Alexander Webb II (1559 - abt. 1629)

Born 20 Aug 1559 in Stratford, Warwickshire, England

Husband of Mary (Wilson) Webb — married 1579 in Stratford-on-Avon, Warwickshire, England

Died about 1629 at about age 69 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts Bay Colony

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Biography

Disputed Bio

The following biography is compiled from a few older unsourced printed family genealogies and several modern online family genealogy pages. The information in this bio has been incorporated into many family trees.

Parentage; Date and Place of Birth

Alexander was the son of Alexander Webb and his wife Margaret (Arden) Webb, who were William Shakespeare's uncle and aunt.^{[1][2][3][4][5]} According to some of the online family genealogy pages, his father was a knight and called "Sir."^[3][4]

Alexander was born on August 20, 1559.^[1][2][3][5] One source says he was his parent's youngest son,^[1] while another source says he was their first-born child.^[4] According to the old printed family genealogies, he was born in Birmingham, Warwickshire,^[1][2] but according to the new online family genealogy pages, he was born in Stratford-on-Avon, Warwickshire.^[3][5]

Marriage

Alexander married Mary Wilson,^[1][2][5][6] who was the daughter of Sir Thomas Wilson, Private Secretary of Queen Elizabeth I.^[1][2][6] According to some modern online family genealogy pages, they were married about 1579 in Stratford[-on-Avon?], Warwickshire.^[2][5]

Place of Residency

According to Selleck, Alexander settled in Birmingham, Warwickshire.^[1] However, modern online family genealogy pages show their children as being born in various locations, generally in the Stratford-on Avon area.

Children

Alexander and Mary had the following children:

1. Richard,^{[1][2][3][4][5]} b. May 5, 1580^[1] or May 8, 1580^[2] or May 15, 1580.^[3][4][5] (This would be Richard Webb of Norwalk, Connecticut.)
2. William,^{[1][2][3][4][5]} b. July 9, 1582^[3] or January 9, 1588^[1] (or perhaps April 23, 1583 and/or January 7, 1588?^[5]). (This would be William "Micajah" Webb of Virginia.)
3. Elizabeth,^[1][3][4][5] b. September 3, 1585.^[3][5] (This would be Elizabeth Webb who married John Sanford of Rhode Island.)
4. John,^{[1][2][3][4][5]} b. October 23, 1597^[3][5] or April 15, 1599.^[1]
5. Christopher,^{[1][2][3][4][5]} b. April 15, 1599.^[1][3][5] (This would be Christopher Webb of Braintree.)
6. Henry,^{[1][2][3][4][5]} b. October 12, 1601^[1][3][5] (or maybe October 12, 1610?^[5]) (This would be Henry Webb of Boston.)

Sir Alexander?

According to some of the modern online family genealogy pages,^[3][4] but not the older printed family genealogies, Alexander was a "Sir," so at some point he supposedly must have done something of notable value for the King or Queen in order to get knighted. None of the online family genealogy pages that say he was a "Sir", however, suggest what he was knighted for.

Date and Place of Death

The older printed family genealogies do not discuss Alexander's date or place of death.^[1][2] His geni.com profile, however, states that he died about 1629^[3] and several of the modern online genealogies suggest that he may have immigrated with the rest of his family in 1626 and died in Massachusetts.^[3][4][5]

Debunking

The story of Sir Alexander Webb II and his four immigrant sons is similar to the genealogical myths adopted by other surnames in America which say that all the great branches of the surname in America descend from the immigrant sons of a single common noble ancestor. (See, for example, The Legend of the Ashley Brothers.) The story of Sir Alexander Webb II and his four immigrant sons has the further advantage of making the Webbs of America related to William Shakespeare. Unfortunately, virtually nothing about the story is based on fact.

Debunking of Sir Alexander Webb II's Parentage

Since Alexander Webb and his wife Margaret (Arden) Webb were related to William Shakespeare, their lives have been researched by a multitude of Shakespeare experts. Contrary to many of the modern online family genealogies, Alexander Webb (the putative father) was not a knight, was never called "Sir" and was not even a "gentleman." Both his will and other records related to his life show that he was a humble "husbandman."^[7] More critically, the evidence is fairly clear that he did not have a son named Alexander. Alexander (the putative father) left a 1573 will, which included bequests to his six children: Robert, Edward, Anne, Elizabeth, Mary and Sara.^[8] The failure of the will to mention a son named Alexander is strong evidence that he did not have one. None of the profiles of Alexander (the putative father) in articles about Shakespeare's relatives mention a son named Alexander. The only record that could be read to mean that Alexander (the putative father) had a son named Alexander is a receipt by Agnes Arden of Wilmcote, widow (the sister of Alexander, the putative father), for 40s from Alexander Webbe for two messuages that she rented to him in 1560. Since the description of the receipt says it is dated 1580 and Alexander (the putative father) died in 1573, that record seems to suggest that he had a son named Alexander.^[7] However, based on Alexander's (the putative father's) will and the absence of any other evidence supporting the proposition that Alexander (the putative father) had a son named Alexander, it is more likely that either the date on the description is wrong or the description incorrectly states that Alexander Webb paid the rent, when in fact it was his son Robert.

Debunking of Date of Birth

The fact that the older unsourced printed family genealogies and modern online family genealogy pages all state that Alexander was born on August 20, 1559 suggests that there is a birth record that establishes that date of birth. No birth or baptismal record for Alexander has, however, ever been cited, provided or discovered. Since only baptisms and not births were recorded in England at the time, the mere fact that the genealogies of Alexander say that August 20, 1559 was his birth date, makes that assertion suspect.

Debunking of Sir Alexander Webb II's Marriage

Sir Thomas Wilson, Private Secretary of Queen Elizabeth I, did, in fact, have a daughter named Mary. However, it is well established that Sir Thomas Wilson's daughter Mary Wilson married Robert Burdett of Bramcote, Warwickshire, who was a Member of Parliament.^[9] No record or other reliable evidence has been found for the marriage between this profile's Alexander Webb and a Mary Wilson or an other woman.

Debunking of Sir Alexander Webb II's Parentage of the Four Webb Immigrants

The fact that the older unsourced printed family genealogies and modern online family genealogy pages for this profile's Alexander Webb all provide precise dates of birth for his sons suggests that there are birth records that establish those dates. No birth or baptismal record for any of the four Webb immigrants (Richard, William, Christopher or Henry) has, however, ever been cited, provided or discovered. In fact, no reliable evidence of any kind has been found that indicates that any of the four Webb immigrants were the sons of an Alexander Webb of Warwickshire. Robert Charles Anderson's Great Migration Begins contains a profile of Richard Webb of Norwalk. If there were reliable evidence of his origin or parentage, Anderson would have included it in his profile. However, Anderson states that Richard's origin is unknown and does not mention his parentage.^[10] The origin of Christopher Webb of Braintree has now been established with a reasonably high degree of confidence. He lived in Crediton, Devonshire. There is no reason to believe that he somehow moved there from the Stratford-on-Avon area of Warwickshire. No reliable evidence has been found that connects any of the four Webb immigrants to each other. In fact, YDNA evidence to date finds no connection between any of the 20+ unrelated Webb branches that originated in the South and the descendants of Christopher Webb or any of the other 10+ unrelated Webb branches that originated in the North.^[11] As is the case with most other surnames in the United States, the evidence indicates that the various Webb branches are descended from dozens of different unrelated immigrants.

Debunking of Sir Alexander Webb II's Immigration

No reliable evidence has been found of anyone meeting the description of Sir Alexander Webb II having immigrated to New England. The lack of any such evidence is confirmed by the fact that there is no entry for anyone close to his description in Robert Charles Anderson's 2015 The Great Migration Directory, which lists every person for which Anderson found evidence that they immigrated to New England in or before 1640.^[12]

Debunking of Sir Alexander Webb II's Existence

In addition to the fact that, as discussed above, most of the information relating to Alexander is demonstrably false, there appears to be no reliable evidence that he existed at all. If he had existed, one would expect to find some shards of reliable evidence of this existence, such as parish records, court records, tax records, deeds or contracts, or estate records. However, no such reliable evidence of his existence has been cited, produced or discovered. Moreover, it he had existed, it is highly likely that he would have been mentioned by one of the many reputable Shakespeare researchers who have studied Shakespeare's relatives, since he would have been one of William Shakespeare's cousins; but he is not.^{[13][14][15][16][17][18]} It therefore seems highly probable that he never existed and was instead created to serve as a link between the very real Alexander Webb of Bearley/Snitterfield and the four Webb immigrants (Richard, William, Christopher and Henry.) A nice story, but fictional.

^{[12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [8] [11] [10] [9] [7] [1] [2] [6] [3] [4] [5]}

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19} Selleck, Charles M. Norwalk. 1896. pp. 387-388, 398-399, 402-403 interpage. Link to pp 402-403 interpage at archive.org. Unsourced genealogy in self-published history of Norwalk, Connecticut. In Selleck's defense, he apparently just published whatever the local families said their English ancestry was and started the "Lineage" section of his book with the following disclaimer: "In regard to this work's 'genealogy,' its author assumes no statement-responsibility beyond that of his clients' American ancestry and affinity. Of the right and reasonableness of introduced foreign family data, the reader must be the judge." See p 81.
2. ↑ ^{2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13} Frost, Josephine. Ancestors of Henry Rogers Winthrop and His Wife Alice Woodward Babcock. 1927. pp. 540-541. Link to page at archive.org Link to page at ancestry.com ($). Unsourced pedigree. Note: This book has the distinction of having been singled out by Donald Lines Jacobus as an example of the type of genealogy book that should not be trusted. See Jacobus, Donald Lines. Genealogy as Pastime and Profession. 1930. p. 75. Link to page at hathitrust.org.
3. ↑ ^{3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19} "Sir Alexander Webb Jr.", geni.com. Accessed March 29, 2019. References skinnerwebb.com, timjanzen.com, and several family genealogy websites/trees with broken links.
4. ↑ ^{4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12} "The Webb Family," webb.skinnerwebb.com. Accessed March 29, 2019. A family genealogy website which states that it relied on Descendants of Richard Webb, a 1943 unpublished manuscript by Lewis Bailey Skinner.
5. ↑ ^{5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 5.12 5.13 5.14 5.15 5.16 5.17 5.18 5.19} "Tim and Rachel Janzen's Ancestors," timjanzen.com. Accessed March 29, 2019. An unsourced family tree.
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1 6.2} Finley, Mrs. Herold R. "Dorr Family". Americana. Vol. XVII, No. 4 (October, 1923). The American Historical Society, 1923. pp. 467-468. Link to page at books.google.com. Unsourced genealogical information about the Webb family as part of a genealogy of the Dorr family.
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1 7.2} See the profile for his putative father, Alexander Webb.
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1} Halliwell-Phillipps, J.O. Outlines of the Life of Shakespeare. Seventh Edition. Volume the Second. Longmans, Green and Co., 1887. pp. 407-408 Link to pages at hathitrust.org.
9. ↑ ^{9.0 9.1} "BURDETT, Robert (c.1558-1603), of Bramcote, Warws." The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1558-1603, ed. P.W. Hasler, 1981. Link to article at historyofparliamentonline.org.
10. ↑ ^{10.0 10.1} Anderson, Robert Charles. "Richard Webb". The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633, Volume III, P-W. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1995. pp. 1954-1956. Link to pages at americanancestors.org.
11. ↑ ^{11.0 11.1} "Webb Surname DNA Project - Y-DNA Colorized Chart", familytreedna.com
12. ↑ ^{12.0 12.1} Anderson, Robert Charles. The Great Migration Directory: Immigrants to New England, 1620-1640. A Concise Compendium. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2015.
13. ↑ ^{13.0 13.1} French, George Russell. Shakspeareana Genealogica. McMillan and Co., 1869. Link to page at archive.org.
14. ↑ ^{14.0 14.1} Halliwell-Phillipps, J.O. Outlines of the Life of Shakespeare. Seventh Edition. Volume the First. Longmans, Green and Co., 1887. Link to volume at hathitrust.org.
15. ↑ ^{15.0 15.1} Halliwell-Phillipps, J.O. Outlines of the Life of Shakespeare. Seventh Edition. Volume the Second. Longmans, Green and Co., 1887. Link to volume at hathitrust.org.
16. ↑ ^{16.0 16.1} Stopes, Mrs. C.C. Shakespeare's Family, Being a Record of the Ancestors and Descendants of William Shakespeare with Some Account of the Ardens. James Pott & Company, 1901. Link to volume at gutenberg.org.
17. ↑ ^{17.0 17.1} Eccles, Mark. Shakespeare in Warwickshire. The University of Wisconsin Press, 1963.
18. ↑ ^{18.0 18.1} Pogue, Kate Emery. Shakespeare's Family. Praeger, 2008. Available on Kindle at amazon.com.

See also:

• "Alexander Webb," themorrisclan.com. Archived July 20, 2017.
• Webb Family History with Name Origin and Lineage Lines. by Heraldry, P.O.Box 365, Carpinteria, California 93013. JAN 1975.
• Descendants of Sir Henry WEBB", jimwebb.rootsweb.com. Archived February 20, 2016.