Francis Stockley (aka Stokeley, Stokley) was born in 1616 in Stoke (later: Stoke-on-Trent), Staffordshire, England. He was the first-born son of John Stockley Sr. and his wife, Elizabeth (Woodman) Stockley. The family surname has also been spelled "Stokeley" or "Stokley" in some genealogies. His 2 younger brothers were: John Stockley II, b: 1621 in Stoke, Staffordshire, England; and Woodman Stockley, Sr., b: ca. 1624 in Staffordshire, England.
The Stockleys were at least of the "yeoman" class: independent small-landowners, merchants or small industrialists. Stoke (later: Stoke-on-Trent) was already a mining, mercantile and manufacturing center by the early 17th Century. The Stockley family had to have had resources because Francis Stockley was only 19 years old when he and his younger brother, John Stockley II, b: 1619-1621, made their trans-Atlantic passage to the English colony of Virginia in America. Later documents attest that Francis Stockley paid for both brothers' transport, against a 3-year-indenture for his younger brother.
Brothers Francis and John Stockley II emigrated to America together in 1635 as they are noted on the passenger manifest of the ship, The Two Brothers, that first landed in Jamaica before traveling on to Virginia. In later documents, Francis' younger brother, John Stockley II, stated in court that he had "come to the Eastern Shore [of Virginia] at the Cost & Charges of his brother Francis, in exchange for three years of service, and first lived in what is now Northampton County, Virginia..."[1] John II gave testimony in court there on June 5, 1640. He was a tailor by trade. Francis was a tobacco planter. Both developed sizeable plantations in the Accomack (northern) half of Virginia's Eastern Shore.[2]
From their arrival, Francis and John Stockley II, established themselves on Virginia's Eastern Shore, between the Atlantic Ocean and the Chesapeake Bay, north of Hampton Roads. The area was originally called Accomack Shire, after the local Native American tribe, but in 1642 its name was changed to Northampton County. In 1663 the county was split in two and the northern half renamed Accomack County, Virginia. The Stockley plantations were both in territory that was in the Accomack (northern) half.
Page 53 of the Virginia Patent Book No.1 - Part 1 states:
From Virginia Colonial Abstracts, Vol. I, Accomack Co., 1637-1640:
Francis Stockley married Virginia immigrant, Joan Hall abt.1620-1663), in about 1636 (she was born in 1620 in Warwick, England). He bought a tobacco plantation in Accomack County (Northampton Co. from 1642-63). He died in Northampton County, Virginia, in January 1656 at just 40 years old, the same month as his father died in England.[4]
Francis Stockley & Joan (Hall) Stockley had 3 children:
Francis Stokeley's Will (Northampton Co., Rec. D. & W. 5, p. 83), dated December 12, 1655, proved January 28, 1655/6, mentions his wife (but does not name her), 2 daughters: Frances and Ann, 1 son: John Stokeley, 1 brother John and John's son: William [Francis' nephew].
Will of Francis Stockley
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Categories: Virginia Colonists