John Cobb1,2,3

Family Chart
ID# 2228, (1744 - 1815)
FatherGideon Cobb1,4,2 (8 Jul 1718 - 25 Jul 1798)
MotherAbigail Dyer1,5 (10 Apr 1718 - 10 Jan 1808)

Key Events:

Birth: 21 Oct 1744, Norwich, Connecticut1,6
Marriage: 25 Sep 1783, Rupert, Bennington Co., Vermont, Mary Fuller (25 Nov 1762 - 16 Mar 1849)7,6
Death: 16 Dec 1815, Orwell, Vermont8,9
Burial: Village Cemetery, Orwell, Rutland Co., Vermont10
ChartsDescendants of Gideon Cobb
AncestryThe Cobbs of Pawlet, Vermont

Copyright Notice

Narrative:

     John Cobb was born on 21 Oct 1744 in Norwich, Connecticut.1,6 He was baptized on 28 Oct 1744 in First Congregational Church, Norwich, New London Co., Connecticut.11

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


     John and his four brothers, William and Mary, Elkanah, Ebenezer and Joshua, moved from Connecticut to the settlement of Stillwater, on the Hudson River in the Saratoga Patent in the Saratoga Tax District of Albany Co., New York. We know that Elkanah was there by 1773 and that Ebenezer and Joshua evidently were there before 1777, but John may not have arrived until 1779 when he appears on a tax list there.12,13,14 (See background and map.)
     John purchased 50 acres of land in Pawlet, Vermont, on 9 Nov 1778, stating he was a resident of Canterbury, Connecticut. He paid £50, money of New York.15
     John appeared on the 2 Mar 1779 tax list of in Saratoga Tax District, Albany Co., New York.16 He and his bothers Ebenezer and Joshua joined 51 officers and other residents of Saratoga Tax District, Albany Co., in signing a petition to Gov. Clinton dated 27 Apr 1779, citing "daily and hourly incursions of a numerous and savage enemy" and asking him to reverse his order to call men away from the local regiment and to provide relief as he might "judge right."17

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


     He moved to Pawlet, Vermont, about 1780, joining his brothers, Elkanah, Ebenezer, and Joshua, and their father, Gideon Cobb.18,19,20 (See background and map.)
     John, and his bothers Elkanah, Ebenezer, and Joshua, all participated in Col. Ira Allen's Regiment during military actions in Vermont in 1780 and 1781. Surviving records show that John and Joshua were with Capt. John Stark's Militia Company for seven days during the alarms at Sheensborough and Tyconderoga in Apr 1780, and were joined by Elkanah and Ebenezer "in defence of the Northern frontiers of this State" in Oct, when John was out for 18 days. John was quarter master for Col. Allen's Regiment at Castleton in the alarm in Oct 1781, being out 10 days.21 He served for six days with the militia when it was called to assist the sheriff in Windham Co. in Sep 1782. He was then under the command of his brother-in-law, Col. Stephen Pearl, then a lieutenant colonel.22 John was at some point made a captain of the infantry company of the local militia in Pawlet.23

Public Service --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---


     John served as constable of Pawlet, Vermont, from 1780 to 1785.24
     John married Mary Fuller, daughter of Jacob Fuller and Abigail Webb, on 25 Sep 1783 in Rupert, Bennington Co., Vermont.7,6 John joined his brothers Elkanah, 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.25
     John served as a town selectman in 1793.24,26 He was one of 37 subscribers who, in a document dated 4 Jun 1793, pledged to pay John Griswold some £152 in cattle, wheat, or Indian corn, as inducement to become minister of the First Congregational Church. His pledge was £4 of that amount. Rev. Griswold continued as the pastor until 1831.27

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


     John sold a one-acre plot from his farm to the town of Pawlet in Apr 1786 for use as a town cemetery. He received £8 for the parcel, which already contained a "burying ground." According to a local history, the first person was interred there in 1776, but if so it seems unlikely he owned the property at the time.28,29
     John sold a number of other parcels over the years. On 30 May 1786 he sold 23 acres, 43 rods to Eldad Curtis for £32 18s. On 13 Mar 1789 he sold about 1½ acres of his home lot, where he was then living, to Lewis Beebe, his neighbor to the north, for £10. On 28 Dec 1791 he sold a 7½-acre plot to Joseph Cook for £8. On 28 Mar 1793 he sold a 12-acre tract to Ozias Clark for £18.30,31 In addition to his original purchase in 1778, we know John purchased lot no. 33 on 27 Oct 1784, paying £55. It's size was unspecified, but most original lots were 50 acres. Since he held over 160 acres left when he sold his farm in 1805, it seems likely that there are one or more other purchases that have not been found.32 (For details of all the records that have been found, see the extracted Cobb Deeds in Pawlet Vermont.)
     He also purchased several "pine pitches," the pine groves set aside in the original town grant to be used as masts for the Royal Navy. He purchased half a 60-acre pine pitch from Joel Harman on 29 Apr 1784, paying £12 10s. He purchased two pitches of unspecified size from the heirs of Nathan Niles, for £4 10s, on 8 Nov 1794. For reasons not now clear, he quit-claimed one of them to Edward Davis on 9 Nov 1797 for the full purchase price of £4 10s.33
     John 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 four males under 16 (sons Henry, William and John and another), two over age 16 (John and one other), and 3 females (wife Mary and two others.)3 On 24 Mar 1797 John sold 3¼ acres 2¼ rods from his farm, for £100, to the First Congregational Society of Pawlet for the building of a meeting house. The lot was 16 rods (264 feet) from his house, and there were restrictions agreed to about where a building could be located on the property.34
     John appeared on the 1800 Federal Census of Pawlet, Rutland Co., Vermont, with a household consisting of two males under age 10 (sons Horace and Gideon), two between 10 and 16 (John and William), one between 16 and 26 (Henry), and one over 45 (himself); and two females under 10 (daughters Sarah and Abigail), one between 16 and 26 (unknown), one between 26 and 45 (unknown), and one over 45 (his wife, Mary.)35
     On 28 Jan 1805 John sold his 135-acre farm in Pawlet to Ephraim Fitch for $3,000. A deed the same date from Timothy Leonard of Sharon, Litchfield Co., Vermont, to John for $28 was apparently to clear a mortgage from 2 Dec 1794, which has not been found. John sold another 26 acres, 33 rods, to John Penfield, Sr., on 4 Mar 1805, for $92.36.36 He and Mary then moved to Orwell, Vermont.37,38
     John appeared on the 1810 Federal Census of Orwell, Rutland Co., Vermont, with a household consisting of one male age 10 to 16 (son Horace), two aged 16 to 26 (Gideon and John), and one over 45 (himself), one female under age 10 (daughter Maria), one aged 10 to 16 (Sarah), one aged 16 to 26 (Abigail), and one over 45 (wife Mary). The census also recorded that the family had two wheels and a loom, with which they produced 56 yards of woolen cloth and 201 yards of linen, and had 25 sheep.39

His Will --- Text Stolen from ReigelRidge.com !! ---


     John wrote a will dated 10 Sep 1815, in which he left to his wife livestock and furniture for her life. After her death, the furniture was to be divided between his son Horace and daughters Abigail, Sarah and Maria. In addition, Sally and Maria were to receive, at age 18 or when they married, furniture equal to that given their sister Abigail. He stated that he had already given to his sons William, John, Gideon and Henry (noting that Henry was deceased) all assistance that justice justified. He appointed his son Horace and Col. William Fuller as his executors.40
     John died on 16 Dec 1815 in Orwell, Vermont, at age 71.8,9 He was buried in Village Cemetery, Orwell, Rutland Co., Vermont.10
     His will was probated on 6 Jan 1816 in Fair Haven District Probate Court, Rutland Co., Vermont, with Col. William Fuller acting as executor since son Horace, the other named executor, was still a minor.41 An inventory was filed 26 Mar 1816, listing real estate valued at $2,000, as well as livestock, and farm and household goods.40 On 3 Feb 1817 the executor reported that the claims against the estate were $803.20, while those in favor of the estate were $186.94.42

Children:
     Children with Mary Fuller

Given the number of unidentified young people in the 1790 and 1800 censuses it is possible there were other children of John and Mary in addition to those listed here. The migration of their known children can be seen on their Migration Map.

Citations

  1. [S2204] Vital Records of Norwich Connecticut, pg 215.
  2. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pg 178.
  3. [S1779] John Cobb household, 1790 U.S. Census, Rutland Co., Vermont.
  4. [S2229] Mary Cobb widow's pension file, R2076, Revolutionary War Pension Files, statement of Benjamin & Martha Everest (widow's only sister), 7 Nov 1838, shows Capt. John Cobb was the son of Gedion Cobb of Canterbury, Connecticut.
  5. [S863] Cobb, History of the Cobb Family, pg 117.
  6. [S3255] Sherman application, The Michigan Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, shows date, town, and state.
  7. [S2229] Mary Cobb widow's pension file, R2076, Revolutionary War Pension Files, widows statement 10 Sep 1839, shows date, town, county and state; statement of Henry Mayo, 5 Oct 1838, shows they were married and she had not remarried; statement of Benjamin & Martha Everest (widow's only sister), 7 Nov 1838, shows they attended the marriage, with town, county, and state, recalling the date as Oct 1783.
  8. [S2229] Mary Cobb widow's pension file, R2076, Revolutionary War Pension Files, widows statement 10 Sept 1839, shows date; statement of Henry Mayo, 5 Oct 1838, shows town and state, and date as 1815 or 1816.
  9. [S2274] Muff, "Fwd: cobb," e-mail to author, 6 May 2009, citing Margaret R. Jenks, Orwell Cemetery Inscriptions, Addison County, Vermont (Granville, New York, privately published), shows date.
  10. [S2274] Muff, "Fwd: cobb," e-mail to author, 6 May 2009, citing Jenks, Orwell Cemetery Inscriptions.
  11. [S7897] Connecticut, Church Record Abstracts, vol 84, Norwich First Congregational Church, pg 92, citing vol 2 pg 122.
  12. [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.
  13. [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.
  14. [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.
  15. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 1:69-70, John Clark to John Cobb of Canterbury, Windham Co., Conicticut, dated 9 Nov 1778.
  16. [S2271] Potter, "Re: Cobbs in Saratoga," e-mail to author, 22 Apr 2009, citing pg 22 of the list.
  17. [S4237] Public Papers of George Clinton, pp 769-770.
  18. [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].
  19. [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.
  20. [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.
  21. [S2230] Col. Allen's Regiment pay rolls, folder 7, Revolutionary War Rolls.
  22. [S2231] Party to Assist Sheriff pay rolls, folder 115, Revolutionary War Rolls.
  23. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pg 34.
  24. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pg 39-40.
  25. [S2383] Inhabitants of Pawlett to General Assembly of State of Vermont, petition, 6 Sep 1785, State Archives & Records Administration.
  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. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pp 139, 141.
  28. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 3: 265, John Cobb to Jonathan Willard, Elijha Fitch, Ezekiel Harman, Mosser Porter & Simion Edgerton, selectmen of the town of Pawlett, dated [day omitted] Apr 1786, for 1 ac. in Pawlett, including the burying ground in my farm, with all appurtenances except the fence now on the premises.
  29. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pg 115, shows the first town cemetery was laid off from his farm, with the first person interred in 1776.
  30. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 2:147-8, John Cobb to Eldad Curtis, dated 30 May 1786, for 23 ac. 43 rods in town of Pawlett, on W side of the highway, on the right of Martin Dewey the original proprietor; 2:358, John Cobb to Lewis Beebe, dated 13 Mar 1789; 3:141-2, John Cobb to Joseph Cook, dated 28 Dec 1791, for 7½ ac. in Pawlett; and 3:135-6, John Cobb to Ozias Clark, dated 28 Mar 1793, for 12 ac. beginning at the NW corner of the society 50 ac. home lot.     
  31. [S2268] DeedMapper, computed size of Lewis Beebe sale as 1.39 ac. based on metes and bounds from deed.
  32. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 2:65, Nathan Niles to John Cobb, 27 Oct 1784, for lot no. 33 in the fourth division in Pawlett, original right of John Clark.
  33. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 5:119, Joel Harman to John Cobb, 28 Sep 1798, half a 60 ac. pitch, fourth division on the original right of Martin Dewey; 3:216, Elijha Niles, by power of attorney from the guardian to John & Noah Niles, heirs to Nathan Niles, deceasd, to John Cobb, 8 Nov 1794, two pine pitches on original rights of Johnathan Carver and Zephamiah Snow; and 5:72-3, John Cobb quit claim to Edward Davis, 9 Nov 1797, pine pitch on original right of Johathan Carver.
  34. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 5:74-5, John Cobb to Joseph Fitch, Daniel Welch, and Ozias Clark, of Pawlett, as Society Committee in town of Pawlett, 24 Nov 1797, described lot as 3¼ ac. 2¼ rods; 6:200, John Cobb to Ephraim Fitch, described parcel previously sold to the first Congregational Society in Pawlett as two ac.
  35. [S1522] John Cobb household, 1800 U.S. Census, Rutland Co., Vermont.
  36. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 6:200, John Cobb to Ephraim Fitch, 30 Jan 1805, 135 ac. excepting 2 ac. sold to the Congregational Society; 6:199,Timothy Leonard to John Cobb, recorded same date, three lots of 50 ac., 25 ac., and 50 ac. "where grantee now lives"; 6:214, John Cobb to John Penfield Senior, 12 Mar 1805, 26 ac. 33 rods.
  37. [S2267] Land Records, Pawlet, Vermont, 6:338, John Cobb of Orwell to Jesse Lyon, dated 8 Jan 1807, recorded same date.
  38. [S1171] Hollister, Pawlet for One Hundred Years, pg 178, shows he removed to Orwell.
  39. [S1172] John Cobb household, 1810 U.S. Census, Rutland Co., Vermont.
  40. [S2270] Muff, Extracts from early Vermont probate records, citing Part 1, pg 83, which cites 10:387-90.
  41. [S2270] Muff, Extracts from early Vermont probate records, citing Part 1, pg 83, which cites 10:387-90, and pg 89, which cites 10:459.
  42. [S2270] Muff, Extracts from early Vermont probate records, citing Part 1, pg 94, which cites 10:527-8.
  43. [S2270] Muff, Extracts from early Vermont probate records, citing Part 1, pg 83, which cites 10:387-90, shows the boy named in his father's will as his son.
  44. [S863] Cobb, History of the Cobb Family, pg 154.
  45. [S863] Cobb, History of the Cobb Family, pg 188.
  46. [S3256] Lautz application, The Empire State Society of the Sons of the American Revolution.
  47. [S3255] Sherman application, The Michigan Society of the Sons of the American Revolution.
  48. [S2270] Muff, Extracts from early Vermont probate records, citing Part 1, pg 83, which cites 10:387-90, shows her named in her father's will as his daughter.
  49. [S4601] Griswodl, The Griswold Family, England–America, pg 176.