann WHITE was born in 1608 in Norton Parish,
Kent. She died before 1656 in Henrico County, Virginia. This date is speculative. Ann was not mentioned in her husband's
estate, and immediately after Ambrose's death the property was sold out of Cobb
family possession. Therefore, it
seems logical to assume that by then Ann was deceased.
In 1633, Ambrose and Ann sold their lands in England,
possibly as the preliminary preparation for their immigration to the Virginia
Colony. It is believed they made the voyage in 1635, most likely landing at Jamestown. Their party
consisted of Ambrose and Ann; children Robert, and Margaret; and Richard Barker,
Hugh Barker, and Thomas Harding. It is not known positively, but probably safe
to assume, that the latter three men had indentured themselves to Ambrose, in
order to gain free passage to the New World.
It is known that under the Land Grant laws of the day, Ambrose as a
"Headright" was entitled to 50 acres of land for each person for whom
he had paid the transportation charges to Virginia. The ultimate fate of the Barkers
and Thomas Harding, and the length of their association with Ambrose Cobbs, is
unknown.
The Virginia Colony had only been established
in 1607, when our Cobbs first came to America. Jamestown, though the
center of commerce, government, and protection from indians, was nonetheless a
very unhealthful place, being situated on a low, swampy, mosquito infested
island. Sweltering heat, disease, starvation, the lack of potable water, and
occasional Indian attack took a heavy toll on all new arrivals. In fact, ample
records exist that indicate it was the annoyance of having to constantly 'swat'
Mosquitoes that motivated the establishment of Williamsburg several miles inland. But it was
most likely here that Ambrose situated his family in temporary quarters, while
he no doubt began an immediate exploration of the area for the land he would
claim as a Headright.
On July 25, 1639, Ambrose patented 350 acres on the Appomattox
River, near its confluence with Swift's Creek, about nine miles from present Petersburg, about fifty miles upriver from Jamestown, and adjacent to
properties owned by Abraham Wood and John Baugh. One can only speculate as to
the first project Ambrose took on...the construction of a house for his family,
or to start preparing the land for the first planting? It was already
mid-summer; rather late in the season to be breaking previously untilled soil
to start a crop. Conditions were primitive to say the least. The location was
isolated and the situation with the indians was always tenuous. Ann could have
been but little help, her hands full with four children under the age of twelve
(see the following).
Two more children had been born to Ambrose
and Ann after their arrival in Virginia. Ambrose was born within a year, about
1636. He lived his entire life
within 15 miles of Jamestown, and died in
probably late 1683, in what is now York
County. He fathered two known children by his
wife Mary Ann; sons William in 1655, and Robert in 1660. Ambrose died without leaving a written
Will, but his estate was inventoried and appraised and recorded in February
1684. Following his death, his widow
married one George Glasscock.
Thomas, the sixth and last child born to
Ambrose and Ann, was born in 1637 in Charles River County, Virginia (In 1643,
the county name was changed to York.)
He lived his entire life in York
County, Virginia, and
died there in 1702. He never married and died without issue. His Will was
probated 24 February 1702... "To cousin William Cobbs, my house and lot
where I now live", and if he died then the same to go to Thomas Cobbs;
"to Isaac Sart a black mare running now at Powhatan; two sows to Alice
Newman; to Robert Cobbs, son of Ambrose Cobbs; all the remaining part of my
estate to cousins Ambrose Cobbs, Robert Cobbs, Otho Cobbs, and Robert Kerle
(related through the Thorpe-Cobb family connection), to be equally divided between
them." (It is common to also find him and the Kerle family credited as
descendants of Joseph Cobb of Isle
of Wight County.)
COBBS HALL
No doubt, the first home Ambrose built was a
temporary structure, intended just to get a roof over their heads. With the
passage of time, to provide additional "creature comfort", he may
have added onto this dwelling, or started over again with a permanent house
nearby. Whatever the case, one thing does seem logical; that it was of an
architecture one would expect to find in England...thatch roofs covering
outer walls whose supporting inner beams are exposed. It was the style that was
known by those early colonists. And certainly, with conditions being as harsh
as they were, one was hardly ever of a mind to experiment.
By the time of the American Revolution
(almost a century and a half later), a great plantation mansion was standing on
the land Ambrose Cobbs had claimed as his Headright in 1639. A painting of it
now hangs in the Library of the University
of Virginia. Also, even
during his lifetime, the entire locale had become known as 'Cobbs' or 'Cobbs
Hall', a name that was used to identify the entire surrounding area until well
after the Civil War. Although Ambrose is popularly credited with being the hand
that built this mansion, a basic examination of facts and circumstances
indicates this is unlikely.
The reasons for this position are (1) Ambrose
lived only another seventeen years after obtaining title to the land, and
apparently died a widower. (2) His heirs did not continue to live there, (3)
The mansion seen in the popular painting is clearly of southern antebellum
architecture, a style that did not take root until into the 18th century, long
after Ambrose's death and the property had passed out of Cobb family
possession, and (4), The issue of family finances has to be considered. By the time the first crop was in, the
Cobbs had been in Virginia
at least five years. It would hardly seem unreasonable to assume that by then
the family purse was near empty, if indeed it wasn't already and they were
living on credit or barter. Certainly, Ambrose was mainly occupied with the
clearing and cultivation of the land; and with the planting and harvesting of
the corn, rice, and tobacco that he produced. And this alone, was more than a
full-time job. Further, the size of the family had increased by only two since
their arrival in Virginia,
the last being born in 1637, two years before they ever occupied those 350
acres that became Cobbs Hall. Therefore there was no need to greatly enlarge
the accommodations Ambrose originally provided. As long as the dwelling they
did occupy held up, it seems most likely that the construction of an
extravagant mansion would have been the last priority.
As mentioned earlier, Ambrose may have simply
added onto the original temporary dwelling, or he may have begun construction
of a new house nearby. But the essential point being made is that the project
of building that large home probably proceeded in phases as time and money
permitted, as did many of the early colonial plantations...and that the mansion
in the painting was only barely begun in Ambrose's lifetime --- if he had
anything to do with it at all.
[A note of caution to researchers would be appropriate
here. The home of Ambrose Cobb is
not to be confused with the plantation of that branch of the Lee family known
as the “Cobbs Hall Lees” in Northumberland
County, Virginia. The history of the Lee home is unknown,
but it has been established they had no connection to the Cobbs.]
Immediately after Ambrose died (no later than
January 1656), his son Robert, acting as administrator of the estate, sold the
property to one Michael Masters, who then sold it to John and Thomas Burton, in
that same year. In 1704, a son of Thomas Burton sold "Cobbs" to John
Bolling, and though the plantation and entire area continued to be known as
"Cobbs", the property remained in Bolling family possession for over
a hundred years. Bolling was the son of Colonel Robert Bolling and his wife
Jane Rolfe, daughter of Thomas Rolfe and granddaughter of Pocahontas. A more
thorough study of the Bolling family than what is done here gives rise to the
belief that it was probably that family that built the mansion in the painting.
During the Revolution, the property was raided by the British. The crops and
outbuildings were burned, but the main house was left untouched. During the War
Between the States however, the entire property was overrun and burned to the
ground by Federal troops, in 1864.
The land settled by Ambrose and Ann Cobbs is
now partially occupied by "Point of Rocks Park", a 188-acre athletic
complex operated by Chesterfield County (Chesterfield
was created from Henrico in 1749.). The park is located on Enon Church Road, about 1.5 miles south
of Interstate Highway
295. An archeological survey was done of the property prior to development, and
those plats and maps are available in the Virginia State
Archives. Click here to see the historical marker that identifies the park
as being the original location of Cobbs Hall.
Ambrose and Ann were most likely buried in
the small cemetery that is located at the extreme northeast corner of the
tract. In 1864, invading Union troops destroyed all the headstones but one (a
woman not related to the Cobbs family who died in 1801). Some years later,
Wyndham Robertson (1803-1888), a Bolling descendant and one-time governor of Virginia, and a direct
descendant of Pocahontas, was buried at "Cobbs", and his grave is
prominently marked. The cemetery is not accessible directly from the park. It
can only be reached by a public street that runs parallel to the northern park
boundary. It is located in a cul de sac and is surrounded by a rock wall
approximately four feet in height.
Ambrose COBBS "the Emigrant" and
Ann WHITE had the following children:
1 Ambrose COBBS was christened
on March 12, 1625 in Willesborough, Kent.
He died before August 18, 1626 in Kent.
2 Robert
COBBS (born before January 7, 1627).
3 Jane COBBS was born before
1630 in Willesborough, Kent. She
died before January 12, 1634. She
was buried in Willesborough,
Kent.
4 Margaret
COBBS (born in 1631).
5 Ambrose
COBBS (born in 1635/36).
6 Thomas COBBS was born in 1637 in Charles River
County, Virginia. He died in 1702
in York County, Virginia. He never married and died without
issue.
Remember ... If you are looking for a Cobb,
try it with both spellings ... COBB and COBBS!
The descendants of Ambrose Cobbs of Virginia:
Index of
Surnames
Index of Persons
DNA Project Page
NOTE: I am in the process of rebuilding this
entire database. I am removing those collateral surnames that are unique to my
immediate family. This will make this database more streamlined and easier for
researchers to use. However, this is a time consuming process; therefore you must be patient.
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