An Adventure of Thomas Stokes 1665

A LITTLE-KNOWN ADVENTURE OF THOMAS STOKES-1665
By MILTON RUBINCAM, WASHINGTON D. C.
from Genealogies of New Jersey Families Vol I pages 834–843

The Stokes family has long been prominent in New Jersey. Among the many citizens of that State who have, during various periods since the arrival of their immigrant ancestor in 1677, reflected credit on the name, may be mentioned: the first Dr. John Hinchman Stokes who contributed materially to the advancement of science in that region, in the early days, Hon. Edward C. Stokes President of the Senate and Governor of New Jersey, at the beginning of this century; and Dr. John Hinchman Stokes III, Dr. Henry Newlin Stokes and Mr. John Stogdell Stokes, at the present time. (See Who's Who in America, 1936-37)
Much has been written about the immigrant founder of the line, Thomas Stokes, of Lower Shadwell., London. Richard Haines, of Medford, N. J., in his genealogy of the Stokes famly (1903), gave a brief sketch of him, and Judge John Clement, of Haddonfield, N. J., in his history of the first settlers of Newton Township, Old Gloucester County (1877), presented a rambling account of the progenitor and his immediate family. Of great value is the two-volume manuscript genealogy by Mr. Samuel E. Stokes of Kotgarh, India, which is preserved in the collections of The Historical Society of Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia, and also his printed work, Letters of Nancy Evans Stokes (1916), a copy of which is in the writer's private family archives, through the kindness of Mr. Stokes.
None o f the modern biographers, however, seem to have been aware of the fact that the original Thomas Stokes had a sea adventure, which threatened to alter his entire career. The tale is told by that indefatigable chronicler of the sufferings of .the Friends, Joseph Besse. [An Abstract of the Sufferings of the .People call'd Quakers for the Testimony o f a Good Conscience, vol. II (1738), pp. 323-325.]

Early in the year 1665 Thomas Stokes was seized and cast into Newgate Prison, London, because of his adherence to Quaker doctrines. With one hundred and nineteen others, he was sentenced to banishment. The Sheriffs were puzzled as ,to the best means of ridding themselves of those persons who had been doomed to life-long exile. The captains of ships about to sail for the West Indian plantations ref used to transport the Friends overseas because, as Besse put it, they were "conscious of the Mens Innocence." Moreover, the plague regarded by some simple folk as "a Judgment on the Nation for thus persecuting the Innocent”–was rapidly depopulating the city.
"But at length," Besse informs us, "a Man was found to answer their purpose; one Fudge, a Fellow so hardened as to say, That he would not stick to transport even his nearest Relations. With him the Sheriffs agreed to carry the Prisoners to Jamaica, and accordingly on the 20th of the 5th Month, 1665, fifty–five of them were taken out of Newgate, put in a Barge at Black-Fryars, and carried down the River to his Ship, called the Black Spread-Eagle, lying in Bugbey's Hole." But here the authorities ran into difficulties, for the seamen, in the master's absence, refused to permit the captives to be hauled aboard the vessel. A heated argument followed, during which only four of the prisoners were pushed aboard. Worn out by their exertions the jailers finally retreated to the prison with the rest of the Friends.
It is not certainly known that Thomas Stokes was in this first contingent, but he is named as one of the thirty-seven men who (together with eighteen women) figured in the second attempt at deportation, which occurred on the 4th of the 6th month, 1665.
Placed on the barge once more, Stokes and his fellow–prisoners sailed down the Thames with an escort of troops from the Tower of London. They were accompanied in other boats by friends and relatives who made themselves so obnoxious that the soldiers threatened to sink them if they did not withdraw. Their real trouble began, however, when they reached the Black–Spread–Eagle. To quote Besse again:
“So they went to work, the Soldiers in the Barge laying hold on the Prisoners, dragged some, kickt and puncht others and heaved up many by the Legs and Arms, and so tumbled them into the Ship, and in about an Hours time got them all on Board . . .”
“Being on Board, all the Men were thronged together between Decks, where they could not stand upright; and the Pestilence coming into the Ship which was long retarded in the River, (Fudge being arrested and imprisoned for Debt) it was about seven Months before she got to the Land's–End, in which time twenty–seven of the Prisoners on Board died”
On the 23rd day of the 12th month (February, 1666) the ship with its cargo of hapless victims sailed from Plymouth. But the reigning powers had not reckoned on the fortunes of war. Our ancestral homeland was engaged at that period in a long struggle with Holland. Ships from The Netherlands made frequent and daring raids into English waters, and, indeed, the very day after the Black–Spread–Eagle had left the port of Plymouth a Dutch Privateer hove in sight. Flight was useless; she was quickly overtaken, her crew's resistance–if any–was quashed, and she was taken to Hoorn in North Holland, where the convicts of England were held by their national foes to be exchanged as prisoners of war.
Stokes and his comrades entered the town and were conveyed to the local jail, while the authorities sought to exchange them for their compatriots in English hands. His Majesty's Government could hardly be expected, however, to return Dutch military captives to their Fatherland in order to recover the members of a despised sect, of whose presence they had sought to rid themselves. Care–free Charles I I and his ministers must have been much amused at the thought.
At length, realizing the futility of their designs, the Dutch officials provided the Quakers with passports and shipped them home to England. “Thus eminently did the Hand of the Lord appear for them, and against their Persecutors,” says Besse, with quaint but unconscious humor. The charges against them seem to have been dropped; they were not rearrested and within a short time Thomas Stokes set foot once more in London.
On the 30th day of the 10th month, 1668, in the Westbury Street Meeting House in London he was united in marriage with Mary Barnard, daughter of John. and Frances (Munt) Barnard, and granddaughter of Samuel Munt of Peldon Hall, County Essex, yeoman, who died about I657.
[These abstracts of Samuel Munt's will, dated 16 November, 1653,should be of interest to his American descendants: His body to be buried in the churchyard of Peldon. Named his eldest son, James. Mentioned his land called Popes & Millers in Clacton Magna. Son, Samuel. Son, Humphrey, under 21. Daughter, Frances Barnard. 2 grandchildren, Sarah & Mary Barnard, under 21. His tenement called Chambers in Thorpe, now occupied by, Thomas Button. Tenement called Moones. John Barnard, father of said Mary & Sarah. Son, John, under 21 . Tenements in Holland Parva called Woodhouse & Toms. Maidservant, Elizabeth Hands. John Munt, of East Barfold, his brothers son. Robert Alefounder the younger, living at Elmsted Hall. Wife, Sarah, & son, James, executors. "Mr. Robert Alefounder of Elmsteed Hall, the elder, my very good friend," supervisor. Witnesses: Robert Sterrell and Richard Boyd. Proved 23 February, 16578, by the son, James Munt.
(Genealogical Abstracts o f Wills Proved in the Prerogative Court o f Cafiterbury. Register "Wooten.," edited by William Brigg, B.A. Vol. I V (1909) , P. 47) .]
Eleven years after his return to England as above described, we find Thomas Stokes and his wife on the high seas. This time he definitely turned his back on the land of his birth. His exile was self-chosen, not decreed by the police authorities.
Early in the year 1677 he attached his name to the document known as “The Concessions and Agreements of the Proprietors, Freeholders, and Inhabitants of the Province of West New Jersey, in America,” thus endorsing a program that was destined to have far–reaching consequences in our colonial history. They settled on the Rancocas Creek, in Burlington County, where they and their sons after them acquired large landed estates. Mrs. Stokes died in 1677; her husband survived her more than two decades, dying in the year 1720 at the residence of his son, Thomas Stokes, Jr., in Waterford Township, Gloucester County, New Jersey.

The children of Thomas and Mary (Barnard) Stokes, so far as known, were as follows,.,
1 Sarah Stokes, married, 1693 Benjamin Moore (9 children).
2 Mary Stokes, married. 1696 John Hudson (2 children). Haines gives
only one, a daughter, Mary; but there was also a son, John. (See N. J. Archives, Vol. XXXIII, Abstracts of wills, Vol.. I, p. 243, Will of John Hudson, 9 Jan. 1704) .
3 Henry Stokes, died. 9-30-1674, aged 20 months. (Friends Quarterly
Meeting Records o f London and Middlesex, in the Gen. Soc. of Pa.). This child is not given by Haines, but is mentioned by Samuel E. Stokes in the printed volume above cited. He suggests that giving this name to the first born son indicates a relationship to Henry Stokes of Stepney, who died. in 1665.
4 John Stokes, born. 1675; died. between. 10-28-1743 and 11 Sept.,
1749. Married, 1712 Elizabeth Green (4 children). Haines and others are wrong in stating that theirs was a shipboard romance, for John was only 2 years old at the time of his family's migration.
5 Joseph Stokes, died. between. 28 Dec. 1757 and 28 June 1759;
married first, Judith Lippincott (10 children) ; married second Mrs. Ann Haines (3 children).
6 Thomas Stokes, born 1682; died. 11-7-1746; married first;
Deliverance Horner (6 children); married second, Rachel Wright (8 children). His first wife was a cousin to his second wife, a fact not generally known. Deliverance was a daughter of Isaac Horner and Lydia Wright, who was a daughter of Sergt. Peter Wright, one of the founders of Oyster Bay, L. I.; and Rachel was a daughter of Job Wright, the above mentioned Lydia Wright's brother.
The sons Joseph and Thomas were born after the family had established themselves in their new home.
The descendants of Thomas Stokes have traveled far since those days in 1665–1666 when their ancestor first sailed across the seas, as a prisoner of his native England, and then as a captive of Holland. They are to be found in every state in the Union and in many foreign lands. The most distant branch (geographically speaking) was founded in India in I904 by Mr. Samuel Evans Stokes of Germantown, Philadelphia, who marred Agnes, the daughter of Babu Benjamin, (prior to his conversion known as Gokul Chand), whose family deduces its lineage from the Sun. In the veins of their children flows the blood of the Ranas of Pandoh, in the State of Mandi, who lost their throne about two centuries ago. Mr. Stokes, whose residence is “Harmony Hall” at Kotgarh, Simla Hills, in the Punjab---high in the Himalayan Mountains— served at one time as a member o f the All India Congress Committee, and in 1931 issued Satyakanta or "True Desires" (being Thoughts on the Meaning of Life).[the Harmony Hall above, named in memory of the original "Harmony Hall" at Moorestown, N. J., which was erected about 1753 by Thomas I's grandson, the Hon. Samuel Stokes, a member of the Provincial Assembly. It continued to be the residence of his descendants until the death (in 1873) of Dr. John Hinchman Stokes II, the grandfather of Mr. Stokes of India. "Information on this branch was derived in part from the Samuel E. Stokes manuscript above cited and in part from correspondence with Mr. S. E. Stokes himself.]
Of the representatives in female lines, perhaps the earliest to remove abroad was William Haines II, the grandson of Samuel Haines, Sr., and his wife, Lydia Stokes, daughter of Thomas, Jr., and granddaughter of the Thomas Stokes who is the hero of our story. Mr. Haines and his wife, the former Mary Eayre, emigrated from Burlington County, New Jersey, about 1800, settling eventually at Aurora, Ontario. Their posterity are scattered throughout the Dominion of Canada and in many sections of the United States. Their most notable descendant is Mrs. Franklin Osborn (born Harriet Strong, daughter of William Strong and the writer's aunt, Miss Mary Ann Haines), of Dawson City, Yukon Territory, Canada, who was made a member of The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire by His Majesty King George V for her services in philanthropic and health welfare work (June, 1935) .
Sarah Stokes (daughter of Thomas, the settler) and her husband, Benjamin Moore, are represented by eminent Swedish noble families. Her great-great-great-grand son, the late Mr. Bloomfield Haines Moore, one of Philadelphia's most affluent and influential business men, had two daughters, Ella Carlton, and Lillian Augusta Stuart Moore. The former became wife of Count Carl Gustaf von Rosen, subsequently a Commander–Captain in the Swedish Navy. Among their children are Lieutenant–General Count Reinhold Gustaf Edvard Moore von Rosen, of the Army, Count Eugene Erik Adalbert August von Rosen, Master of Ceremonies at the Swedish. Court and Count Eric Carl Gustaf Bloomfield von Rosen, who, as an archaeologist, has made outstanding contributions to our knowledge of primitive races.
In July, 1937, Count Eugene's daughter, Countess Elsa von Rosen, espoused His Royal Highness, Prince Carl of Sweden, a nephew of King Gustaf V. By this union were allied the royal house of Bernadotte (which was of bourgeois French origin), the noble family of von Rosen (of Bohemian extraction and the Anglo-American Quaker families cf Stokes and Moore! Lillian A. S. Moore, above mentioned, (the only sister of the Countess von Rosen) married Baron Carl Nils Daniel Bildt, for many years the Swedish envoy in Rome and an author of historical works. Her sole surviving son is Baron Harold Knut Clarence Bildt, until recently King Gustaf's minister to Egypt. [*The writer has obtained data pertaining to the Swedish branch of the family by correspondence with Baron Harold (de) B ildt and Count Eric von Rosen]
Thus, it will be observed, the descendants of Thomas Stokes have made a prominent place for themselves on three continents.

ADDITIONAL DATA RELATIVE TO THE IMMEDIATE FAMILY OF THOMAS STOKES, PROGENITOR OF THE
AMERICAN FAMIILY
From : Friends' Quarterly Meeting Records of London & Middlesex, in the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania, Phila.

HENRY STOKES: Died 9-30-1674, aged 20 months. Residence: Shadwell, London; Father: Thomas Stokes. Meeting: Ratcliff and Barking.; Buried at Ratcliff. (No other children of Thomas and Mary (Barnard) Stokes are recorded).

JOHN STOAKES : Residence: Wentworth Street, Middlesex. Occupation: Baker. Married Anne Barber, 1-1-1676, at Devonshire House Meeting. (This John Stoakes was the brother of Thomas Stokes, the American Progenitor. Proof : In a deed of 1701 John Stokes, of Wentworth Street, baker, deeded property in West Jersey to his brother, Thomas Stokes, living at or near Burlington in the said Province of West Jersey).

ANNA STOKES: Born 1-3-1677; Residence: Wentworth Street, Parish of Stepney, Middlesex (near Spitalfields) .Parents: John Stokes, a baker, and Ann.

JOHN STOKES: Born 5-23-1682. (Another record: 5-23- 1684) . Parents : John Stokes, baker, and Ann, of Wentworth Street. Meeting: Devonshire House. John Stokes, son of John Stokes, baker, and Ann, of Winford (i. e.Wentworth) Street, died of convulsions, 7-3-1682, aged 6 weeks. Another record: Died of convulsions, 6-4-1684, aged 10 days.

ELIZABETH STOKES: Born 2-8-1686. Parents : John Stokes, baker, and Ann, of Wentworth Street.

ABIGAIL STOKES: Born 10-17-1687. (Another record: 10-7-1687). _ Parents : John Stokes, baker, and Ann, of Wentworth Streets.

ANN STOKES: Died of fever, 12-9-1699, aged 50. Residence : Winfred (i. e. Wentworth) Street, Spitalfields. Wife o f John Stokes, baker. Buried in Checker Ally.

JOHN STOKES: Died of a fever, ,4-21-1709. Residence: Wentworth Street, Parish of Stepney Middlesex. Occupation: Baker. Meeting: Devonshire House. Buried at Bunhillfields.

ELIZABETH STOAKES : Married John Miller, 9-2- 1693. Residence: Winf ord (i. e. Went worth) Street, Spittlefields
Widow of Henry Stokes, late of Winford Street. (This Elizabeth Stoakes was probably the mother of John Stokes, of London, and of Thomas Stokes, of, Burlington Co., West New Jersey).

ELIZABETH MILLER: Died 11-26-1699, aged 77. Residence: Gunn Street, Spittlefields. Wife of John Miller. Buried in Checker Ally. (Undoubtedly she was the Elizabeth Stoakes of the above record).

JOHN MILLER: Died 9-11-1709, aged 92. Residence: Betts Street, Ratcliffe Highway, Stepney Buried 9-16-1709 at Parish, M iddilesex.Bunhillfields.

MARY STOAKES : Spinster. Daughter of Elizabeth Stoakes, of Stepney, county Middlesex; Married Samuel Lovett, 1-6-1673 /4, at Devonshire House. (This Mary Stoakes was undoubtedly the daughter of the Elizabeth Stoakes, widow of Henry Stokes, of Stepney, of the above records).

NATHAN LOVETT: Born I2-I7-1675, at Martins le grand. Parents : Samuel and Mary Lovett; Died 2- I 2- I 676, aged. 2 months.

MARY LOVETT: Died 12-5-1677, "abt i" (year). Residence: Wentworth Street. Parents: Samuel and Mary Lovett.
Buried at Checker Ally.

Recapitulation
John Stokes, o f London, and Thomas Stokes, of Burlington County, West New Jersey, who are definitely known to have been brothers, were Probably the sons of Henry Stokes, of Stepney, county Middlesex, who died of the plague in 1665, according to Mr. Samuel E. Stokes of Kotgarh, the Pujan, India. His widow, Elizabeth stokes, married for the second husban John Miller,and died in 1699, aged 77. The year of her birth may therefore be placed at about 1662, which would be about right for the mother of Thomas, who is said to have been born in 1640, or thereabouts. Mary, daughter of Elizabeth Stokes, widow, and subsequently the wife of Samuel Lovett, was therefore the sister of John and Thomas Stokes.
The probable proofs of these presumed relationships are contained in the facts that John and Ann Stokes and Elizabeth Stokes (prior to her marriage to JohnMiller) were all residents of Wentworth Sttreet, Stepney;, county of Middlesec, not far from Spittlefields (sssssspitalfields). Additional significant factors in determining the relationship of these Stokeses are their Attendance at Devonshire House Meeting and interments in the same cemeteries, such at Bunhillfeilds and Checker Alley.

Parents and Grandparents of Thomas Stokes

In the 100 years since Genealogy of the Stokes family was written some new information on Thomas Stokes has come to the surface.
The generally accepted birth year of Thomas is Stokes is given as circa 1640, the Nothhampton Township Census shows he gave his age in 1709 as 66 giving him a year of birth of 1643. We have to accept that as valid since it came from his own mouth.
The Genealogy of the Stokes Family indicates that Mary Bernard died in 1699 but "Genealogical Records of John Wills", (National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Vol. 42 #2, 1954) shows that Mary was buried on the 18th of the 3rd month (May), 1697. She probably died a day or two before her burial, based on those cases where both a date of death and a date of burial are given in the article.
Information on the Mormon internet site gives Mary's Christening date as March 25, 1645 At Saint Dunstan Stepney Middlesex. England. I haven't confirmed this information but the fact that it is so specific suggests that its valid. I will try to confirm it.
The late Milton Rubincam wrote two articles on Thomas Stokes, "A Little-Known Adventure of Thomas Stokes-1665" by Milton Rubincam, (The Genealogical Magazine of New Jersey, Vol. 12, No. 4,Oct. 1937.) which describes how Thomas Stokes was arrested because of his religious beliefs and exiled to Jamaica.

Milton Rubincam's second article on Thomas Stokes was "A Critical Analysis of the Stokes Pedigree" (Proceedings of the New Jersey Historical Society, Vol. 59, 1941, pp. 96-115.) This second article provides most of the documentation to establish that Thomas was the son of Henry and Elizabeth Stokes of Wentworth St, near Spittlefields.
It is well known and documented by the Stokes Genealogy and other sources that Thomas Stokes was both a Quaker and a Baker of London. The Trenton Deed which sold Thomas Stokes his land in New Jersey identifies John Stokes, Baker of Wentworth St. as selling to Thomas Stokes for, "five shillings of lawful money of England" and "the natural love and affection which I have and doe beare unto my loveing and natural brother Thomas Stokes liveing at or neare burlington in West New Jersey".
Records of the Bakers Company show Thomas was the son of Henry Stokes and was admitted a member on July 3, 1667 "upon sight of his father's copy" which shows that Henry was also a baker. This record doesn't tell us where Henry lived or provide further identification but the records of the same company show John Stokes being the son of Henry and Elizabeth Stokes of Wentworth St.
The above shows that Thomas Stokes of Burlington was the son of Henry Stokes of Wentworth St., near Spittlefields, England who's wife was Elizabeth and who also had a son John who sold Thomas his land in West New Jersey. I haven't been able to determine Elizabeth's maiden name. The records of the London Middlesex Quaraterly Meeting of Friends provides additional details on this family, including that Thomas' sister Elizabeth married John Lovett who came on the ship Kent with Thomas in 1677. It also shows the death of Henry (Thomas' father) of the plague in 1665. Unfortunately, it doesn't show the birth of Thomas' children except for Henry who died in England. There are probably records of the birth of his 4 children born in England at some Quaker meeting there.
As for Thomas' brother John, it doesn't look as if any of his children survived him so I don't think there are any descendants. John went on to some fame as the friend of William Harris, a founder of Rhode Island and sometime friend to Roger Williams. Harris died at John's house after having been captured by pirates, on his release he went to John Stokes' house.. John Stokes is described as being a Baker of Wentworth Street, near Spittlefields in letters sent to him by Harris' daughter Howlong. His house is described as the "Sign of the Peel". (A peel is the wooden shovel that bakers use to remove things from the oven.
Luckily, finding Henry's father isn't as complicated. Records of the Bakers Company (Mormon Family History Library, British Film Area, England, London, Occupations, Brown Baker's Company, Court Minutes 1615-1646, film 1068459) show that Henry was admitted to the company as an apprentice on Dec. 30, 1633 These records are difficult to read, here is my translation.

Christopher Taylor hath elected Henry Stokes the sonne of Robert Stokes of Wicum in the county of Lester, husbandman to be his apprentice from the Thirtieth of December last for seven years and hath paid as aforesaid.

And then in 1640 when his apprenticeship had been served:

Henry Stokes the sonne of Robert Stokes of Wicum in the County of Lester husbandman, hath been apprentice of Christopher Taylor for seven years from the date of his indenture being dated the thirtieth of December Anno Domini 1633 and on the last day of January Anno Indomius dax, was assigned to serve with George Darby for the rest of his time then to come to this day admitted a freeman sworn and has paid as aforesaid.

Wicum and Lester are the phonetic spellings for Wycomb and Leicester respectively. It is about 100 miles north of London, I'd guess that Henry left his home sometime after Christmas, 1633. Wycomb was in the parish of Rotherby, I've checked church records there but could find nothing, no mention of the children of Robert Stokes. (Mormon Family History Library, England, Leicester, Bishop Transcripts, Parish of Rotherby, 1565-1849) The burial of Grace Stokes, wife of Robert, is recorded as having taken place on Oct. 2, 1639, there is no date of burial for Robert but there is a 35 year gap in the records, from 1640 to 1675, no doubt the result of the English Civil War.
Wycomb is about 4.5 miles north of Melton Mawbray, in 1831 it had 1700 inhabitants. It is a very old village going back at least a thousand years. It appears variously as Wykeham, Wikeham or Wycomb
I was, for a brief time, a member of the Leicester Family History Society and wrote to Betty Morris who was also researching Stokes in Leicester. She and I couldn't connect but she kindly sent me a photocopy from John Nichol's "History of Leicester" (published in 1795). This shows Robert Stokes a freeman of Wycomb in 1630. The fact that Robert is listed as a husbandman in the Baker's Company records suggests he didn't own his own land and probably raised animals, possibly sheep.
The name Stokes is said to be derived from Stoc, meaning "place, outlying farmstead or hamlet, secondary or dependent settlement" and is said to be a fairly common location name. About 10 miles north east of Wycomb is Stoke Rochford, in the county of Lincoln. Perhaps this is where Robert was from and where our name of Stokes was acquired.
end of article.

The following is to show our Mountain west family how we are related to Thomas Stokes.
Our mother and Grandmother, Inez Elizabeth Hollingshead, born in Lyman Wyoming is
the daughter of Hanna Burdette Rollins and Abraham Hollingshead; the son of Elizabeth Evans and Nelson Stoyell Hollingshead; the son of Aurelia Matthews and Thomas Hollingshead who was the son of Anne Hill and William Hollingshead; the son of Anthony Hollingshead and Elizabeth Conrow; the daughter of Darling Conrow and Deliverance Stokes; daughter of Deliverance Horner & Thomas L Stokes; the son of Mary Barnard and Thomas Stokes who came from England


The foregoing article was contained on pages 834–843 of the following publication.
Genealogies of NEW JERSEY FAMILIES
From the Genealogical Magazine of New Jersey, Volume I
Families A - Z
Pre-American Notes on Old New Netherland Families
Selected and Intoduded by JOSEPH R. KLEIT
GENEALOGICAL PUBLISHING CO., INC.




The following historical Sketch of 3 generations of The Stokes Family from Thomas Stokes who had the experience of being deported from England, going to Holland etc. down to Deliverance Stokes who Married Darling Conrow is found on pages 579—584 of the following publication:

GENEALOGICAL
AND
MEMORIAL HISTORY
OF THE
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
A RECORD OF THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF HER PEOPLE IN THE MAKING OF A COMMONWEALTH AND THE
FOUNDING OF A NATION
COMPILED UNDER THE EDITORIAL SUPERVISION OF
FRANCIS BAZLEY LEE
VOLUME II
ILLUSTRATED
NEW YORK
LEWIS HISTORICAL PUBLISHING COMPANY
-1910-

STOKES
According to Burke's Landed Gentry, the Stokes family is of Norman origin and is a branch of the ancient and illustrious house of Montespedon, now believed to be extinct in Normandy. From the old documents and records, its ancestors must have come over into England shortly after the Conquest, and received honors and possessions. The records, however, are scanty until the reign of Edward II, when the records of the Tower of London tell us that Sir Adam de Stokke was seized of the Manor of Stokke, Rustaball and Wilts. Thomas, his eldest son, held the manor of Sendee with other lands in Wiltshire, and Roger, his second son, the manors of Wolshall, Sanarnargritt and Hungerford in the same county. Roger and his father, Sir Adam, were interred in the church of Great Bedwin to which they had been benefactors, and their effigies and monuments are still to be seen there. John, a descendant of Thomas, represented the county in parliament in the reign of Charles II, and in the reign of Elizabeth, we find the Stockeys (the first change in the spelling of the name) erected the church or chapel of Sendee and lie interred there. In the fifteenth century, Christopher Stokes held the manors of Stanhawes with other lands in Gloucestershire, and Edward Stokes held part of the manor of Fetherton at a later period together with lands at Langley Burrell, county Gloucester. About 1700 John Stokes held the manor of Stanhawes Court, Cardington, with other lands in the same county. In the counties of Gloucester and. Bucks Richard Stokes, of Caln Castle, Wilts, held considerable possessions. Some of the family also held lands in Sussex and Kent, and within the last fifty years possessed considerable. property in the counties of Wilts, Gloucester and Warwick. The arms of the family are: gules a lion rampant, double gnewed erm ; Crest: a dove with wings expanded, in the mouth an olive branch, all proper; Motto: Fertis qui insons.

Thomas Stokes, founder of the family in America
(I) 1. Thomas Stokes, founder of the family in America, was the contemporary of George Fox, the reformer and founder of the Society of Friends, and of William Penn, who was associated with the trustees of Edward Byllinge, one of the original proprietors of New Jersey, and the founder of the Province of Pennsylvania. He was sixteen year younger than the former and four years older than the latter, a convert to their religious doctrines and toleration, with the largest liberty for individual belief, but like all pioneers and propagandises desiring to avoid persecution and seeking new fields of labor, he concluded to remove himself to the New American colonies and seek his fortune in the new world. His brother, John Stokes, of London, having large proprietary interests in West Jersey, bordering on the Northampton river, Thomas settled on a part of the tract conveyed to him by his brother. This conveyance of John is said to be the only portion of his interest ever disposed of by him and was doubtless the disposal of the whole of his interest. Thomas Stokes located three hundred acres of land fronting on the northerly side of the Northampton river, and a portion of the tract still remains in the possession of the family having come down from father to son by will. Thomas Stokes was a man of influence, and very active in the affairs of the colony, serving on the first grand jury ever held in Burlington county. His wife dying in 1699, he removed to Waterford township, Gloucester county, and resided there with his son Thomas, until his death, on 11 of Seventh month 1720. January 21, 1719, he conveyed his Northampton township lands to Abraham Hewlings, Jr., and October 13, 1719, he wrote his will.
The 30th of Tenth month, 1668, Thomas Stokes, of Lower Shadwell, married Mary Bernard, of Stepney, at the Westbury street Friends Meeting in London. They belonged to the Devonshire House Meeting. With his wife and young children he set sail for the new world in the ship "Kent" and arriving at New Castle, in the Sixth month, 1677, proceeded to Burlington and settled on a tract of one hundred and sixty-two and one-half acres which he called Stokington. He was one of the signers of the concessions and agreement.
The children of 1. Thomas1 and Mary Barnard were:
2. Sarah2, married, in. 1693, Benjamin Moore, the emigrant from
Birmingham, county Lincoln, England, said to have been the largest landholder in New Jersey, and the one after whom Moorestown is named.
3. Mary2, married, in 1696, John, son of Robert and Nary Hudson, of
Burlington.
4. John2, born in 1675, probably in London. Married Elizabeth Green
daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth Green.
5. Joseph2, who died in 1760 ; married (first) Judith, daughter of Freedom
and Mary (Curtis) Lippincott, and (second) Ann (Ashard) Haines, the widow of John Haines and the daughter of John Ashard.
6. Thomas2 Stokes born in 1682; died November 7, 1736. He married in
1704, Deliverance Horner, daughter of Isaac Horner and Lydia Wright of Northamton Town ship, Burlington County,

Our ancestor Thomas; son of Thomas Stokes and Mary Barnard
(II) 6. + Thomas2 Stokes, youngest child of Thomas and Mary (Bernard) Stokes, was born in 1682, died November 7, 1736. In 1709 he
purchased from John Kay, of Springwell, three hundred acres of land in Waterford, now Delaware township, Camden county, New Jersey, bounded on the south side by the north branch of Cooper's creek, extending on both sides of a tributary of the same, and including what is now some of the best soil in the neighborhood. On this tract he settled, his house standing near what was about thirty years ago the home of Mark Ballinger. This settlement was in the midst of an Indian neighborhood, and it was not until after the middle of the nineteenth century that the last of the aboriginal dwellers passed away, and the remains of their burying ground may still be seen near Tindall's run, east of the Haddonfeld and Berlin road. In 1704 Thomas Stokes married (first) Deliverance Horner, daughter of Isaac Horner and Lydia Wright, of Northampton township, Burlington county, whose sister Hannah was the first wife of John, son of William Matlack, the emigrant. She died between 1713 and 1715, and bore her husband six children:
6-1. Hannah 3, born July, 1705, died in childhood.
6-2. Joseph 3, July 12, 1706.
6-3. Benjamin 3, January 27, 1708, who went to North Carolina, and has
sometimes been confused with his father.
6-4. Lydia 3, July 13, 1710, married (first) 1734, Samuel Haines, and
(second) Jacob Lamb.
6-5. Thomas 3, November 5, 1711, married, 1741, Abigail, daughter of
John, son of William Matlack, the emigrant, by his second wife Mary Lee.
6-6. Deliverance 3 Stokes, September 18, 1713, married Darnel Darling Conrow, son of Isaac Conrow and Sarah Darling.

September 1, 1715, No 6, Thomas1 Stokes married (second) Rachel, daughter of Job and Rachel Wright, of Oyster Bay or Westbury, Long Island, who died February 18, 1742, having borne her husband eight children:
6-7. Joshua 3, born in Waterford township, Camden county, New Jersey,
April 6, 1716, died there in 1779. Referred to below.
6-8. Rachel 3, October 15, 1717, married, September 7, 1 734, John
Cowperthwait.
6-9. Job 3, October 15, 171 7, twin with Rachel.
6-10. Hannah 3, June 26, 1719, married Benjamin Pine.
6-11. Jacob 3, March 21, 1721, married, 1749, Priscilla Ellis.
6-12. Keziah 3, January 25, 1724, married, 1750, Joseph Browning.
6-13. John 3, November 1, 1724, married, 1751, Ann Champion, a widow,
possibly of Peter Champion and the daughter of William and Sarah (Collins) Ellis.
6-14. Rosanna 3, May 2, 1 728, married, May 19, 1748, Samuel, son of
Samuel and Abigail (Ward) Collins.




(II) 4. John2, third child and eldest son of Thomas and Mary (Bernard) Stokes, was born, probably in London, in 1675, and was brought to the new world by his father when he was about two years old. In 1719 his father made him the sole executor of his will. In his "First Emigrant Settlers of Newton Township" Judge Clement says, "Nothing is known of John Stokes save what may be gathered from the records in the office of the secretary of state at Trenton." In 1716, an inventory of his estate was made, upon which is the following endorsement: "Came to his end by an unnatural death, in ye lower end of Gloucester county." This inventory and endorsement, however, must refer to some other John Stokes as it is hardly possible that Thomas Stokes would make a man his sole executor three years after his death. It may possibly mean that John, the brother of 1. Thomas, came also to this country. In 1712, 4. John Stokes married Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth Green. She was known as Lady Green, and was the granddaughter of Arthur green, of Bug Brook parish, county Northampton, England. She came to America it is said in the household of Dr. Daniel Wills, in whose care she had been placed by her father. Being displeased by her marriage to John Stokes, her father disinherited her, and sent her brother John to the colony to look after his interests and investments in New Jersey. The children of John and Elizabeth (Green) Stokes were:
4-1. John 3, born in Gloucester country, New Jersey, July 16, 1713, died
August 24, 1798; and is referred to below.
4-2. Mary 3, married in 1734, Edward Mullen, and had a granddaughter,
Keziah Burr, who married Richard Howell, afterwards governor of New Jersey, whose granddaughter married Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederate States of America.
4-3. Elizabeth 3, married Richard Blackham.
4-4. Sarah 3, married Isaac Rogers.

4-1 John 3 eldest child and only son of 4. John and Elizabeth Green Stokes was born in Gloucester country, New Jersey, July 16, 1713, died August 24, 1798. In 1740 he married Hannah , daughter of Jervis and Mary Sharp Stogdelle, of Evesham township, Burlington county. Her mother was the daughter of Hugh Sharp, possibly the brother of William of Gloucester county ,and John of Burlington county, and if so the son of Francis Sharp of Oak Lane, in the parish of St. Ann, Limehouse county, Middlesex, England. She was born in 1718, died June 16, 1790.
Their Children:
4-1-1 Mary 4, born Oct 16, 1745, married Isaac Newton.
4-1-2 John 4; born 22 Aug 1747, Married Susanna Newton.
4-1-3 David 4, born in Burlington county 12 Jan 1752, died there 27 Sep
1830. He married 15 Apr 1784, Ann, daughter of John Lancaster and Elizebeth Barlow .
4-1-4 Jarvis 4, born 10 Nov 1753, died 14 Dec 1804; married 27 Nov
1773, Elizabeth, daughter of William Rogers and Martha Esturgans.
4-1-5 Hannah 4, born 12 Oct 1756, became the second wife of Joseph
Haines and married second, George Browning.
4-1-6 Elizabeth 4, born 31 May 1759; married George French.
4-1-7 Rachel 4, Married Joseph Hackney.


(III) 6-7 Joshua 3, eldest child of Thomas and Rachel (Wright) Stokes, was born in Waterford township, Camden county, New Jersey, April 6, 1716, died there in 1779. After the death of his father he occupied the homestead for the remainder of his own life. December l0, 1741, he married Amy, daughter of John and Sarah Hinchman, and the great-granddaughter of a Huguenot of Flushing, Long Island, whose children had removed into New Jersey. Her grandparents were John Hinchman and Sarah, daughter of Samuel Harrison, of Flushing, and her great-grandparents were John and Sarah Hinchman, of Flushing, who came from France. The surname is a very curious example of the racial group of names, it being really a corruption of the word "Frenchman" and the first instance of it occurring in the Flushing census of 1698, where the emigrant is listed among the Frenchmen in the town. The children of Joshua and Amy (Hinchman) Stokes were:
6-7-1. John 4, born in Waterford township, Camden county, but removed
into Burlington County, where he died. He married Beulah, daughter of John and Mary (Shreve) Hains, Granddaughter of Nathan Haines and Sarah, daughter of Francis and Mary (Borton) Austin. Nathan was the son of William Haines and sarah, daughter of John Paine, of Burlington, in 1695, the emigrant.
6-7-2. Rachel4, married Nathaniel Barton.
6-7-3. Elizabeth 4, married Jacob, son of Charles and Ann French.
6-7-4. Hannah 4, married (first) Haddon, son of Ebenezer and Sarah (Lord)
Hopkins, and (second) Abraham, son of Abraham and Sarah Inskeep.
6-7-5. Thomas 4, born 1742, died 1831 ; married Sarah, daughter of Abraham and Sarah Inskeep.
6-7-6. Samuel 4, married (first) 1774, Atlantic, daughter of William and
Mary (Turner) Matlack, and (second) Hope, daughter of Robert and Martha Hunt.
6-7- 7. Jacob 4, married Esther Wilkins.
6-7-8. Joshua 3, married Syllania, daughter of Daniel and Rebecca
(Prickitt) Bishop.

The Article on the Stokes Family continues to the 7th and 8th generation, and gives the final birth in 1902

Miscellaneous
from page 386 of New Jersey Colonial Documents:
Stoakes, Deliveranc, Burlington, and Daniel Conrow, Burlington; 1733 March 16
Stoakes, Elizabeth, Burlington, and Josiah Blackham, Burlington; 1729 Feb 1