Richard And His Brother Robert Bobbett 

"... a family named Bobbett were carrying coals to Ham Mills.  During the sixteenth century (1500s) it is recorded that the Bobbetts had leased a piece of moorland from the Dean and Chapter of Wells at Ham Mills, in the Parish of Creech St Michael where they had set up premises as 'dealers in Sea coles'.  Richard and his brother, Robert, were apparently complete masters of their trade, for they owned trows for bringing the coals from Wales."  ..."The place called Coal Harbour, which most probably contained the wharfs of the Bobbett family was situated on the north side of the river, just below Ham Mills itself."

Trade and industry
"Goods brought up the river Tone between the 17th and 19th centuries were usually landed at Coal Harbour or at Ham Mills in North Curry, formerly the upper tidal limit. The Bobbett family imported coal through Coal Harbour from the early 17th century. (fn. 21)" From: 'Creech St. Michael: Economic history', A History of the County of Somerset: Volume 6: Andersfield, Cannington, and North Petherton Hundreds (Bridgwater and neighbouring parishes) (1992), pp. 24-6. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=18508. Date accessed: 15 February 2006.

 

All the wills listed below have been researched by Marsha Berry, genealogist, and transcribed by Dr. Amy Harris, BYU Professor of British Research and 14th, 15th, and 16th Century British and American Handwriting.

 

From The National Archives

Records of the UK government from Doomsday to the present.

the following wills are copyrighted by The National Archives of England

 

 Will of Richard Bobbett   30 May 1685  © (See transcription below)

I emailed the news of this will to Bill Norman, England.  Bill responded...

February 7, 2006  "Thanks for the information on the Bobbett will, you mention the 1577 will but I think you mean the 1685 will made by Richard Bobbett of Somerset. There certainly seems to be a connection between this and the Bobbetts mentioned in the article on the river Tone which you sent me earlier in the year. I say there is a connection because my wife and I have made a start on converting the text to modern English and already I have seen a reference to a bequest to someone in Seavington St Michael (near Taunton) and another to a relative in Glamorgan, both places connected to the coal trade. The date would be right too.   My wife and I will continue to work on the will and I guess that it might take a couple of weeks or so. I will also try to find time to visit the county archive office and look at the source documents for the river Tone article.   The winter here has been very cold since Christmas but no snow, no rain either which I believe is bad news for us in the southwest and we can expect water restrictions in the summer.  

Nice to talk to you again.  Regards. Bill"

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3 April 2006 Email From Marsha Berry to Keith Bobbitt

Dear Keith,   Dr. Amy Harris is happy to transcribe the Richard Bobbett 30 May 1685 and Margerie Bobbett Widow Levington, Suffolk, 20 July 1591 Wills beginning after this week.

Email from Dr. Amy Harris to Marsha Berry

 March 16, 2006 - Earlier you asked if I would be able to provide help on occasion.  I said that after August I would only be able to do occasional or short things. However, before August I will be spending considerable time at the FHL and would be more than willing to do some transcription or something similar done.

Marsha Answered.....

Dear Amy,   Thank you for your email of Thursday, 16 March 2006.  And, for being willing before August to do some transcription or something similar done.   I have a request for you.  Will you be willing to do 2 shorter Bobbett Will transcriptions? Each Will is one and one half pages in length.   One is for Richard Bobbett 30 May 1685 and the other for Margerie Bobbett Widow Levington, Suffolk 20 July 1591.  

Attach: 1. Richard Bobbett Will 1685

 Will of Richard Bobbett 30 May 1685  ©

Will of Richard Bobbett 30 May 1685 Transcribed By Amy Harris, April 19, 2006

"After my husband and I perused the Richard Bobbett 1685 Will, it shows this is not our Bobbitt family." -- Marsha Berry, April 20, 2006

 

Attach:  2. Margerie Bobbett Will 1591

Will of Margerie Bobbett Widow Levington, Suffolk.  Covering dates: 20 July 1591 ©

Will of Margerie Bobbett Widow 20 July 1591 Levington, Suffolk Transcribed By Dr. Amy Harris, April 17, 2006

"Margerie Bobbett may or may not be related.  I will get back to you as further research is needed.  I have asked Amy Harris to help me or us with our Bobbitt research during the summer."  -- Marsha Berry, April 20, 2006

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April 4, 2006 - More information coming as it happens.  We are anticipating the transcriptions of these wills by Amy.  The Bobbitt family gives a big thank you to Dr. Amy Harris and Marsha Berry.  Thank You!

 

Email from Marsha Berry to Keith Bobbitt

On Wednesday, 5 April 2006, I heard from Amy Harris and you may share this email with the others:   "Marsha:   Yes, I am just finishing my PhD at UC Berkeley and will graduate in May.  I begin teaching full time at BYU in the fall.  My dissertation was on eighteenth-century English siblings and I read a fair amount of probate documents.  Your Bobbett wills have also reminded me of a job I had while an undergrad at BYU transcribing 14th, 15th, and 16th century wills; it's quite enjoyable.   I leave today, but I have glanced at the wills and they appear pretty straight forward.  I will start on them next week.   Cheers, Amy"

 

 --- On 4/18/06 Amy Harris wrote:  

Marsha:   Attached are the transcriptions of the wills of Richard and Margery Bobbett.  They took me a total of 2.5 hours.  (I have noted the time on each will).  I don't have any additional notations on the hard copy, so this transcription should cover everything.   Let me know if you need anything else. I know that your family does your own research, but if you are interested in a temporary researcher for the summer, just let me know.  Otherwise, I am happy to transcribe as you need it   Thanks, Amy

--- On 4/18/06 Marsha Berry wrote:  

 Dear Amy,   Thank you so very much for the 2 transcriptions of the wills of Richard and Margery Bobbett.  You are very awesome at transcribing wills and I like your detailed reports on these wills. I would be interested in having you be my or I should say our Bobbett family temporary researcher for the summer and work together as fellow researchers.  The challenge now is to find the father and mother of our John Bobbett chr 20 Jun 1579 in Grundisburg, Suffolk, England.  This is why we are going through all of these Bobbett wills and your expertise on the wills is very appreciated. We need to see if the 2 wills you have just sent sheds any new light. * William or Willm Bobbett is my direct line ancestor and these records were also in the personal family records of my grandmother Ida Belle Bobbitt Funk which are now in my possession. Thank you again for your work on Richard and Margery Bobbett's will transcriptions.  You do a wonderful job.   Regards, Marsha

---On 4/18/06 Marsha Berry wrote:

Dear Keith,   Here they are, the wills of Richard and Margery Bobbett transcribed by Amy Harris, BYU Professor of British Research and 14th, 15th, and 16th Century British and American Handwriting.   You can now post these in their special area on your web site.   Attach:   1. Bobbett_Richard_Will_1685   2. Bobbett_Margerie_Will_1591   After my husband and I perused the Richard Bobbett 1685 Will, it shows this is not our Bobbitt family.   Margerie Bobbett may or may not be related. I will get back to you as further research is needed.  I have asked Amy Harris to help me or us with our Bobbitt research during the summer.   Thank you very much for posting this Bobbett genealogy on your web site.   Regards, Marsha

 

John of Blaxhall is being transcribed by Dr. Amy Harris, BYU professor of British research.

 Will of John Bobbet/Bobbett of Blaxhall, Suffolk   28 January 1577  ©

 

We needed someone to read the Olde English and write these wills into a recognizable language.    I emailed Marsha Berry with the news of this find.  She wrote back...

"Today, 9 February 2006, after I sent an email to Amy Harris, BYU professor of British research, asking her progress on the transcription of the 1577 John Bobbett Will, I received an email reply with her progress report.  I am very pleased with her work.  Amy is doing this transcription for us in her spare time, which a professor in a University does not have, so we are so very fortunate she can do this for us. And, I do not think Amy Harris would mind if you would like to share her progress with the other Bobbitts.  Regards. Marsha Berry"

Amy Harris' reply to Marsha...

"I was just going to write you to let you know. Things always take longer than I think to get back to.  I am about a third/quarter of the way done with the transcription.  I was going to do both a literal transcription and a modernized abstract of the will.  Let me know if that format would work for you.  I have spent a little over an hour, so the final product will probably take another 3-5 hours. So far he has mentioned numerous people, some of whom are godchildren, but he has not mentioned any children or a wife.  I hope he is the person you are looking for, however, because the will is filled with all sorts of relationships and details.   I hope to finish up by early next week or so. Take care.   Amy"

10 February 2006..... Another email to Marsha..... "I have gone once through the will and am now working on the first version [to find all the words that I couldn't quite make out the first time] and to do the abstract.  I can tell you, however, that he does not mention any children.  He mentions his wife Cecily and some nephews, godchildren, and servants, as well as others he doesn't clarify their relationship.  I think if he had living children at the time of the will he would have mentioned them in the will, but the mention of the nephews may help you yet.   Talk to you soon, Amy"

 

22 February 2006..... Email received from Marsha

Marsha to Keith - "This is great news from Amy Harris, Brigham Young University Professor of British Research, today, Wednesday, 22 February 2006, 17:55:07.  

22 February 06 - Amy Harris to Marsha Berry - "Marsha: I have finished the transcription, I just want to check a couple words out at the Family History Center tomorrow.  Do you want hard copies mailed to you or e-mail attachments?   Thanks, Amy"

22 February 06 - Marsha to Amy -  "Amy: You have wonderful news for our Bobbitt or Bobbett family, and aside from checking a couple words out at the Family History Library tomorrow, you have completed the transcription. Our highest congratulations to you.   Please mail out both hard copies and email attachments.   Thank you so very much for all of your hard work.  It is very appreciated.   Sincerely, Marsha Berry"  

22 February 06 - Marsha to Keith - " It will not be long now for me to send the transcription to you for all the Bobbitts to read. I can hardly wait to see what is contained in the transcription and hopefully there are clues therein.   You have my permission to share this email with the others.   Sincerely, Marsha Berry "

 

28 Feb 2006 - Marsha to Keith

Dear Keith,  In her Tuesday, 28 February 2006 email Amy Harris said:   Marsha:   Finally!  Attached is my transcription of the 1577 will.  I will mail the hard copy to you tomorrow.  As I wrote earlier, John does not mention any children, but he does mention his nephews Robert and William Bobbet.  Hopefully that will be useful to you.  If you have any questions about the will, let me know.   Thanks, Amy

"Here it is, the transcription of the Will of John Bobbett, Blaxhall, Suffolk, 1576 from Amy Harris, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, Professor of British Research, sent to me about 6 pm on Tuesday, 28 February 2006!!

From a glance at the Will, there is a strong possibility that either nephews Robert or William Bobbet could be the father of my John Bobbet chr 20 Jan 1579 in Grundisburgh, Suffolk, England.

The name of one of the sons of my John Bobbet and Margaret Edgare is William or Willm Bobbet, and the house being willed is in Campsea Ash, Suffolk, England.  The Will puts nephews Robert or William Bobbet in the Will in the town my John Bobbet's wife Margaret Edgare was chr 16 Mar 1577 Campsea Ash, Suffolk, England.

Regards, Marsha Berry."

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And now, Dr. Amy Harris' Transcription of John's Will

Will of John Bobbet/Bobbett of Blaxhall, Suffolk   28 January 1577

Alborough or Aldeburgh Different Spellings But Same Suffolk England Seaport  .PDF

 

On February 28, 2006  Marsha Berry wrote to Amy Harris... 

Amy:   Wow! You have done an excellent job with the John Bobbet 1576 Will transcription, with excellent research and step by step detail and referencing of the British language at that time. You do a wonderful job!   Thank you so very much for all of your hard work which is very appreciated. My other Bobbitt family members such as my cousin Keith Bobbitt, who has a Bobbitt research online web site, joins me in being very excited about the results and Keith joins me in thanking you.  

From a first read-through of the John Bobbet 1576 Will, the nephews Robert and William Bobbett are a great clue to us, for next we need to find out which nephew ended up with the land records of Ashe or Campsea Ash.  Ashe or Campsea Ash is where our John Bobbet chr 20 Jun 1579 Grundisburg, Suffolk, England and his wife Margaret Edgare chr 16 Mar 1577 Campsea Ash, Suffolk, England were married and raised their children, so we may find which nephew may be John chr 1579 Bobbet's father.  

 Do you have any suggestions for the best route in finding the Ashe land records mentioned in John Bobbet's 1576 Will, that either nephew Robert or William Bobbet may have obtained?   We may need your services again in the near future if that is alright with you.  Would you be able to help us again?   Thank you again for everything.  

Sincerely,

Marsha Berry

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Amy Harris, BYU Professor of British research and 14th, 15th, 16th Century British and American Handwriting expert, is coming to our house in Orem, Utah this Monday, 1 May 2006, at 1 pm.  We are going to discuss our approach to best schedule her to be our consultant and researcher and get her started in the research.

  Best source of family in Grundisburgh is the nephew of John Bobbet of Blaxhall, Suffolk, England, Robert Bobbet, in the Will of John Bobbet, Blaxhall, Suffolk, England 2 Oct 1576.  

1. Did John Bobbet's nephew Robert Bobbet give up his lands in Grundisburgh to his brother William so he would inherit his Uncle's house and land in Asshe also known today as Campsea Ashe?  

2. If nephew Robert Bobbet did not give up his lands in Grundisburgh to his brother William, Robert's brother William inherits his Uncle's Ashe house and lands.  

 3. If nephew Robert Bobbet did not have a child of his own body, he will not inherit his Uncle's Ashe house and lands, but would stay on his lands in Grundisburgh that he has at the time of the Will in 1576, but his brother William inherits the Ashe house and lands.  William cannot harass the executors of the Will on this issue.  

4. What we need to find next are the land or tax records of Ashe to see if it was Robert or William Bobbet who obtained the land and house.  

5. Are there any Wills of nephews Robert or William Bobbet to see who their respective wives and children are in Suffolk county, England?  

6. Conclusions:  If it is nephew Robert Bobbet who has the Ashe land, then it will be known the father of our John Bobbet chr 20 Jan 1579 in Grundisburgh is William Bobbet.   But, if it is the nephew Robert Bobbet who has kept his lands in Grundisburgh, then it will be known the father of our John Bobbet chr 20 Jan 1579 is Robert Bobbet.   There is a strong candidate for this nephew Robert Bobbet being Robet Bebbet chr Nov 1556 Grundisburgh, Suffolk, England.  Robert would be 23 years old at the time of John Bobbet's christening in 1579, 3 years after the John Bobbet Will is proven. Source for Robet Bebbet:  Extracted Christening record. Grundisburgh registers Church of England.  Parish Church of Grundisburgh.

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I had a wonderful 2 hours with Amy Harris, a very friendly young lady who said I am on the right track.  My husband George sat in with us.  I wish you could have been here.   On 18 May, Amy is going to UC Berkeley to receive her Doctorate...so after 18 May she will be Dr. Amy Harris and in the Fall teaching full-time at BYU. Amy reminds us of our niece Jennifer Berry who is starting on her Doctorate at BYU.  

Items I gave Amy were:  

 1. A copy of my research agenda for her which is included in your 4/26/2006 email below.  

 2. A copy of the Boyd's Marriage Index 1538-1840 with the people and towns that pertain to our family marked with a pencil check, but with my mind open more may be related.  

3. A map of the Woodbridge, Grundisburgh, Campsea Ashe, and Blaxhall, Suffolk, England, the same you just put in my area on your web site.  

 4. There is something that I shared with Amy that I have not before but now need to share with you.   My Great Aunt Helen Lorraine Funk Morine, daughter of Franklin Pierce Funk and Ida Belle Bobbitt had a large curio cabinet in her living room in Princeton, Illinois, that had items from eastern or Suffolk County, England, that Helen's mother had.  There were the teacups and saucers, old photos, etc., but what my Aunt would let me take out of the cabinet to hold with both hands several heavy about 7 inches across medallions.  Of the towns, all I can remember are these towns because of what was on the medallions:  

a. Woodbridge - a ship with a year

b. Grundisburgh - 3 lions

c. Campsea Ashe - Ash trees  

These items are all today in the possession of Helen's son Harold S. Morine Junior in his house in  Illinois.   What these medallions look like are today's town signs of Woodbridge, Grundisburgh, and Campsea Ashe.  

 3 attach: Woodbridge Suffolk England Quay Side 1568 Ship Grundisburgh Suffolk England Banner Campsea Ashe village sign Suffolk England  

5. Another item that I shared with Amy and now with you is my find of these dictionary definitions of the surname Bobbitt.   Bob - is an old English word for Shilling An UK pound was worth 20 Shillings or slang Bob 1/10th of a pound meant 2 Shillings   A Bob - a builder by trade   Poem The Laird o' Cockpen The melody is from an old air "When she cam' ben, she bobbed."   One of the lines of the poem states: An' when she cam' ben bobbit foo low'   laird - lord ben - through the house bobbit - bowed  

6. And, of course a family group sheet of John Bobbet and Margaret Edgare and so far their 4 children, plus my Bobbitt pedigree charts.

  =-=-= This is important =-=-=

Amy is going to check out if there are more children that familysearch.org has not put on the internet, plus the next 2 probable generations.

There are records available that FamilySearch.org has not put online yet.  Dr. Harris and others have access to these records.

I told Amy of the theory of Robet Bebbet chr Nov 1556 in Grundisburgh being the father of John Bobbet chr 20 Jan 1579 in Grundisburgh.

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Amy is going to check at the Salt Lake City Utah Family History Library if there are more christening and burial records that are not yet on familysearch.org as there are these two above records, but a lot of gaps in between.  She is going to check also if all of the Grundisburgh records are completed being extracted.  

There are 4 children who I believe may be Robet Bebbet's [who married Elizabethe Heyward] siblings, as the marriage records all but one are on familysearch.org and the others in Boyd's Marriage Index:  

1. Joan Bobbet m. Thomas or Tho Skoldinge in 1539 Grundisburgh, Suffolk, England

2. Mald Bobbet m. Willm Widley 21 Sep 1544 Grundisburgh, Suffolk, England

3. An or Ann Bobbet m. Edmund Smyth 25 Sep 1547 Grundisburgh, Suffolk, England

4. Nycholas or Nic Bobbet m. Hellond Smith 21 Oct 1547 Grundisburgh, Suffolk, England

5. Robet Bobbet m. Elizabethe Heyward 4 Nov 1548 Grundisburgh, Suffolk, England

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Dear Keith, Attached is a photo taken 1 May 2006, 1 to 3 pm CLICK HERE TO SEE PHOTO  

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More will be added as it becomes available.

--- On 6/20/2006, Amy Harris wrote:

"Marsha:   I just wanted to send you a quick note letting you know of my progress so far.  I have completed the first step of research we discussed.  I will send you a more detailed report and you can then decide if you want me to go forward.  There are several things we could try next, but I don't want to go the next phase without consulting with you.   

I searched for burials in Campsea Ashe and Grundisburgh. I found a few Bobbetts that could be related, but the one located closest in time to your John Bobbett was a William who was buried in 1582 in Grundisburgh.   Because anyone living in Grundisburgh or Campsea Ashe could have potentially had their will proved in one of 3 (and possibly 4) jurisdictions, I started with those.  

I started first with the Archdeacon Court of Suffolk (the first level of probate jurisdiction for western Suffolk). I extracted all the Bobbetts between 1444 (when the index began) and 1620.  I didn't copy them, but took notes of places and bequests in case any of them prove to be connected later.  

There was a Cecilie Bobbett of Blaxhall will from 1577, she is the widow of John Bobbett, but she had been married to a Wight earlier in life.  I don't know how, or if, she connects, but it was worth noting.  

Next I searched the Consistory Court of Norwich (the Diocese to which Suffolk belonged). And that's when I hit paydirt. The William Bobbet who was buried in Grundisburgh in 1582 left a will.  I copied his will.  His wife is Katheryn and his children are John, Dorothie, and Alice, all of whom are under 21 years old when he wrote the will in June 1582.  Dorothie and Alice are also under 16 years old.  He emphasizes that his wife is to maintain and care for his children (leading me to believe that they are quite young).  I think this is a possible father for your John Bobbett.  

I know that you had a Robert as his father and that is still a possibility, but I think this will means we shouldn't write off William.  Your John was born in 1579, so it is possible that Dorothie and Alice were born between 1580 and 1582.  I think this because Dorothie and Alice are probably listed in order of their age (a common practice in wills) and John is listed first (as sons often were, even if younger than their sisters).  However, I think John is older than the two girls.  I think this because the land and property in Grundisburgh is left to their mother Katheryn until John turns 21.  The girls inherit money that John is supposed to pay them from the estate when they reach 21.  If he were younger than them, the will would have stipulated that their mother pay them as she would still be in control of the property if John were under 21.  

However, there is no mention of Campsea Ashe or the land there.  This could be because Robert (the nephew of John Bobbet's will we initially discussed) kept those lands and William kept the lands in  Grundisburgh as dictated by their uncle's will.   Anyway, that is my first thoughts on the findings so far.  

So far, we have exhausted the resources from the Grundisburgh and Campsea Ashe parish registers of C, M, and D and the probate records for Suffolk (I checked the Archdeaconry of Sudbury (jurisdiction over eastern Suffolk) just in case without results).  Land records would be lovely to discover, but they are extremely difficult for this time period in England because they are often kept with family records or have been lost--there is no central clearinghouse for land records.  

As for what to do next . . . there are some monumental inscriptions from Campsea Ashe churchyard on film that could be checked. If the family was wealthy enough, they may have left a surviving monument or inscription. Another option is to search the parish registers of surrounding parishes (such as Burgh, since the family seems to have had land there at some point).  Also, there may be a few land/property records at the FHL, a quick search of the catalog could be done to see if there is anything useful.   I will try to get out the more detailed report in the next few days, but at least this gives some possibilities.  

Thanks and I hope you are having a lovely summer.  This has been fun for me.  

Amy      

=-=-=-=-=  

--- On 6/22/2006, Marsha Berry wrote:

Hello Amy,

I am glad to hear from you as I was going to contact you if I did not hear from you after we return home late Monday, 26th June.   Your email of today, Tuesday, 20 June, is wonderful news!  Thank you.   I thank you for your great research and on reaching my goal to find which brother, Robert or William, in their Uncle John Bobbet of Blaxhall, Suffolk, England's 1576 Will, is the father of my John Bobbett chr 20 January 1579 in Grundisburgh, Suffolk, England.  

The father of my John Bobbet chr 1579 had to be in Grundisburgh and buried in Grundisburgh and William Bobbet buried in Grundisburgh in 1582 who left a Will fits perfectly. Thank you for finding that clarification.   The brother Robert already owned his own property in Grundisburgh at the time of his Uncle John Bobbet of Blaxhall, Suffolk, England's 1576 Will.   Robert seemed like a natural probability for my John Bobbet chr 1579's father, because Robert owned lands in Grundisburgh at the time of his Uncle John Bobbet's 1576 Will.   With the stipulation in his Uncle's Will, Robert's brother William could take over Robert's property in Grundisburgh if Robert gave up his Grundisburgh property to his brother William, as according to their Uncle John Bobbett's 1576 Will.

Now we know that this did happen.  Robert gave up his lands in Grundisburgh and gave them to his brother William.  And, Robert took his Uncle's Campsea Ashe or Ashe lands.   Cecilie Bobbet of Blaxhall, Suffolk, England with the 1577 Will is Uncle John Bobbet of Blaxhall, Suffolk, England 1576 Will's wife, is Aunt to William and his brother Robert. Reference: John Bobbett, Blaxhall, Suffolk, England 1576 Will is wife Cecely or Cecylie.   Now that I know that William Bobbitt is the father of my John Bobbet chr 1579, I am excited to read a copy of his 1582 Will.   I will get back to you more on this when we get home. It may be a good idea if we could set up an appointment at our house and discuss our research plans.  

Thanks again very much Amy.  

Regards, Marsha

=-=-=-=-=

  On June 28, 2006 at 3:00 Marsha Berry wrote:

Dear Keith,   Just a brief note to let you know what is going on in regard to Amy Harris and my and your Bobbet family research.   Amy Harris is coming to my house on Tuesday, 11 July 2006,  to discuss the direction of our Bobbet research. I have a few suggestions to add to Amy's suggestions of the direction of research.   I will look for the chr and marriage records of the father William Bobbet who died 1582 in Grundisburgh and his wife Katheryn and their daughters Dorothie and Alice.  If familysearch.org does not have this information online as yet, Amy can check if it has been extracted or not yet for us at the FHL in Salt Lake City.   Amy is bringing her up-date report and the transcription of the William Bobbet who died in 1582 in Grundisburgh's Will.  I plan to scan the Will and email it to you.

  This is all very exciting to find out more on my and your Bobbet family.  Thanks again.  I will be in touch.   Have a safe and great 4th of July.   Regards, Marsha

 =-=-=-=-=

On Monday, July 10, 2006 Marsha Berry wrote:

Dear Keith,   Just a quick note to let you know that Amy Harris and I have changed our Tuesday, 11 July meeting and rescheduled to be meeting on Wednesday, 12 July 2006 about the Bobbet research.   Marsha

=-=-=-=-=

Today is July 12, 2006.  We are waiting anxiously to receive news from Marsha's and Amy's meeting and here it is!

Original Will of William Bobbett

The Will of William Bobbett Transcription by Dr. Amy Harris

Email from Marsha Berry: " Dr. Amy Harris and I both strongly conclude that William Bobbet 1582 Will is the father of my John Bobbet chr 20 Jan 1579 Grundisburg, Suffolk, England and that his mother is Katheryn and his siblings are Dorothie Bobbet born about 1580 and Alice Bobbet born about 1581.  

"It is interesting that in William Bobbet's June 1582 Will, he is a young married man that is ill and not expecting to live and is very worried wanting his children to be raised to be honest and be healthy by his wife.  The Will was probated 2 months later, in August 1582.  

"To quote Dr. Amy Harris in her Tuesday, 20 June 2006 email:   'The William Bobbet who was buried in Grundisburg in 1582 left a Will.  I copied his Will.  His wife is Katheryn and his children are John, Dorothie, and Alice, all of whom are under 21 years old when he wrote the Will in June 1582.  Dorothie and Alice are also under 16 years old. 

 'He emphasizes that is wife is to maintain and care for his children [leading me to believe that they are quite young].   I think this is a possible father for your John Bobbet.  Your John was born in 1579, so it is possible that Dorothie and Alice were born between 1580 and 1582.  I think this because Dorothie and Alice are probably listed in order of their age [a common practice in Wills] and John is listed first [as sons often were, even if younger than their sisters].  However, I think John is older than the two girls.  I think this because the land and property in Grundisburgh is left to their mother Katheryn until John turns 21.  The girls inherit money that John is supposed to pay them from the estate when they reach 21.  If he were younger than them, the Will would have stipulated that their mother pay them as she would still be in control of the property if John were under 21.' "

Bobbett Research Report by Dr. Amy Harris - July 2006

Continuing Research Questions by Marsha Berry

=-=-=-=-=

On 7/16/06, Marsha Berry wrote:

"Amy,   I have a request.  Please send me a .pdf of the original William Bobbett 1582 Will. Thank you.   I feel you will find more information on my Suffolk County, England Bobbett family.  I have much gratitude for your research. Thank you for everything.   Regards, Marsha"

 On July 17, 2006, Amy Harris wrote:  

" Marsha:   I don't have a pdf of it.  I copied the microfilm at the FHL, but the scanner was broken, so I don't have a digital copy. Sorry.   I checked the PCC online and didn't find any other Bobbetts (other than perhaps an earlier generation, from 1513).   I'll let you know when I have done another chunk of research.   I love doing the research, Amy"

July 18, 2006 - I don't think Marsha and Amy are finished yet! -- Keith

 

--- On Thursday, August 3, 2006, Marsha Berry wrote:

Dear Keith,  

Please share these four combined emails with the others on your Bobbitt web site.  Thank you.  

I have not heard of nor believed nor have seen a common thread to prove my Bobbitt/Bobbett family from Suffolk County, England was connected in any way with the Bobet/Babbitt line from Somerset and Devon Counties, England, as the two respective families are from opposite sides of England.   I asked Dr. Amy Harris, BYU Professor of British Research, to give her expertise on this subject, which she has done in the email attached to this one.   Thank you.

 Regards, Marsha Berry    

--- On Monday, 31 July 2006, Amy Harris wrote:  

Marsha: Sorry for the delayed response . . . So, I am still doing some research on the "son of robert" thing.  So far, all I have found is a reference to bobb coming from the German word for Boy and Bobbitt as a pet name from that.  But I need to find a more reputable source.  I will be in Provo several days this week and I will look it up at the library.  

As for the Bobbett/Bobbitt line in Suffolk being the same as the family in Devon - I find the idea highly unlikely.  Suffolk and Devon are on opposite sides of England, probably 200+ miles apart as the crow flies (and even farther apart via road).  Surnames originated in the late middle ages (say, sometime between 1100 and late 1300s) and assuming that everyone with the surname of Bobbett (or similar) came from one origin would assume that the name began in either Suffolk or Devon in the late middle ages and spread to the other one by the 1500s (when there are Bobbetts in both places).  This would be unlikely as most of our ancestors did not move 200 miles in 200 years (long-distance transportation before the eighteenth century could be risky at best, there was no economic reason to move between Suffolk and Devon like there may have been for some to move to London, etc.) and even if they did, there would be Bobbetts strung all over southern England as they made their way across.  

As far as I have learned Bobbett is a surname originating in both Suffolk and Devon.  This to me seems most plausible. Whatever the origins of the name, it is not geographic, nor occupation specific, so it isn't unreasonable that two separate (or perhaps even more) families ended up with the surname without ever being related.  

Does that help?  I can be more articulate if you need me to be.  

Amy    

On 7/13/06, Marsha Berry wrote:  

Amy,  

Below is the email that my cousin Keith Bobbitt wrote on 30 June 2006, with a few findings of the western Somerset/Devon Counties, England Bobet/Babbett line and an attempt to connect the Bobet/Babbitt line with my Suffolk County, England Bobbet/Bobbitt line.  

Yesterday, 12 July 2006, we discussed the reasons why this connection would not be possible and the chances of it being so would be one in a million.   Please email me back with your comments on this subject and I will forward your message to Keith and I will ask him to put this email on his Bobbitt website.  

Subjects to be addressed:

1. Why there is no connection between the Somerset/Devon counties, England and sometimes Wales, Edward Bobet [1626-1575] who went to Taunton, Massachusetts and later spelled their surname Babbitt and my Suffolk County, England Bobbet family who later spelled their surname Bobbitt and in 1674 went to Virginia and then St. Georges County, Maryland.  

2.  Why Dr. William Bradford Browne's meaning of Bobbitt can not be "Bob" son of Robert or come from "ett" being a diminutive.  

I found the following dictionary definitions of the surname Bobbitt:

[1] Bob - is an old English word for Shilling. An UK pound was worth 20 Shillings or Slang Bob 1/10th of a pound meant 2 Shillings.

[2] A Bob - a builder by trade.

[3] Poem - The Laird of Cockpen. The melody is from an old air "When she cam' ben, she bobbed." One of the lines of the poem states: An' when she cam' ben bobbitt foo low' laird - lord ben - through the house bobbit - bowed  

Thank you for making these clarifications Amy.  

Regards, Marsha 

  

--- On 30 June 2006, Keith Bobbitt  wrote:  

Hello Marsha,  

I'm very pleased with the plan you and Dr. Harris are pursuing.  Here are a few things we might find along the way.  

1.  This is a message found on GenForum.   "Looking for a connection to the Babbitt line as it is assumed that we all are descendents of Edward Bobet (1626-1675) of Taunton, MA." 

2.  "I am a Bobbitt, and I think I need to contact any of the researchers who are working on the Taunton, Massachusetts line through Edward Bobbitt. I was doing some research on my own in English records in Ancestry.Com and find the name was also spelled Bobbytt. (I think people tend to forget the old English styles)..

I think that Edward Bobbitt of Taunton, Mass. has linkage to the Devon (Devonshire) Somerset, England area. There was a town there called Wells, where there were early Bobbitts /Babbyts, etc.

Has anyone found any linkage to Edward of Taunton and those in England.? Thanks. Linda

3.  This message found on Cousin Connect.   "The English surname Bobbett means "Bob" son of Robert, the syllable "ett" being a diminutive. Bobbett was a common family name in Suffolk and Devonshire in the middle ages in England."  Dr. William Bradford Browne  

It would be nice to find something to connect this to our line -- it has to connect at some time or another.   However, the main purpose is to extend our Bobbitt line as much as possible.  

Later,

Keith

 

--- On Aug 4, 2006 Marsha Berry wrote:

Dear Keith,  

This is a Bobbett research update from Dr. Amy Harris.  Amy and I want to look for William Bobbett's brother Robert Bobbett and his family to expand the research.   Please add these emails to my area on your Bobbitt web site.  

Thank you.  

 Regards,

Marsha    

 

 --- On Friday, 4 August 2006, Amy Harris  wrote:  

Marsha:  

So, I am at the FHL in SLC right now and doing a little checking.  I realized that perhaps I should make a careful look at what the IGI extracted from Grundisburgh and Campsea Ashe. I had already checked the burial registers, but I discovered that the Campsea Ashe registers didn't have the marriages extracted. (Grundisburgh had both marriages and christenings extracted). So I am slowly going through computer printouts of parishes that were extracted and the parish registers for those that were not.  However, the FHL does not have a complete collection for some of the parishes, so we may have to see if there are any online indexes to them.  

I realized over the weekend that I think we made a slight tactical error.  We found all this evidence to support that William is John's father, but we didn't check to see if Robert had a son named John as well.  There is a Robert Bobbett marrying an Elizabeth Heyward in 1549 in Grundisburgh, but that might be too early.  And the IGI didn't have any John Bobbetts christened in Suffolk between 1559-1599 other than the John we already knew about.  

To make a long story short, I am keeping my eye out for Robert and family as I go through the records.  On could-be-bad-could-be-good sign is that I am finding several parishes that have no Bobbetts anywhere in their registers between 1538 and c.1610.  When I do find a Bobbett, they are not dominant in the parish.   Well, that's it for now...  more later.

Cheers,

Amy

 

On August  10, 2006 Marsha Berry wrote:

Attach: .pdf Surnames of the United Kingdom by Henry Harrison

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On 18 September 2006, Marsha Berry wrote:

 

--- On Thursday, 14 Sep 2006, Amy Harris  wrote:   

 Marsha:   I know you might have been despairing that I would ever finish, but I have.  Unfortunately, this portion of the research wasn't as fruitful as the first half, but there are hopefully some interesting bits for future research.  

I am attaching my report and the chart I reference in the report.  I am in Provo all Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and I would love to get together to chat about it and to give you all the hardcopy stuff.  

Thanks so much for giving me this opportunity, I truly enjoyed it and it gave me research experience in Suffolk (for which my students will now benefit).  

Let me know when we can get together,

Thanks, Amy

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14 September 2006

Bobbett (Suffolk) Research Report

by Dr. Amy Harris

 

 At the conclusion of our research into Suffolk probates in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries (July 2006) it was determined that a modified radial search should be conducted to determine a marriage location for William Bobbett and Catherine and any christening records for their daughters (Alice and Dorothy), and any other information on this family that may be discovered in eastern Suffolk.  At the beginning of the search it became apparent to me that we should also keep our eyes out for Robert Bobbett (brother of William) and any marriage or children of his.  I thought this because while we have William’s 1582 will mentioning a son John (which matches the ancestral John, born 1579), it is possible that Robert had a son named John as well and we would have to determine which John was the ancestral John.

 

Unfortunately, the radial search did little to confirm or refute John as the son of William, nor did it produce results for William and Catherine’s marriage, nor the christening of Alice and Dorothy (or other potential children).  It did, however, produce a possible marriage for Alice in 1607 to a John Howman in Little Bealings, Suffolk.

 

The parish register radial search was conducted for all spelling variations of Bobbett between the beginning of the particular parish to 1620 (sometimes a few years beyond).  Because the family has already been established in both Campsea Ashe and Grundisburgh, the parishes between them were concentrated on (as decided in July).  Many of these parishes have been partially extracted into the IGI (see map in research notes), but IGI searches for Alice, Catherine, and Dorothy yielded no applicable results. Nor did it readily reveal children for Robert, though there was a Robert Bobbett marrying an Elizabeth Heyward in Grundisburgh on 4 November 1548.

 

The remaining parishes were searched for the marriages and/or burials that were not extracted or the complete register transcripts for parishes that were not extracted (see color-coded map in research notes).  Unfortunately, there are many parishes whose records begin too late, or for which the FHL does not have a collection (also noted on the map).

 

Attached is a chart of the Bobbetts (and variants) unearthed in this search, with the first name, date, parish, and record/event.  Place names on the chart have been modernized (where at all possible).  Some place names could not readily be matched to the place names listed in the Phillimore Atlas and Index of Parish Registers, is so they were left in the spelling found in the original document, but placed in parenthesis ().  Any ambiguous spelling that could not be readily deciphered is rendered with my best conclusion in brackets [].  The table can be sorted by any of the columns, so as to facilitate reference to it during future research.  Any entries whose supporting documents were copied, scanned, or extensively extracted are noted with an asterisk.  I noted most parish register entries in the Notes pages, but have not marked these with an asterisk unless I copied or scanned them.

 

Because our search was focusing on the latter part of the 1500s and the beginning of the 1600s, not every Bobbett entry will be of equal value.  If future research suggests the necessity, the earlier entries could easily be reacquired and then copied or extracted. 

 

For christening records if the person listed was the one being christened there is no extra notation, if the person listed is a parent of the child being christened there is a (p) after their name.  If a marriage is being recorded, I have not listed the non-Bobbett member (this can be discovered by reading the corresponding notes, or reference to Boyd’s marriage index).  Though some of this work may duplicate what is in Boyd’s, I checked for non-IGI parish records because Boyd’s is not complete and in case other spellings appeared.  This chart could also be used in conjunction with the IGI (which extracted christenings and/or marriages for some of these parishes).

 

My recommendation would be either to expand the radial search to include additional parishes (particularly Ipswich, due to its size), or, probably more productively, to search other record types for Suffolk, Grundisburgh, and Campsea Ashe.  We have exhausted the FHL’s collection for the two parishes, so that work would have to be done on-site in England, or via correspondence.  Some county-wide sources for Suffolk, however, may have some information (such as court records, manor records, and tax records (there is a subsidy for 1524 that has several Bobats and see Notes 13 for extracted Bobbetts from a Suffolk Muster Roll, 1534-1631).  Much of the FHL collection for Suffolk seems to be post-1600, so even some of these records may require on-site searching in England, or correspondence searching. 

 

Searching for the Bobbetts in Suffolk was a bit like searching for “two of a family, one of a city.”  It is not just your family that appears sporadically, I found no parish where several generations of Bobbetts could easily be identified.  I think an expanded search is the only solution.  At this point, however, I feel we have made a good faith effort in checking if Robert could have been John’s (born 1579) father.  With the evidence we already discovered linking John to William, I would think they could be sealed.

 

Overall I have thoroughly enjoyed this project.  Good luck with the future research, and let me know if you ever need handwriting help.

 

Cheers,

Amy

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And, the chart.

Surname	First Name	Date	Parish	Record Source
Bebatt	[William]	1481-98	(Hel[m]elie)	Archdeaconry of Sflk, registered wills
Bobbet	Agnes	1554	Grundisburgh	Burials in Grundisburgh Parish Reg
Bobbet	Ales	1608	Little Bealings	Marriages, Little Bealings Par Reg
Bobet	Alice	1592	Bacton	IGI, member submission
Bobet	Anes	1580	Hacheston	Marriages, Hacheston Paris Registers
Bobett (Roose)	Beatrice	1526	Ipswich	Norwich Consistory Court, wills
Bobbett	Bridgett	1609	Sutton	Burials, Sutton Parish Registers
Bobett	Brydgett	1582	Eyke	Christenings, Eyke Parish Registers
Bobbett	Cecilie*	1576-77	Blaxhall	Archdeaconry of Sflk, registered wills
Bobbet	Daniel	1567	Debach/Boulge	Christening, Debach/Boule Par Reg
Bobbitt	Daniel (p)	1605	Witnesham	Christenings, Witnesham Par Reg
Bobbett	Danyell	1595	Sutton	Marriages, Sutton Parish Registers
Bobbitt	David	1604	Witnesham	Marriages, Witnesham Par Reg
Bobbett	Dorothie	1616	Sutton	Burials, Sutton Parish Registers
Bobbet	Elizabeth	1582	Rendham	Burials, Rendham Parish Registers
Bobbet	Elizabeth*	1582-83	Rendham	Archdeaconry of Sflk, registered wills
Bobbitt	Fr[ancis]	1616	Little Glemham	Marriage, Little Glemham Par Reg
Saunders	Frances	1579	Blaxhall	PCC wills (mentioned in 1577 will)
Bobett	Henry		Eyke	Christenings, Eyke Parish Registers
Bobbit	J.	1534-1631	Coney Weston	Suffolk Muster Rolls
Bobett	James	1550	Hacheston	Christenings, Hacheston Par Reg
Bobet	Joan	1562	Sutton	Marriages, Sutton Parish Registers
Bobet (Bone)	Joan	1570	Sutton	Burials, Sutton Parish Registers
Bobbet	John	1501-06	Newbourn	Archdeaconry of Sflk, registered wills
Bobatt	John	1506-13	Ipswich	Archdeaconry of Sflk, registered wills
Bobbett	John	1540-43	Melton	Archdeaconry of Sflk, registered wills
Bobet