Person:Joseph Cobbs (1)

Joseph Cobb was one of the Early Settlers of Colonial Virginia

Joseph Cobb was born in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, in 1588. He married Elizabeth Flinton in 1609. In 1613 he arrived in the Jamestown settlement in Virginia on the London Company ship, Treasurer.

Joseph Cobb is designated an "ancient planter" by the Order of the Descendants of Ancient Planters. 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.

After the Treasurer delivered Joeseph Cobb to the settlement, while in port, it become famous when Captain Samuel Argall lured Pocahontas on board in order to kidnap her "for the ransoming of so many Englishmen as were prisoners of Powhatan..." (her father). Once aboard the Treasurer, Pocahontas was detained, the ship departed, and she was held captive elsewhere in the colony. During negotiations for her exchange, Pocahontas married John Rolfe in 1614.

Jamestown had been established in 1607 to find gold and a water route to the Orient. After the "starving time" winter 1609/10 during which only 60 the original 500 settlers survived, the London entrepreneurs who funded the settlement, started recruiting people with skills to survive. Joseph Cobb was classified as "a gentleman, entitled by rank to wear a sword and trained by experience to use one."

Joseph settled on land east of the James River. He returned to England and then back to Virginia to prepare for the arrival of his family. His wife, Elizabeth Flinton, and their sons, Benjamin and Joseph, arrived in Virginia in 1625 on the “Bonnie Bess.” Joseph and Elizabeth Cobb settled in Elizabeth City. Elizabeth was the sister of a colonial physician named Pharoah Flinton. Pharoah Cobb, who was born sometime before 1641, was named for him. Joseph Cobb was granted 400 acres in Isle of Wight County, Virginia. His will was executed in 1654. Elizabeth died prior to 10 April 1671.

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.

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.” Joseph S. Cobbs

1. ↑ Additional research has been made since the book by Joe Cobb which concluded that Joseph Cobb who arrived in Virginia on the "Treasurer" in 1613 was born in Holland. The book "Cobb Chronicles": Durant Publishes, Alexandria, VA: 1988: by John S. Cobb contains a more in depeth study of the Immigrant Joseph Cobb. His study indicates it is more likely that Joseph Cobbs was not born in Holland, but instead was born in East Anglia (Norfolk, Suffolk Cos.) England, but sailed from Holland.