Elkanah Cobb1,2,3

Family Chart
ID# 1266, (1746/47 - 1795)
FatherGideon Cobb1,4,2 (8 Jul 1718 - 25 Jul 1798)
MotherAbigail Dyer1,2 (10 Apr 1718 - 10 Jan 1808)

Key Events:

Birth: 21 Jan 1746/47, Norwich, Connecticut1,5
Marriage: about 1772, Pawlet, Mary Willard (about 1753 - 2 Aug 1842)6,7,8
Death: 10 Aug 1795, Wells, Vermont9,10,11
Burial: Pawlet Cemetery, Rutland Co., Vermont12,13
ChartsDescendants of Gideon Cobb
AncestryThe Cobbs of Pawlet, Vermont

Copyright Notice

Narrative:

     Elkanah Cobb was born on 21 Jan 1746/47 in Norwich, Connecticut.1,5 He was baptized on 5 Feb 1747 in First Congregational Church, Norwich, New London Co., Connecticut.4
     Elkanah moved to Pawlet, Vermont, about 1770 according to one source. Why he might have done so is unknown, and no documentation of him being there that early has been found. But it appears his future wife moved there with her father at about that time, which would explain how they met.14
     Elkanah married Mary Willard, daughter of Jonathan Willard and Sarah Loomis, about 1772, likely in Pawlet. Their marriage is not recorded in the Pawlet vital records, but no marriages that early appear in the surviving records. Their marriage does not appear in the surviving records of Albany Co., New York, which appears to be the other possible marriage location.6,7,8

Moving to the Frontier on the Upper Hudson --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---


     Elkanah and his four brothers, William and Mary, John, Ebenezer and Joshua, moved to the settlement of Stillwater, on the Hudson River in the Saratoga Patent in the Saratoga Tax District of Albany Co., New York. Elkanah may have been drawn there because his father-in-law had had business in the area before moving to Pawlet. We know that Elkanah was there by 1773 when his son Gideon was born. Ebenezer and Joshua evidently were there before 1777, but John may not have arrived until 1779.15,16,17 (See background and map.)
Elkanah Cobb's Tombstone
photo courtesy Janet Muff

     Elkanah and Mary evidently returned to Connecticut sometime between 1776 and 1778 with their two young sons, Gideon and Joshua. Their daughter Sarah is recorded as having been born there, and Elkanah does not appear with his brothers in the later records in Saratoga. No record of why they moved has been found, but it is easy to suppose that the war raging in the Hudson Valley in the summer and fall of 1777 might have provided reason enough for the young family to depart the area, as many did. The bloody battles in Sep and Oct that lead to General Burgoyne's ruinous defeat took place less than five miles from the village of Stillwater.18,19

Settling in Pawlet, Vermont --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---


     Elkanah and Mary returned to Pawlet with their children, Gideon, Joshua and Sarah, about 1780, joining his brothers, John, Ebenezer, and Joshua, and their father, Gideon Cobb.20,21,22 (See background and map.)
     Elkanah, and his bothers John, Ebenezer, and Joshua, all participated in Col. Ira Allen's Regiment during military actions in Vermont in 1780 and 1781. Surviving records show that all four were with Capt. John Stark's Militia Company "in defense of the Northern frontiers of this State" in Oct 1780, when Elkanah served for 12 days as a private. He served seven more as clerk in Capt. Samuel Willard's Militia Company.23
     Elkanah's first land purchase in Pawlet for which we have record was on 18 Dec 1783, when he purchased lot no. 5, containing 50 acres, for £125.24 He apparently became an active member of the community, including serving as town Selectman in 1785.25,26
     Elkanah brought suit against Benjamin Willard, of Wolpole, New Hampshire, for "slanderous words." The exact nature of the offense has been lost. The suit was heard in the Rutland County Court at its Nov 1784 term. The defendant did not appear so Elkanah won by default, receiving a judgement of £50. The defendant petitioned the Vermont General Assembly 3 Oct 1785 for a new trial on the grounds he did not know of the case until afterwards. A committee of the Assembly found the facts set forth in the petition were "not supported" and recommended it be rejected. The Assembly accepted that recommendation on 24 Oct 1785 and dismissed the petition. How the defendant was related to Elkanah's grandmother, if at all, is unknown.27,28

The Mercantile Tradition Begins --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---


     Elkanah kept a store near the center of Pawlet, but just when is unclear.29 A newspaper advertisement that ran in Feb and Mar 1785 directed "Those gentlemen and ladies who would wish to subscribe for Dr. Watts's Psalms and Hymns, may apply to the undermentioned gentlemen, who have subscription papers lodged in their hands." Thirteen men are listed, including, in Pawlet, Elkanah. It is not clear whether he was participating personally or on behalf of his store, or perhaps at the time there was little difference. Dr. Watts was a pastor and noted hymn writer in England who died in 1748. His works are still being published in print and on the Internet today, but just what form they were being offered in here is unclear.30,31
     Elkanah joined his brothers John, Ebenezer, Joshua, and 45 other residents of Pawlet in signing a petition to the General Assembly dated 6 Sep 1785, asking that the Assembly incorporate the Congregational Society of Pawlet. They wanted to tax themselves in order to support "a Minister of the Gospel of the Congregational Order" in the town. Apparently their request was granted.32

Buying and Selling Land --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---


     Elkanah engaged in a series of land purchases and sales, apparently using borrowed money to finance the deals. On 17 Apr 1786 he purchased a 180-acre farm at the foot of and adjoining Wells Pond, in Wells, from Joseph Lamb, paying £360.33 On 29 Sep 1787 he mortgaged that farm for £200, payable in six months, to Robert Henry, Robert McClallen and Robert Henry Jr., merchants of Albany, Albany Co., New York.34
     On 6 Oct 1787 Elkanah purchased a 500-acre parcel in Wells, known as Governor's Lot, from Ogden Mallory, for £100.35 He had apparently also purchased all or part of lot no. 4 in Pawlet, although no record has been found, as on 9 Nov 1787 Elkanah mortgaged lot no. 5 and also half of lot no. 4, amounting to 25 ac., to secure his note for £400 York currency to the same parties.36 On 30 Apr 1788 Elkanah bought from his father-in-law, Jonathan Willard, lot no. 11, containing 50 acres, for £60. On the same day he sold his father-in-law for £3 15s a parcel which appears to be a part of lot no. 4. The size of the parcel is not stated in the deed, but measures to about 25 acres.37,38
Probable Site of Elkanah Cobb's Pawlet Farm
photo by author
     On 20 Jun 1789 Elkanah mortgaged lot no. 11 in Pawlet to the same Albany merchants, this time to secure a note for £400 money of New York. The property was described as including a dwelling house, barn, potash work, and other buildings.39 Elkanah purchased, apparently on 4 Jul 1789, three parcels in Pawlet totaling 111¾ acres, from Jonathan Lawrance and Melaeton Smith of New York city and Nathaniel Platt of Dutchess Co., New York. He paid £230 14s 8p, apparently paid with three notes equal notes payable on 2 Sep of that year and each of the following two years, giving them a mortgage to secure the notes.40
     Elkanah Cobb appeared on the 1790 Federal Census of Pawlet, Rutland Co., Vermont, (which was enumerated 4 Apr 1791, after Vermont became a state in Mar 1791) with a household consisting of five males under 16 (sons Joshua, Willard, Elkanah, John and James) and four over 16 (himself, sons Gideon, and two others), and four females (his wife, Mary Willard, daughter Sarah, and two others.)3
     On 9 Jun 1791 Elkanah sold his 136-acre farm in Pawlet to Robert Henry Jr. & Robert B Henry of Albany Co., New York, for £930 money of Vermont. Farm was composed of lot no. 5, which he had purchased in 1783, lot no. 11, which he purchased in 1788, and the remaining portion of lot no. 4, which he purchased before 1787.41
     In an advertisement in The Albany [New York] Gazette on 15 Sep 1791, the buyers offered it for sale, describing it as:
That valuable FARM, situate in the town of Pawlet, in the State of Vermont, now in the possession of Elkanah Cobb, adjoining the farm of Jonathan Willard, and containing one hundred and thirty six acres, of the best arable and meadow land, the greater part of which is presently highly improved. – There are on the premises a good dwelling house, store, barn, corn-house and oil-mill.–The dwelling house and store stand at the junction of two public roads, one of which is the main road to the lakes. From the richness of the soil, and its situation in a flourishing part of the country, this place is well calculated for a farmer or merchant.
Interested parties were to apply for details to Robert Henry Jr. and Robert R. Henry in Albany, New York, with possession to be delivered the following April. The same advertisement ran in the Vermont Gazette from Sep until Dec.42

Building the Mill --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---

Location of Elkanah Cobb's Mill

     On 20 Sep 1791 Elkanah sold half the farm at the foot of Wells Pond to Simon Francis, for £150.43 About this time, in partnership with Francis, Elkanah constructed a mill dam and sawmill at the mouth of Wells Pond, now called Lake St. Catherine. Francis was well established in Wells, having been tax collector and other civic duties, a tavern keeper, and active in buying and selling real estate. It seems likely the dam was built on the farm Elkanah had purchased in 1786 and half of which he sold to Francis in 1791. A dam and sawmill had been built at the outlet of Well Pond in 1774 and operated until shortly before new dam was built, except for a period during the Revolutionary War when the owners had been driven off by the British. The new dam seems to have been of some substance, perhaps taller than the previous one, as it raised the water level for most of the length of Wells and into Poultney, the next town to the north.44,45,46
     On 10 Feb 1792 Elkanah sold what was apparently the last of his holdings in Pawlet to Nathaniel Platt of Platt Borough, Clinton Co., New York, one of his lenders. The sale consisted of the three parcels he had purchased from Lawrance, Smith and Platt three years earlier, a total of 111¾ acres, which he sold for £270.47
     Elkanah and Mary moved their family to Wells, the next town north of Pawlet, evidently by 6 Mar 1792, when he was nominated for a tavern license at the meeting of town selectmen. He apparently continued to keep a tavern until his death, as he was again nominated for a license in Mar 1795.48,49
     It would appear that it did not take long for Elkanah to become involved in community affairs after he moved to Wells. His home there, probably his tavern, was the location where the property of delinquent taxpayers was to be sold on 23 Dec 1793. The tax in question was at the rate of one half-penny per acre, set by the Vermont legislature in Nov 1791. In 1794 he was elected as one of the haywards and a petite juror. He was one of the three freeholders appointed in early 1795 to appraise property being taken to satisfy a court judgment.50,51

The Mill Dam Controversy --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---


     The dam Elkanah and his partner created built caused considerable controversy in the community. On 30 Sep 1794 over 100 residents of Wells and nearby towns petitioned the state Assembly, stating the dam was causing the following problem:
…a Large proportion of the inhabitants of Wells aforesaid, & the adjoining Towns have for two years past suffered extremely with the Fever & Ague & other distempers commonly attending the flowing, with dead water, such sunken lands. -- and it continues to be very sickly, in so much that there is not well persons enough to take care of the sick; whole families are infected; in almost every house may be few grown persons or children, as pale & distressed to be described. Some have already died, & others there are deemed incurable.
The petitioners asked that the Assembly order the dam demolished, or for other relief. Elkanah was summoned to appear before the Assembly on the second Thursday of October to "give reasons, if any he have" why the relief requested should not be granted. On 2 Oct his partner, Simon Francis, renounced all is right in the dam.52
     Elkanah's arguments seem to have been compelling. On 30 Oct 1794 the General Assembly passed an act that did not order the demolition of the dam, but required the owners to lower the pond to its natural level by 1 May each year, and not raise it until 1 Oct. In an interesting reflection on the value of mill construction in those times, the owners were entitled to file a bill in the County Court for the loss they incurred by this requirement. The Court was to determine a reasonable amount for these damages, and the restrictions would only be in effect if the petitioners then paid that amount.53
     Apparently the legislature's solution to the mill dispute was not satisfactory to all parties. The Vermont Gazette reported on 2 Jan 1795:
We hear from Wells, that a few days ago the mills at the head of Wells pond, so called, belonging to Mr. Elkanah Cobb, were entirely consumed by fire; from the circumstances, our informant says, the fire is supposed to have been kindled by design—the probability of which is heightened by the uneasiness which has long prevailed about the situation of the mills, and which lately occasioned legislative interference, on the petition of a number of the inhabitants of Wells, &c.54
     According to Elkanah's account, on the night of 27 Nov 1794 a group of men came to the mill and burned two sawmills, the dam, and 1,000 feet of good white pine boards valued at £1,500. The harassment continued for nearly a month as the men "with force and arms" returned to the mill and also to his Lathrop farm and "by tumultuous and offensive carriage threaten traduce and quarrel and challenge" him and thus "impead hinder and prevent" him from pursuing his business. At the farm they drove off his stock, killed a jack, wounded another and a horse valued at £200, and "did him other enormities and injuries."55
     Elkanah filed suit in Rutland Co. Court on 3 Feb 1795 naming 21 defendants, claiming £2,000 in damages and the cost of suit. They appeared in court 16 Mar 1795 and trial was set for 17 Nov 1795.55
     Undeterred, a group of men returned to the mill on 2 May 1795 and "did with force and arms pull down demolish and destroy a certain mill dam to the value of three hundred pounds."56
     Elkanah died on 10 Aug 1795 in Wells, Vermont, at age 48.9,10,11 He was buried in Pawlet Cemetery, Rutland Co., Vermont.12,13

Administering His Estate --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---


     His son Gideon and his brother Ebenezer, acting as Elkanah's administrators, pursued the case Elkanah had filed before his death for damages to his mill. The case came to trial 16 Nov 1795 and the jury found Roger Stevens, Gilbert Soper, Nathaniel Lewis, and John Shumway Jr. guilty and awarded judgment of £60 and costs. The other defendants were acquitted and awarded their costs of trial. In the meantime the administrators filed a second suit for damages to the dam naming 17 defendants, many of them the same as in Elkanah's suit but several new names, including Simon Francis, apparently Elkanah's former partner in the mill. They sought £200 in damages costs. That suit was tried the same day and the jury found all but one of the defendants guilty and awarded £49 in damages and costs. The defendants in both suits filed a motions appealing the decisions to the Vermont Supreme Court claiming that the administrators had no standing to prosecute the suits.57
     The appeals in the suits involving his estate were to be heard at the 30 Jan 1797 term of the Supreme Court but were not acted upon. The administrators filed a petition with the state Assembly on 20 Sep 1798, asking it to direct the Court to hear and determine the cases as though they had been prosecuted by Elkanah before his death. On 22 Oct 1798 the petition was read to the Assembly, and the petitioners granted leave to withdraw it, with no explanation provided by the record. No record of a decision by the Supreme Court has been found.58,59      On 13 Sep 1799 his executors exchanged halves of a 16½- acre parcel in Wells next to Pond Brook with James Dunscomb, declaring them to be of equal value.60 The same day they deeded three parcels, "the whole of the real estate of Elkanah Cobb in Wells," to Simon Francis, his former partner. The parcels were of 3 acres, 18 acres, and 50 acres, and excluded the property set off by the court to the widow. The purchase price was $450, the amount by which the debts of the estate exceeded the "moveable estate."61
     The controversy surrounding the dam continued for at least two decades after Elkanah's death. William Potter obtained title to the property from his estate and erected a new dam in 1805 which he sold to Joel Simons in 1817. John Shumway, whether the same one found liable in the prior case unknown, filed suit against Simons for trespass for flooding his land. Shumway won his case in the April 1826 term of the County Court. Simons appealed to the state Supreme Court which upheld the decision of the County Court.62
     The probate court ruled on 5 Aug 1799 that Elkanah's personal estate was insufficient to pay his debts, requiring his administrators to sell all his real estate. The court appointed three men to appraise the property, then a directed that if no purchaser appeared the property was to be sold at public auction. His son Gideon, as one of the administrators, was authorized to proceed with the sale, returning the results to the court on 7 Oct.63 The administrator then ran the following advertisement in The Vermont Gazette:
To Be Sold
At public Vendue, the real estate of Elkanah Cobb, late of Wells, deceased, to the highest bider, at the dwelling house of Mr. Simon Francis in Wells, on Friday the 29th day of September next, by order of Judge Probate.
Gideon D Cobb, Commissioner. Castleton, August 19th 1799.64
On 9 Oct 1799 his son Gideon, as commissioner to sell his real estate, deeded to his widow 21½ acres in Wells, next to the bridge that goes over Pond Brook, as set by order of the probate judge as her dower.65

Children:
     Children with Mary Willard

One source shows also a daughter, name unknown, born about 1772, who died young. No other record of her has been found. The migration of Elkanah and Mary's children can be seen on their Migration Map.74

Citations

  1. [S2204] Vital Records of Norwich Connecticut, pg 215.
  2. [S2395] Land Records, Wells, Vermont, B:99-100, deaths 1782-1811.
  3. [S1781] Elkanah Cobb household, 1790 U.S. Census, Rutland Co., Vermont.
  4. [S7897] Connecticut, Church Record Abstracts, vol 84, Norwich First Congregational Church, pg 92, citing vol 2 pg 126.
  5. [S500] Findagrave.com, online, memorial #28545418, Elkanah Cobb, shows he died 10 Aug 1795 in his 49th year, and includes tombstone photo showing same.
  6. [S7916] Probate Records, Rutland District Probate Court , 4:243-4, will of Jonathan Willard Senior, 14 May 1804, shows her as late wife of Elkanah Cobb.
  7. [S500] Findagrave.com, online, memorial #54132130, Mary Willard]:ITAL] Remington, includes tombstone photo showing name as her as formerly his widow.
  8. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pp 179. 261, shows married.
  9. [S2395] Land Records, Wells, Vermont, B:99-100, deaths 1782-1811, shows date.
  10. [S500] Findagrave.com, online, memorial #28545418, Elkanah Cobb, shows date, and includes tombstone photo showing same.
  11. [S2222] "Register of Deaths," The Rutland Herald, 7 Sep 1795, shows town, as Pawlet.
  12. [S500] Findagrave.com, online, memorial #28545418, Elkanah Cobb, shows cemetery, and includes tombstone photo.
  13. [S863] Cobb, History of the Cobb Family, pg 154.
  14. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pp 179, shows "from Connecticut, 1770."
  15. [S862] Births, Marriages and Deaths, Pawlet, Vermont, 1768-1856, pg 5, shows sons Gideon Dyer born 11 Sep 1773 and Joshua 27 May 1776, both in Stillwater, New York, and Sarah born 16 Jul 1778 in Canterbury, Connecticut.
  16. [S2226] Potter, "Re: Saratoga NYGenWeb Queries," e-mail to author, 20 Apr 2009, shows Ebenezer and Joshua had claim approved 17 Apr 1777 for repairing arms, citing "Committee of Correspondence" p. 724; , Ebenezer and Joshua signed 1778 petition to Gov. Clinton, citing " Public Papers of George Clinton" III:211 & IV:770; Ebenezer and John in 2 Mar 1779 Saratoga District tax List; and Ebenezer, Joshua and William on the 23 Oct 1779 tax list.
  17. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 1:266-7, John Fassett, commissioner for the state of confiscated land to Ebenezer Cobb of Stillwater, Albany Co., New York, dated 9 Nov 1779; 1:69-70, John Clark to John Cobb of Canterbury, Windham Co., Conicticut [sic], dated 9 Nov 1778; and 1:171, Peter Van Baurer to Joshua Cobb of Stillwater, Albany Co. dated 4 Feb 1780.
  18. [S862] Births, Marriages and Deaths, Pawlet, Vermont, 1768-1856, pg 5, shows Joshua as born at Stillwater in May 1776, and Sarah born in Canterbury in Jul 1778.
  19. [S2275] Sylvester, History of Saratoga County, pg 289, shows that many families returned to Connecticut for safety during the most dangerous period of the war.
  20. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pg 178, shows Gideon was one of the earliest settlers from Connecticut; pg 40 shows he was a selectman in 1780; pg 39 shows John was a constable in 1780; and pg 179, shows Elkanah moved from Connecticut in 1770 [so apparently he and his wife returned there after their time in Saratoga and Connecticut].
  21. [S862] Births, Marriages and Deaths, Pawlet, Vermont, 1768-1856, pg 5, shows Elkanah's son Willard was born in Pawlet 17 Mar 1781; pg 32 shows Ebenezer's son Darick was born in Pawlet 11 Mar 1780; and pg 85 shows Joshua was married in Pawlet 17 Sep 1781.
  22. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 1:266-7, John Fassett, commissioner for the state of confiscated land to Ebenezer Cobb of Stillwater, Albany Co., New York, dated 9 Nov 1779; 1:69-70, John Clark to John Cobb of Canterbury, Windham Co., Conicticut [sic], dated 9 Nov 1778; 1:171, Peter Van Baurer to Joshua Cobb of Stillwater, Albany Co. dated 4 Feb 1780; 1:271-2, Joel Simonds to Joshua Cobb of Pawlett, dated 19 Sep 1781; 1:275-6, Ebenazer Cobb of Pawlett to Joshua Cobb of Pawlett, dated 20 Sep 1781; 2:37, Benjamin Petton to Elkanah Cobb of Pawlett, dated 18 Dec 1783; and 2:65, Nathan Niles to John Cobb of Pawlett, dated 27 Oct 1784.
  23. [S2230] Col. Allen's Regiment pay rolls, folder 7, Revolutionary War Rolls.
  24. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 2:37, Benjamin Petton to Elkanah Cobb, dated 8 Dec 1783, for lot no. 5 of first division, original right of Amasa Jones.
  25. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pg 40.
  26. [S3451] Hemenway, Vermont Historical Gazetteer: A Magazine, embracing a History of each Town, Civil, Ecclesiastical, Biographical and Military, vol III pg 880, shows him as selectman and year.
  27. [S7905] Benjamin Willard to General Assembly of State of Vermont, petition, 3 Oct 1785, State Archives & Records Administration.
  28. [S2381] State Papers of Vermont, vol 8, General Petitions 1778-1787 (1952), pp 154-5, contains transcript of petition; vol 3, Journals and Proceedings of the State of Vermont 1784-1787 (1978), pg 202, shows dispostion.
  29. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pg 98.
  30. [S2238] Notice, The Vermont Gazette, 6 Feb 1785, same notice also published in 14 Mar and 28 Mar 1785 editions.
  31. [S1265] Wikipedia, online, "Isaac Watts" article, viewed 8 May 2009, provides Watts' biography.
  32. [S2383] Inhabitants of Pawlett to General Assembly of State of Vermont, petition, 6 Sep 1785, State Archives & Records Administration.
  33. [S2395] Land Records, Wells, Vermont, B:317, Joseph Lamb to Elkanah Cobb, 18 Apr 1786.
  34. [S2395] Land Records, Wells, Vermont, B:306-7, mortgage deed, Elkanah Cobb to Robert Henry, Robert McClallen & Robert Henry Junr, 1 Oct 1787.
  35. [S2395] Land Records, Wells, Vermont, C:35, Ogden Mallory to Elkanah Cobb, 6 Oct 1787.
  36. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 2:155-6, mortgage deed, Elkanah Cobb to Robert Henry, Robert McClallin & Robert Henry Junr dated 9 Nov 1787, on lot no. 5 in the first division in Pawlett on the original right of Amasa Jones, and ½ of Lot no. 4 in the first division in Pawlett on the original right of Samuel Wright, the W end of that lot.
  37. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 2:198, Jonathan Willard to Elkanah Cobb, 20 Jun 1789; and 3:37-8 Elkanah Cobb to Jonathan Willard, 10 Dec 1791.
  38. [S2268] DeedMapper, computed size as 25.8 ac. based on metes and bounds from deed.
  39. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 2:199-200, mortgage deed, Elkanah Cobb to Robert Henry, Robert McClallin & Robert Henry Junr dated 9 Nov 1787, on Lot no. 11 in the first division in Pawlett, drawn on the orignal right of James Hudley.
  40. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 2:320-2, Jonathan Lawrance, Melaeton Smith, & Nathaniel Platt to Ekanah Cobb, dated 4 Jul 1788, for 46¾ ac. in Pawlett, beginning at the SE corner of home lot no. 47, set out for Timothy Winchell; also ½ of 30 ac. lot given to Williams Fairfield by the propriators of Pawlett on account of his being the second settler in the town; also, lot no. 45, laid out for Johathan Castle on the third division of original rights of Daniel Warner. Also 2:200-3, mortgage deed dated 4 Jul 1789 from Elkanah Cobb to same parties. Since both deeds were recorded 4 Jul 1789, and for the same amount, making it appear that the mortage was for the purchase transaction, it would appear that the date of the sale deed was mis-copied by the clerk.
  41. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 2:356-7, Elkanah Cobb to Robert Henry Jr. & Robert B. Henry, dated 9 Jun 1791, for home lot no. 11 laid out in the first division on the right of James Shedley, home lot no 5 in the first division on the right of Amasa Jones, and part of the home lot no 4 in the first division on the right Samuel Wright.
  42. [S2221] "For Sale," Albany Gazette, 19 Sep 1791, same advertisement has been found in The Vermont Gazette each week in 12, 26 Sep, 3, 10, 17, 24 Oct, 7, 14 Nov, & 5 Dec 1791.
  43. [S2395] Land Records, Wells, Vermont, C:442, Elkanah Cobb to Simon Francis, 14 May 1793.
  44. [S2376] Inhabitants of Wells to General Assembly of State of Vermont, petition, 30 Sep 1794, State Archives & Records Administration, shows dam had been in use two years.
  45. [S7903] John Sumway v. Joel Simons, Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Supreme Court of the the State of Vermont, vol 1 (1829): 53-57, January Term, 1827, Rutland Co., pg 53, shows prior dam, Elkanah erected new mill and dam within year or two of 1792.
  46. [S2395] Land Records, Wells, Vermont, vol B and C include many deeds with Simon Francis as grantor or grantee, C:442, Elkanah Cobb to Simon Francis, 14 May 1793; C:136, 11 Jan 1789 town meeting, shows him as "lister"; C:174, Mar 1790 town meeting, shows him as fence viewer; C:219, Mar 1791 meeting, shows him as collector; C:425, Mar 1793 town meeting, shows him as surveyor of highway; and B:423, Mar 1795 town meeting shows him as fence viewer.
  47. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 3:18-9, Elkanah Cobb to Nathaniel Platt, dated 10 Feb 1792, for 46¾ ac. in Pawlett, beginning at the SE corner of home lot no. 40, ½ of 30 ac. lot given to Williams Fairfield by the propriator of Pawlett on account of his being the second settler in the town, and lot no. 45 which was laid out for Johathan Castle on the third division of original rights of Daniel Werner.
  48. [S2395] Land Records, Wells, Vermont, C:272-3, notes of town meeting 6 Mar 1792 at the schoolhouse near Nathan Warram and meeting of authority & selectmen afterwards for the appointment of tavern or houses of intertainment, shows Elkanah nominated for license; C:425, town meeting 14 Feb 1793 at schoolhouse near Elkanah Cobbs does not mention tavern license; notes for 1794 meeting not found; B:423 notes of town meeting 10 Mar 1795 held at school house near Elkanah Cobb's, and meeting of authority afterwards for the appointment of tavern or houses of intertainment, shows Elkanah nominated for tavern license.
  49. [S863] Cobb, History of the Cobb Family, pg 154, shows that in probate proceedings he is called "Elkanah Cobb late of Wells.
  50. [S2223] Notice, The Farmers' Library, 28 Oct 1793, same notice appeared in The Vermont Gazette, 25 Oct 1793; a breif follow-up warning appeared 16 Dec and 30 Dec 1793 editions of the Farmer's Libary.
  51. [S2395] Land Records, Wells, Vermont, B:395-8 executions of judgement obtained by Eli Pettiborn and Joseph Randal against Abel Merriman, shows Elkanah as one of three appraisers, all shown as free holders; D:1, record of town meeting 17 Feb 1794, shows election of Elkanah as hayward and as pettit juror.
  52. [S2376] Inhabitants of Wells to General Assembly of State of Vermont, petition, 30 Sep 1794, State Archives & Records Administration, document contains petition, summons, Francis' release, and notes on committee action.
  53. [S2234] Notice of act of General Assembly, The Rutland Herald, 5 Jan 1795, provides the text of the act.
  54. [S2272] Untitled article, The Vermont Gazette, 2 Jan 1795.
  55. [S7906] Old Supreme Court Files Nos. 3222 to 3415, Rutland, Vermont, folder 211, paper 3286, summons of defendants in Elkanah Cobb vs. Abner Cone et al., 3 Feb 1795; and paper 3287, copy of County Court record in Elkanah Cobb vs. Abner Cone et al.
  56. [S7906] Old Supreme Court Files Nos. 3222 to 3415, Rutland, Vermont, paper 3287, copy of County Court record in Ebenezer Cobb & Gideon D. Cobb vs. Abner Cone et al.
  57. [S7906] Old Supreme Court Files Nos. 3222 to 3415, Rutland, Vermont, folder 211, paper 3287, copy of County Court record in Elkanah Cobb vs. Abner Cone et al.; paper 3287, copy of County Court record in Ebenezer Cobb & Gideon D. Cobb vs. Abner Cone et al.; and paper 3288, a second copy of County Court record in Elkanah Cobb vs. Abner Cone et al.
  58. [S2377] Ebn Cobb and Gideon D. Cobb to General Assembly of State of Vermont, petition, 20 Sep 1798, State Archives & Records Administration, recites history of prior proceedings.
  59. [S2381] State Papers of Vermont, vol 11, General Petitions 1797-1799 (1962), pp 208-10, contains transcript of petition; vol 3 part 8, Journals and Proceedings of the General Assembly of the State of Vermont 1797-1799 (1978), pg 295, shows dispostion.
  60. [S2395] Land Records, Wells, Vermont, D:386, Gideon D. and Ebenezer Cobb, administrators, to James Dunscomb, 8 Oct 1799; and D:367, James Dunscomb to Gideon D. and Ebenezer Cobb, administrators, same date.
  61. [S2395] Land Records, Wells, Vermont, D:386-7, Gideon D. Cobb to Simon Francis, 28 Nov 1799.
  62. [S7903] John Sumway v. Joel Simons, Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Supreme Court of the the State of Vermont, vol 1 (1829): 53-57, January Term, 1827, Rutland Co.
  63. [S2396] Probate Records , vol 3 pp 95-6.
  64. [S2269] "To Be Sold," The Vermont Gazette, 29 Aug 1799, same ad ran in the 12 Sep 1799 edition as well.
  65. [S2395] Land Records, Wells, Vermont, D:373, Gideon D. Cobb, commissioner, to Mary Cobb, 12 Nov 1799.
  66. [S862] Births, Marriages and Deaths, Pawlet, Vermont, 1768-1856, pg 5.
  67. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pg 261, article attributed to Henry Willard.
  68. [S862] Births, Marriages and Deaths, Pawlet, Vermont, 1768-1856, pg 5, birth record.
  69. [S500] Findagrave.com, online, memorial #38646766, Sarah "Sally" Cobb, show inscription stating she was daughter of Elkanah Cobb and Mary his wife, and includes photo of stone with same.
  70. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pp 179, 261.
  71. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pg 179 and pg 261, article attributed to Henry Willard.
  72. [S2395] Land Records, Wells, Vermont, C:233-4, births 1793-1795.
  73. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pg 261.
  74. [S4230] Cobb, Elder Henry Cobb Family, shows daughter Cobb, name unknown, born abt 1772, died young.