The first Bobbitt in what is today the state of Missouri was William James Bobbitt (1775-1836) son of Isham and Elizabeth (James) Bobbitt. William went to Missouri about 1816 and lived there until 1829. He was a Justice of the Peace and early Missouri records show that he performed many marriages. He was a millwright by trade and a mechanic. He lived in what was at the time Madison County, Missouri. For various reasons he returned to Illinois in 1829 to be near his brothers and sisters. William James Bobbitt was born in Warren County, North Carolina.
In 1846 several Bobbitt families and their relatives moved from Pulaski County, Kentucky and settled first in Howard County, Missouri. The families were originally from Virginia and most were from the area of Grayson and Carroll counties of Virginia. Randolph Bobbitt was the first to be recorded in Missouri records and lived there on March 12, 1846 in Howard County. Later Randolph Bobbitt and his family moved to Linn County. For some reason Randolph Bobbitt and his family were not counted in the 1850 census of Linn County.
The 1850 census lists Bobbitts living in Howard County, Johnson County, and Lawrence County.
Family # 8, Counted October 24, 1850.
This is the family of Thomas Bobbitt, son of Caleb and Nancy (Blair) Bobbitt of Grayson County, Virginia. Thomas and Hanna had one daughter who lived to maturity, see family No. S. Nancy is well known for her correspondence to her son Greenberry Bobbitt who lived in Grayson County, Virginia. See page 192,
In 1850 and 1860 most of the' Bobbitt families who lived in Missouri, originated in Virginia. Their path was by way of various counties in Kentucky, but mostly Pulaski County. Their reasons for migrating was better farm lands, and an avoidance of the war that was brewing between the states.
There were six closely related families living in Missouri in Howard County. By the 1860 census they had scattered and by the 1870 and 1880 censuses it is doubtful that many knew of their origins or relationships.
