The Bobbitt Family In America

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Gibson Bobbitt was born in 1813 in Amherst County Virginia. He was the fifth son, and seventh child, of John and Permelia (Hill) Bobbitt. He was named after the surname of his grandmother Sarah Gibson, mother of John Bobbitt Junior. His father John Bobbitt was reared by the Gibson family in Amherst County from 1794 until he was married in 1802.

When Gibson Bobbitt was six years old the family moved to Rockbridge County, Virginia. They lived near a village called Brownsville and not far from the Houston family, ancestors of the famous Sam Houston. It was in this area that the family of John and Permelia Bobbitt received a good basic education. Gibson Bobbitt could read and write and knew some American and European history. It was also in this area that Gibson Bobbitt received his first lessons as a farmer. He began working in the fields at the age of eight and was a farmer for the rest of his life. He was said to have been six feet tall, sandy hair, blue eyes, and had extraordinary large hands and feet. He was also said to have spoke with a Welsh accent.

In 1827 Gibson Bobbitt moved with the family to Monroe County, Virginia. On May 2, 1835, Gibson Bobbitt married Elizabeth Burdette, a daughter of Isham and Nancy Burdette of Monroe County. John W. Hutchinson and Isham Burdette were bondsmen for the marriage, to Littleton W. Tazwell, Governor of Virginia. The marriage is recorded in Monroe County in file 5, jacket 3507.

Gibson and Elizabeth (Burdette) Bobbitt had a family of nine sons, and six daughters, who lived to maturity. They were:

All the children were born in Monroe County, Virginia. In 1863, Monroe County, was located in West Virginia.