Ambrose Cobbs (1603 – c. 1655) was an early Virginia colonist and planter who established the long lasting social and political Cobb dynasty in the southern states.
Ambrose Cobbs was born in 1603 inKent,England. He was the son of Ambrose Cobbs and Angelica Hunt, the sister ofRobert Hunt, chaplain of the first permanent English settlement atJamestown in 1607.[1] Cobbs married before 1627, Ann White with whom he had at least six known children.[2] In 1633, Cobbs and his wife sold their property in Kent in preparation for their immigration toVirginia. It is believed that he, his wife Ann, children Robert and Margaret arrived in Virginia in 1635.[3] In 1639 Cobbs patented 350 acres at the mouth of theAppomattox River as a headright for have paid for the immigration of his family along with Hugh Barker, Thomas Barker and Thomas Harding.[4]
Two of the Ambrose Cobbs children, Ambrose and Jane were born and died in Kent before his immigration. He and his wife Ann bore another two children, sons Ambrose (the younger) and Thomas after their arrival in Virginia. Cobbs died about late 1655 or within the first few days of 1656, his will was probated January 15, 1656.[5] His home-site was later sold to the Bolling family who used the name "Cobbs Hall" for their estate.[6]
Robert Cobbs: The eldest surviving of Ambrose Cobbs, he was born in Kent in 1627.[2] He was executor of his father estate and later removed toYork County, Virginia just outside present-dayWilliamsburg. He is believed to have married Elizabeth Thorpe a relation of Maj. Otho Thorpe. He served as a vestryman of Bruton Parish Church in Williamsburg from 1674 to 1683 during the period in which the first brick church was built on the present site.[7]
Margaret Cobbs: The second surviving child of Ambrose Cobbs, she was born in Kent in 1631 and was listed in her father's land patent.[4] Her later fate is unknown.
Ambrose Cobbs: The second eldest surviving son of Ambrose Cobbs born after 1635 in Virginia. He resided in York County, Virginia and married leaving two children, a son and daughter. His widow later remarried George Glasscock.[2]
Thomas Cobbs: The youngest surviving child of Ambrose Cobbs was born in Virginia. He died unmarried and without issue in York County, Virginia.
A number of Ambrose Cobbs descendants migrated to Georgia in the later part of the 18th century founding a powerful dynasty which has continued to hold social and political influence into the 21st century. This prominent Georgia branch of the Cobbs family was founded by Thomas 'Old Tom' Cobbs and John Addison Cobbs, great-great grandsons of Ambrose through his son Robert. The two men would eventuallydrop the 'S' from their surname as would all their descendants by the Civil War.[8]Cobb County, Georgia was named for his descendantThomas Willis Cobb, grandson of Thomas 'Old Tom' Cobbs
Jerrie Cobb (American Aviator and one of the women of Mercury 13)
The list above is compiled through reference with available genealogical resources from the Library of Virginia, Library of Congress, multimedia referencing through Ancestry.com and through internal wikipedia cross-referencing.[9][10][11]
^Last Will and Testament of Stephen Hunt, Canterbury Registry Office, Canterbury, Kent, United Kingdom
^abcVirkus, Frederick Adams, Albert Nelson Marquis (1928).The abridged compendium of American genealogy: first families of America: A genealogical encyclopedia of the United States, Volume 3. New York: F. A. Virkus & Co.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^McAllister, John Meriwether, Lura May B. Tandy (1906).Genealogies of the Lewis and Kindred Families. New York: E.W. Stephens Publishing Company. p. 280.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^abGreer, George Cabell (1912).Early Virginia Immigrants, 1623-1666. Richmond, VA: W. C. Hill Printing Co.
^Goodwin, William Archer Rutherfoord (1907).Bruton Parish Church restored and its historic environment. The Franklin press, Co.
^Knight, Lucian Lamar (1907).Reminiscences of famous Georgians: embracing episodes and incidents in the lives of the great men of the state : also an appendix devoted to extracts from speeches and addresses, Vol. 1. Atlanta, Georgia: Franklin-Turner Company. pp. 198–202.
^Stanard, W. G. (1982).The Cobbs Family: Genealogies of Virginia Families from the William and Mary College Quarterly. Baltimore, MD: William and Mary College/Genealogical Publishing Co.
^Virkus, Frederick A. (1925–1942).The Compendium of American Genealogy, First Families of America (Vol 1 - 7 ed.). Library of Congress: A.N. Marquis and Company.
