Joseph Cobb

     Joseph Cobb was born circa 1594.^1,2 He married Elizabeth.³ He probably married Elizabeth Flinton circa 1624 in Virginia.¹ He died circa 1653.
     
     Joseph Cobb, the first of this family in Virginia came over on the Treasurer from London in 1613.⁴ 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. Both are given as aged 25, but Joseph was older. He does not appear among the living (or dead) in the census taken in February the year before, so he was apparently either missed or out of the country. He had perhaps returned to England for his wife and two sons for whose passages, as well as those of four servants, and by his own right, he was granted land in 1637. (It was often years before patents were recorded).

     The questions beg then, if Elizabeth Cobb, by that name, was in Virginia in August 1623, six months before the census was taken in February 1623/24, why does she not appear therein, and where was Joseph? An answer to the first question, accepted by some, rejected by others, is that Elizabeth Cobb in the 1624/25 muster appears as Elizabeth Flinton in the earlier census with two other Flintons, Pharow (Pharaoh) and Joane, who in 1624/25 were neighbors of Joseph and Elizabeth Cobb in Elizabeth City. If so, it follows that Joseph Cobb married twice, and probably both times to an Elizabeth as that is the name of his wife recorded on the 1637 patent. It seems a reasonable guess that Joseph was in Europe at the time of the first census, that he soon returned to Virginia with his family, and that his wife, if she survived the passage, soon died leaving Joseph free to marry Elizabeth Flinton before the second census. It should be noted however, that there is no direct proof that Joseph married more than once, or that he married Elizabeth Flinton. Nevertheless, circumstantial evidence does exist that supports both ideas.

     Both Pharaoh and Joane Flinton appear in the muster, so a reasonable explanation for Elizabeth Flinton not appearing among the living or the dead in 1624/25, is that she had married. There were only about 1,232 persons living at 25 locations in Virginia at that time, but there were undoubtedly a number of men whose wives were named Elizabeth. However, only one, Joseph Cobb, had a wife Elizabeth and a son Pharaoh. That Pharaoh Cobb was named for Pharaoh Flinton is certain as there were no other men in the colony at that time by that name or any of its variant spellings. Therefore, it seems almost certain that Joseph Cobb married Elizabeth Flinton, but it doesn't prove the relationship between Elizabeth and Pharaoh Flinton. Some believe he was her brother; others, her father. However, if their ages as given in the 1624/25 muster are correct, Pharaoh was only eleven years older than Elizabeth, and therefore, could not have been her father. Futhermore, Pharaoh and Joane arrived in Virginia together in 1612, eleven years before Elizabeth. That they would have left their child behind for so long seems unlikely.

     All this having been said, there is one more possible scenario that comes to mind. It could be called the one wife theory. As already mentioned, there is no record of Joseph between his arrival in Virginia in 1613 and the 1624/25 muster. Perhaps he returned to England periodically, or once for an extended period, married Elizabeth Flinton and fathered two sons before finally returning to Virginia with his family. He may have been out of the country again in 1623/24, during which time Elizabeth stayed with the Flintons and was incorrectly called Elizabeth Flinton in the census. This theory, if it has any merit, could account for there being no record of Joseph Cobb having been granted land under the status of Ancient Planter. (Those persons who arrived in Virginia before 1616, remained for a period of three years, and paid their own passage have been referred to as ancient planters. They received the first patents of land in the new world as authorized by Sir Thomas Dale in 1618 for their personal adventure).