Rev. James E. Cobb1,2,3

Family Chart
ID# 23718, (abt 1827 - 1879)
FatherJames Dyer Cobb4,5 (24 Sep 1789 - bef 1870)
MotherRachael Isaacs Jones4,5 (30 Jan 1790 - bef 1870)

Key Events:

Birth: about 1827, District of Columbia6,7
Marriage: 7 Sep 1847, Columbus, Hempstead Co., Arkansas, Sarah Ann Crabtree (about 1830 - )8,9
Death: 1 May 1879, Trenton, Louisiana10,11
ChartsDescendants of Gideon Cobb
AncestryThe Cobbs of Pawlet, Vermont

Copyright Notice

Narrative:

     Rev. James E. Cobb was born about 1827, probably in the District of Columbia.6,7
     He moved to Ohio with his parents by 1830. He was probably one of the two males under age 5 listed in the household of his father, James Dyer Cobb, in the 1830 Federal Census of Lebanon, Warren Co., Ohio.12
     He moved to Indiana with his parents by about 1835, then back to Ohio by 1840. He was probably one of the two males age 15 to 20 listed in the household of his father in the 1840 Federal Census of Dayton, Montgomery Co., Ohio.13
     He moved to Arkansas with his parents before 1847. By 1847 his father had been named superintendent of the Washington Male and Female Seminary in Washington, Arkansas. James and his sister Mary were instructors there.14,15,16
     James married Sarah Ann Crabtree, daughter of William H. Crabtree, the man his older sister Sophia would marry the following winter, and Margaret D. Harpole, on 7 Sep 1847 in Columbus, Hempstead Co., Arkansas, with Rev. Jacob Custer, Methodist minister officiating. Because of her age, her father had to give his consent to the marriage.8,9
     No further record of Sarah has been found. Neither she nor James had been found in the 1850, 1860, or 1870 census, and no mention of a wife or children is found in any of the many records about him, or his obituaries. But in a July 1856 letter he mentioned the need to support his family, suggesting she and some children were still living then.17
     At the Arkansas Annual Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church held in Nov 1848, James was appointed as pastor in Camden, Arkansas, for the following year. No details about his education for the ministry have been found.18 At the 1849 Conference he was appointed to the Arkadelphia circuit.19 At the 1850 Conference he was named agent for the American Bible Society. The society, founded in 1816 and still active, printed and distributed Bibles.20,21
     He then became the editor of the Memphis Christian Advocate. But in the summer of 1856 the publishing committee announced it would no longer be able to pay his salary. He resigned, saying he would gladly serve without remuneration, but needed to support his family.22 He was then transferred to the St. Louis Conference, and stationed as pastor in Lexington, Missouri.23
     The Arkadelphia, Arkansas, station was formed in 1859, with James as preacher in charge. The Arkadelphia Female College was organized in 1860, with James as president. His sister Caroline assisted him there.24,25
     In 1866 James and a partner, John Messenger, started a newspaper, The Ouachita Conference Journal, the journal of the Ouachita Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, in Arkadelphia.26,27 In Dec 1866 they moved the press and material to Little Rock, where they published the Arkansas Christian Advocate, the organ of the Little Rock Conference. The paper flourished for a time, with James defending the rights of Southern people during reconstruction.1
     In fall of 1869 he sold his interests in the paper according to some sources, but others report that publication was suspended. James moved to Louisiana, and joined the Conference there to become president of Homer College, in Homer, Claiborne Parish. He remained there until 1873.28,29,30
     By 1874 he had been named presiding elder of the Opelousas District. He was the presiding elder of the Delhi District at the time of his death.31,32
     James died on 1 May 1879 in Trenton, Louisiana.10,11

Children:
     Children with Sarah Ann Crabtree:

No record of any children of James and Sarah has been found, but in 1856 he mentioned the need to support his family, suggesting there may been some.17

Citations

  1. [S11949] Rev. James E. Cobb obituary, Southern Standard.
  2. [S11926] Marriages certificates, Hempstead Co., Arkansas, Jas E. Cobb and Sarah Ann Crabtree, 7 Sep 1847.
  3. [S11943] Emma Eugenia Hendricks obituary, Northwest Arkansas Times, shows name as Rev. James Cobb.
  4. [S11949] Rev. James E. Cobb obituary, Southern Standard, shows he had a sister Carrie Cobb.
  5. [S11943] Emma Eugenia Hendricks obituary, Northwest Arkansas Times, shows him as her uncle.
  6. [S11926] Marriages certificates, Hempstead Co., Arkansas, Jas E. Cobb and Sarah Ann Crabtree, 7 Sep 1847, shows age 20.
  7. [S11967] Rev. J. E. Cobb obituary, The Ouachita Telegraph, shows age 56 at death.
  8. [S11926] Marriages certificates, Hempstead Co., Arkansas, Jas E. Cobb and Sarah Ann Crabtree, 7 Sep 1847, shows date, county, state, her father present and consenting, and officiant.
  9. [S11953] Marriage Notice, Washington Telegraph, 8 Sep 1847, shows date, city, state, and officiant.
  10. [S11949] Rev. James E. Cobb obituary, Southern Standard, shows date, city, and state.
  11. [S11967] Rev. J. E. Cobb obituary, The Ouachita Telegraph, shows died Monday, and city.
  12. [S2216] James D. Cobb household, 1830 U.S. Census, Warren Co., Ohio.
  13. [S2215] James D. Cobb household, 1840 U.S. Census, Montgomery Co., Ohio.
  14. [S11951] Washington Male and Female Seminary advertisement, Washington Telegraph, 7 Apr 1847.
  15. [S11952] Washington Male and Female Seminary advertisement, Washington Telegraph, 22 Nov 1848.
  16. [S11949] Rev. James E. Cobb obituary, Southern Standard, shows he taught in town, about 30 years ago.
  17. [S11970] Deems, Annals of Southern Methodism, 1856, pg 182, citing New-Orleans Advocate, his 14 Jul 1856 letter of resignation as editor.
  18. [S11963] "Appointments in the Arkansas Conference," Washington Telegraph, 20 Dec 1848.
  19. [S11964] "Arkansas Conference of the M. E. Church," Washington Telegraph, 28 Nov 1849.
  20. [S11965] "Arkansas Conference," Washington Telegraph, 20 Nov 1850.
  21. [S1265] Wikipedia, online, article "American Bible Society," viewed Nov 2022, describes society.
  22. [S11970] Deems, Annals of Southern Methodism, 1856, pg 182, citing New-Orleans Advocate.
  23. [S11970] Deems, Annals of Southern Methodism, 1856, pg 301, citing St. Louis Christian Advocate.
  24. [S11949] Rev. James E. Cobb obituary, Southern Standard, shows stationed there during Civil War, in charge of school assisted by sister.
  25. [S11969] Jewell, History of Methodism in Arkansas, pg 153, shows he transfered to Arkansas from St. Louis Conference; pg 345, shows station formed and year; pg 363 shows college formed with him as president.
  26. [S11949] Rev. James E. Cobb obituary, Southern Standard, shows partner and name of paper.
  27. [S11969] Jewell, History of Methodism in Arkansas, pg 369, shows year.
  28. [S11949] Rev. James E. Cobb obituary, Southern Standard, shows sold interests and moved.
  29. [S11967] Rev. J. E. Cobb obituary, The Ouachita Telegraph, shows came to state since the war, taking charge of Homer College.
  30. [S11969] Jewell, History of Methodism in Arkansas, pg 153, shows transferred in 1870, president until 1873; pp 369-70, shows publication suspended, transfer.
  31. [S11966] "Conference Appointments," The Ouachita Telegraph, 23 Jan 1874, shows appointed P.E. at the Annual Conference.
  32. [S11967] Rev. J. E. Cobb obituary, The Ouachita Telegraph, shows presiding elder of Delhi District.