COTTON Robert

Other Events and Attributes:

• Lived(s) In: 1657, Queens Creek, York County, VA; Queens Creek, York County, VA
• Land: 31 Dec 1666, Hampton Parish, York County, Virginia; Land Purchase

Notes:

John and Anne Cotton 1621 - 1702
There are many people named Cotton in England and America. No doubt many of them are distant cousins. However, our interest is focused on the Cotton femUies which lived in Southside Virginia, and specifically on the ancestors of Mary Etta Cotton (1871 - 1909), the mother of my mother.
The first ancestor of Etta Cotton which we can be fairly sure of is one John Cotton, who was born either 1621 or 1625 in England, and emigrated to the Jamestown Colony as a young man, probably 1637/38. His name appears as a witness to a document in Lower Norfolk County inl 651. In 1657 he married Anne Hutchinson (Harrison?), in Nansemond, Isle of Wight County. His name appears several more times in 1657 in the records of York County, as a juror, witness to a will and named in a will. The will he witnessed was that of Mrs. Francis Wheeler, and under its provisions he received a gold seal ring. He was presumably related to her. Frances Wheeler, Sr. died in 1659-70, leaving a large estate. Thomas Beale bought the Wheeler Plantation, which lay in Hampton Parish, York County, between King and Queen's Creek, shortly before Francis Wheeler died and sold it to John Cotton December 31,1666. John Cotton and Anne Cotton raised their children there and eventually sold the Queen's Creek plantation to Col. Nathaniel Bacon in 1691.
John Cotton's name figured in a deposition found in York County Records, which provides some insight into the tenor of the times.
John Heyward, aged thirty-five years or thereabouts, sayeth That your deponent, in November last was two years at the house of James Pardoe, and there did meet with Mr. John Cotton who did come to demand tobacco (tobacco was used in the early Virginia Colony as a medium of exchange, money being scarce) and your said Deponent and Mr. Cotton did fall to drinking very hard by ye request of the said James Pardoe & did contiue drinking all day till at night wee went to cards, and at cards your Deponent and Mr. Cotton had some words & soe broke off from play and did goe each of them to there rest, but your Deponent was ordered to sleep along with the said Pardoe & his wife in the same room where all the Drink was, soe your Deponent & said Pardoe did fall to drinking again, and after some discourse the said Pardee did tell your Deponent yet Mr. Cotton was come for to demand Tobo (tobacco) of him upon the accounts of Thomas Bevins', but the said Pardoe did desire your Deponent for to look over Thomas Bevins 'papers & to see if his bill was not there among ye papers & said Pardoe did depart for some time out of the room & did bring some papers in his hand for your Deponent to looke over. Your Deponent in looking over ye papers did find ye said Bevins' his bill uncancelled and did give it to the said Pardoe and your Deponent will swear & further saith not.
John Heyward
Sworn before me the 21 June 1681. William Booth
The use of Mr. before John Cotton's name indicates that he was considered a member of the gentry. Apparently he was either a lawyer, or because he was well educated his name appears on various legal documents

Land:
Thomas Beale bought the Wheeler Plantation, which lay in Hampton Parish, York County, between King and Queen's Creek, shortly before Francis Wheeler died and sold it to John Cotton December 31,1666. John Cotton and Anne Cotton raised their children there and eventually sold the Queen's Creek plantation to Col. Nathaniel Bacon in 1691.

John married Ann Hutchinson (Harrison ?) about 1657 in Isle of Wight County, VA. Ann was born in 1630 in Eyworth, Bedfordshire, England; died in York County, VA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

In 1676, she wrote a famous account of Bacob's Rebellion
Anne (Hutchinson) Cotton, John Cotton's wife, was probably born in 1630 in Eyworth, Bedfordshire, England, and presumably came to the Virginia Colony with her parents as a young woman. She was evidently well educated, probably in England. She wrote a celebrated account of Bacon's Rebellion entitled Our Late Troubles in Virginia, written by Mrs. An. Cotton of Q. Creek (Force's Tracts I No. ix). Internal evidence shows that she was also the author of A Narrative of the Indian and Civil Wars in Virginia in the Years 1675 and 1676 (Forces's Tracts No. xi).
Bacon's Rebellion was a watershed event in the history of the Virginia Colony. Dashing young aristocrat Nathaniel Bacon came to Virginia at age 29/30. He received a land grant and a seat on the Council from Governor Berkeley when he arrived. Bacon quickly established himself as a leader with his eloquence and energy. There had been a series of bloody Indian raids, and many, probably most, of the settlers were in favor of strong punitive action against them. The settlers blamed Governor William Berkeley of threatening the welfare of the Colony due to his failure to act. Governor Berkeley was seventy when the crisis began, a veteran of the English Civil Wars, a frontier Indian fighter, a playright and a scholar. Unfortunately, he was also proud, obstinate and autocratic. English policy was to maintain peace with the Indians, and Governor Berkeley intended to settle the problem by negotiation. He launched an investigation.
Bacon, defying the Governor's authority, gathered a small army of settlers and militia, forced the Governor to flee to the Eastern Shore, and marched off to punish the Indians. Governor Berkeley cleverly rebuilt his strength and returned to do battle. As the climactic battle between the two sides was about to commence, Bacon was taken with a violent fever and died. The Rebellion died with him. The rebel leaders were caught, tried and many of them were hanged.
William Drummond was one of the rebel leaders. He was captured in a swamp and transported by boat to York County, where he was turned over to a detachment of local militia who were to escort him to the home of Col. Nathaniel Bacon (a cousin of rebel Nathaniel Bacon) for trial. Anne Cotton's account points to her husband, John Cotton, being the captain of that militia company. She says the captain offered to let Drummond ride his horse and allowed the former North Carolina governor to rest by the side of the road to smoke his pipes. During this time, Anne Cotton writes that Drummond and the captain "talked at length" about Drummond's capture. (In Prof. Jay Hubbel's book, South by Southwest, he credits John Cotton with authorship of the "Burwell Papers". See the chapter entitled "John Cotton, Poet Historian of Bacon's Rebellion".)
John and Anne Cotton apparently had well known leanings towards Bacon's views. John Cotton was a cousin once removed of Nathaniel Bacon, Jr., the rebel The fact that John and Anne Cotton were not tried as traitors indicates favor and rank. Several researchers identify him as Sir John Cotton, son of Sir Thomas Cotton, a baronet of Huntingdonshire and Margaret Howard, born 1593 at Castle Howard in Yorkshire, granddaughter of William Howard, Duke of Norfolk. But this appears to be highly speculative, and perhaps impossible to prove..
John and Anne Cotton had ten children:
1. John "Bertie" Cotton, born 4/22/1658 in Isle of Wight County, VA and died 5/1728 in Bertie County, NC. He married Martha Godwin in Bertie Co., NC about 1683.

Birth:
Anne (Hutchinson) Cotton, John Cotton's wife, was probably born in 1630 in Eyworth, Bedfordshire, England, and presumably came to the Virginia Colony with her parents as a young woman. She was evidently well educated, probably in England. She wrote a celebrated account of Bacon's Rebellion entitled Our Late Troubles in Virginia, written by Mrs. An. Cotton ofQ. Creek (Force's Tracts I No. ix). Internal evidence shows that she was also the author ofA Narrative of the Indian and Civil Wars in Virginia in the Years 1675 and 1676 (Forces's Tracts No. xi).

Notes:

A good source:

Thomas married HOWARD Margaret about 1629. Margaret (daughter of HOWARD William and DACRE (?) Elizabeth) was born in 1593; was christened in Castle Howard, Yorkshire, England; died in 1622-1623 in Huntingtonshire, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Robert married BROCAS Elizabeth. Elizabeth and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

William married DACRE (?) Elizabeth. Elizabeth and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]