Thomas Osborne Sr. (abt. 1584 - abt. 1637)

Born about 1584 in Creeksea, Maldon District, Essex, England

Husband of Joan (Smith) Osborne — married 21 Sep 1607 in Hurstpierpoint, Sussex, England

Descendants

Died about 14 Jul 1637 at about age 53 in Henrico, Colony of Virginia

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Biography

Thomas Osborne Sr. was a Jamestown colonist.

Thomas Osborne Sr. is a Qualifying Ancestor of the Jamestowne Society

Name Thomas Osborne. ^{[1][2][3][4][5][6]}

Born 1584 Creeksea, Maldon District, Essex, England. ^[7][8][9] [Need the details from this birth record.]

Baptism: Age: 0. 19 Mar 1580. Staplehurst, Kent. ^[10] [Need the details from this baptism record.]

Event: Age: 35. Arrival 1619 Virginia^[11][12]

Residence 1624 The Plantation at the College, Henrico, Virginia^[13][14]

Offices Held 1625 to 1 Feb 1633 Member of House of Burgesses^[13][15][16]

Died 14 Jul 1637. Henrico, Virginia [Need the source for this exact date.]

Thomas OSborne^[17] was born about 1584. He arrived at Jamestown in the Colony of Virginia on 4 Nov 1619. He was then probably in his late 30's and had apparently left behind his wife and children. The 3 month voyage on board the Bona Nova had taken him via the West Indies, and per the records of London Company, all passengers arrived lusty and in good health. He rose to rank of Captain and acquired land at Henricus called Coxendale. His son Thomas joined him using his own headrights, implying wealth, and acquired adjoining land at Coxendale. Capt. Thomas passed away before 1642, possibly c.1638.

Origins Note

The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, 1897, Volume 4, p.247,^[18] states "Captain Thomas Osborne came to Virginia in November, 1616 (Hotten), and settled at "Coxendale," in the present Chesterfield county about 1625. He also patented land on Procter's creek, Henrico (now in Chesterfield) in 1637; was commissioner (justice) for "the upper parts" in 1631, and member of the House of Burgesses, 1629, 1629-30, 1631-2, and 1632-3.."^[19] That reference to Thomas arriving in 1616 appears to be in error. The source is Hotten and the only reference to Thomas Osborne in Hotten is the 1619 arrival. The 1616 date unfortunately is on the Virgina Historical Marker for the town of Osbornes established by Thomas' descendants. It has been repeated in numerous genealogical records.

John Frederick Dorman (Adventurers of Purse and Person) believes that the founder of the Henrico County Osbornes is the Thomas Osborne who arrived in 1620 on the Francis Bonaventure. Thus, he begins a generation later and uses a different numbering system from the one already established, which can cause confusion. For a discussion, see Research Notes below.

Timeline

1580s est. birth of Thomas Osborne.

1610 est. Marries _____. Son Thomas Jr. , estimated birth 1612.

1619 Nov 4: Arrived by himself at Jamestown onboard Bona Nova.^[20][21]

1623/4 Feb 16: Listed as living at College lands. [up the James River adjoining the Cittie of Henricus] [no females]^[22]

1624/5 Jan 23: Lt. in charge of College lands.^[23]

1625: First elected to be a member of the House of Burgesses, representing his area around the town of Henricus located further up the James River.^[24] Records between 1625 and 1629 not available.

1627: Lt. Thomas Osborne leads one of the retaliation raids; his second was Thomas Harris.^[25]

1629 to 1 Feb 1633: Member of House of Burgesses^{[26][27][28][29]}

1634: Henrico County was formed around the town of Henricus, established in 1611 by Sir Thomas Dale to get away from the low, marshy area of Jamestown. [Records prior to 1677 are lost.]

1634 Dec 12: Capt. Thomas Osborne and Captain William Perry served as overseers of the will of John Smith.^[30]

1637 Feb 6: Capt. Thomas Osborne rec’d patent for 1000 acres on Proctors Creek bounded south by Henrico Island; granted Oct 1634 for trans 20 (names given). [Note added: "Capt. Thomas Osborne "of Fearing" land resurveyed Apr 26 1638 and found to be 800 acres...]^[31] [The plantation is about 14 miles south, downstream, of present-day Richmond]

Son Thomas II has arrived in VA, apparently single, and marries here. [No headright for a wife is found and his son Thomas was born 1641.]

1637 Jun 16: 'Thomas Osborne Junr' receives patent to 500 acres upon Fearing, tract called Batchelers bancke, for transporting himself and 9 others.^[32]

____ Capt. Thomas dies. See 1642 below. The resurvey of his land, mentioned above, may have been part of settling the estate,

1641 Thomas III (1641-1692) born [He was age 48 in 1689 when he testified.]

1642 Aug 20: Thomas Osborne [II] rec'd 400 acres at head of Coxendale, Mr. Osborne’s land called Fearing…for trans. 7 pers.. [He is referred to as "Mr." not Capt. or Jr. supporting theory that father had died.]^[33]

1645 est. Edward (c.1645-1695) born.

1650s est. Thomas Osborne II dies, no estate papers found. [Later, Thomas III and Edward have adjoining land - inheritance split!].

1660s est. Thomas III marries.

1670s est. Edward marries.

[1677 Henrico County surviving records begin.]

1685 Mr. Thomas Osborne Sr. presented proof to the Henrico County court at Varina, which certified that he was due 500 acres for transporting ten more people to Virginia.

1689 Thomas III is 'at about age 48' when testified in a case brought against deceased Matthew Turpin.^[34]

1692 Thomas III dies. Will written Oct 2 1691; proved June 1 1692..^[35]

1698 Edward dies. Will written June 6, 1696; proved April 1, 1697.^[36]

For more. see^[37]

Research Notes

The following information has been supplied by Tom Osborne (relationship unknown) . It is attached to DNA documentation^[38] which shows inter-relationships in the family of Thomas Osborne, Senior. The veracity of the information is unknown but the DNA evidence is of great significance and the reference source should be supplied in it's entirety. Several of the following assertions need to be verified.

Capt. Thomas Osborne of Henrico Co., VA The first reference to Lt. Thomas Osborne is his arrival in Virginia in November 1619 on the ship Bona Nova. He was 35, making his birth year about 1584 in England. He is probably the first Osborne to arrive in America and is probably of the Sir Edward Osborne family of London, but no proof yet exists. He came to Virginia as part of a group sent by the London Company to set up a College at Henrico for the purpose of educating the Indians and others. After leading a counterattack on the Indians after the 1622 raid, he was promoted to Captain and is mostly known as Captain Thomas Osborne of Henrico, VA. He patented land on the James River just north of Henricus, VA, which became known as Coxendale, where his family lived for five generations before beginning their migration south into NC and SC. There is still a Coxendale Road in Chester, VA which leads to the general vicinity of the old Coxendale plantation. There are many known living descendants of Captain Thomas Osborne, identified by both documented records and dna tests. (By Tom Osborne)^[39]

"Osborne, Captain Thomas, came to Virginia...settled at Coxendale, in the present Chesterfield county, about 1625. He also patented land on Proctor's creek, Henrico county (now Chesterfield); was a commissioner (justice) for the 'upper parts' in 1631, and member of the house of burgesses, 1629, 1629-30, 1631-32, 1632-33."^[40][41]

"The first reference to Lt. Thomas Osborne is his arrival in Virginia in November 1619 on the ship Bona Nova.^[21] He was 35, making his birth year about 1584 in England. He is probably the first Osborne to arrive in America and is probably of the Sir Edward Osborne family of London, but no proof yet exists. He came to Virginia as part of a group sent by the London Company to set up a College at Henrico for the purpose of educating the Indians and others. After leading a counterattack on the Indians after the 1622 raid, he was promoted to Captain and is mostly known as Captain Thomas Osborne of Henrico, VA. He patented land on the James River just north of Henricus, VA, which became known as Coxendale, where his family lived for five generations before beginning their migration south into NC and SC. There is still a Coxendale Road in Chester, VA which leads to the general vicinity of the old Coxendale plantation. There are many known living descendants of Captain Thomas Osborne, identified by both documented records and dna tests."^[42]

"Lieutenant Thomas Osborne arrived in Jamestown aboard the Bona Nova late in 1619;^[21] no family members are known to have accompanied him at this time. Whether his wife had previously died in England is not known, but her name has never appeared in any of the extant colonial Virginia records. He was selected by the London Company in England to serve as the leader of the military contingent in the settlement of College Land, a large area of land near Henricus City. The latter was the second permanent settlement in Virginia, the first, of course, being Jamestown. He appears in the two early lists of inhabitants, dated February 1623/24, and January 1224/25, as a resident of "Colledge Land."^[43]

"After the March 1622 attack by the Indians, where roughly one-third of those settlers between Jamestown and Henricus City were killed, Lieut. Thomas Osborne lead a retaliatory attack; from this point onward, he appears in the records as Captain Thomas Osborne. From 1625-1633 he served in the House of Burgesses and, having been granted a large tract of land known as Coxendale, settled there around 1625. The first town in Coxendale, Gatesville, was later named Osbornes and became an important inspection, storage, and shipping center for tobacco well into the late 19th century. He lived his entire life in Coxendale (that part which is now Chesterfield County), and the succeeding four generations of his namesake also made Coxendale their home."

Alternate Theory - Comments welcome.

John Frederick Dorman in “Adventurers of Purse and Person” 1607-1624/5: Families G-P, 4th Edition p. 737-8, has the founder of the Osborne family of Henrico Co. VA being the Thomas Osborne who arrived in 1620 on Francis Bonaventure and who in 1624/5 at age 18 was one of the governor’s men living in James City. [thus b.1606]

He says this Thomas was the "Thomas Osborne, Junr" who on June 16, 1637 was issued a patent to 500 acres upon Fearing, tract called Batchelers bancke for trans. himself & 9 persons, saying that Junr. = Younger. He also says he was the Capt. Thomas Osborne who was issued a patent dated Feb 6 1637 for the 1000 acres on Proctors Creek, granted Oct 1634 for transporting 20 people.

1. Seems unlikely that a boy who arrived at age 14 could accumulate the funds to later transport 29 people to the colonies? In 1634 he would have been only 28.
2. There is no record of this Thomas rising to the rank of Captain.
3. Dorman links him with the Osbornes of Tolleshunt Major, Essex, but he doesn’t show how that family connects with Virginia.

The general consensus is that the Thomas Osborne who arrived Nov 4 1619 on the Bona Nova and who in 1624 was the Lt in charge of the college lands is the founder of this family. He became a Capt. and served in the Assembly, as shown in the timeline.

1. He was in the Henrico area from the beginning and was the type of person to receive a patent to 1000 acres.
2. A father-son relationship is more likely.
3. Dorman says there is no record he was married or had children. That’s a strange comment, since the early Henrico Co. records are lost, so no wills, etc.

addition from new poster here: I have a privately printed "book" which as been compiled by Jimmie Dean Osborne, "The Osborne Family, Some descendants of Skearm Osborne." A "Genesis" section of the family states that Capt. Thomas Osborne was born ca 1588 , he was alive in 1646 and death unknown. It says he he had been in the colony as early as 1611 and 1616. He returned permanently in Nov. 1619 aboard the Bona Nova. Arriving with him were seven servants and two had been sent previously in 1618 aboard the Neptune. By 1620, a total of 21 servants had arrived. There is a thought listed that these individuals came as indentured servants. Thomas Osborne arrived as a LT. and had been sent by the London Co. as the head of a military presence. He commended the Indian war in 1622. He was later promoted to Capt. He was elected to the House of Burgess 5 times, 1629-1633. The intro of the book goes on to describe his land holdings, but these have already been well documented above before I placed my offering.

Sources

1. ↑ Source: #S-940271737
2. ↑ Source: #S-940272423 Place: Virginia; Year: 1619; Page Number: 71
3. ↑ Source: #S-940272423 Place: Virginia; Year: 1619; Page Number: 53
4. ↑ Source: #S-940191730
5. ↑ Source: #S-906358165
6. ↑ Source: #S-902885659
7. ↑ Source: #S-940271737
8. ↑ Source: #S-940272423 Place: Virginia; Year: 1619; Page Number: 71
9. ↑ Source: #S-906358165
10. ↑ Source: #S-940271737
11. ↑ Source: #S-940272423 Place: Virginia; Year: 1619; Page Number: 71
12. ↑ Source: #S-940272423 Place: Virginia; Year: 1619; Page Number: 53
13. ↑ ^{13.0 13.1} https://www.newrivernotes.com/topical_books_1902_virginia_colonialvirginiaregister.htm, VA.
14. ↑ Source: #S-940191730
15. ↑ Hening I, 137-139.
16. ↑ Leonard, 6-12.
17. ↑ Osborne, Thomas - A5809; born ca. 1606, living in 1642, Henrico Co. (Musters of 1623/4 and 1624/5). accessed 10 October 2021
18. ↑ ↑ https://books.google.com/books?id=o78RAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA247&lpg=PA247&dq=Tabitha+Platt+Edward+Osborne&source=bl&ots=0LLtSc-l3T&sig=7VgvOwQbP-VVk-NNuSjn2yoZGeI&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiMwOvQx8PMAhWMPj4KHdzwAAMQ6AEIJzAC#v=onepage&q=Tabitha%20Platt%20Edward%20Osborne&f=false
19. ↑ New River Notes, Colonial Virginia Register
20. ↑ Hotten, John Camden, ed., The Original List of Persons of Quality 1600-1700 (1874). https://archive.org/details/originallistsofp00hottuoft/page/n6/mode/2up. p.201 (Muster of Jan, 23, 1624/25).
21. ↑ ^{21.0 21.1 21.2} Captain John Huddleston of the Bona Nova, From Ratcliffe, Middlesex County, England to Poquoson, York & Henrico County, VA.
    The Bona Nova Voyages
    Departed in August, 1619, with 120 passengers. Sent by the Virginia Company.
    (Source: The Voyage...To Verginia 1619 by Ferdinando Yate)
    November, 1619 The Bona Nova, from London, arrived at Virginia Source: "Hotten's Lists"
22. ↑ Hotten, 169.
23. ↑ Hotten, 201.
24. ↑ Leonard, Cynthia Miller, The General Assembly of Virginia 1619-1978 (1978), pp.6.
25. ↑ Mcllwaine, H.R, ed., The Executive Journal of the Council of Co­lonial Virginia (1928), p.151.
26. ↑ Hening I, 137-139.
27. ↑ Leonard, 6-12.
28. ↑ https://www.newrivernotes.com/topical_books_1902_virginia_colonialvirginiaregister.htm
29. ↑ Leonard, 6-12.
30. ↑ Nugent, Nell Marion, Cavaliers and Pioneers: Abstracts of Virginia Land Patents and Grants, 1623-1800. Vol. 1. https://archive.org/details/cavalierspioneer00nuge/page/78/mode/2up. p. 61: is mentioned in patent for 2250 acres to Capt. Henry Browne, one of the Council.
31. ↑ Nugent, 80.
32. ↑ Nugent, 78.
33. ↑ Nugent, 137
34. ↑ Henrico Co.Bk.1677-1739, p.107.
35. ↑ Henrico Co. Bk.1688-1697, p.310.
36. ↑ Henrico Co. Bk.1688-1697, p.707.
37. ↑ Harrell, Elizabeth J. “Betty”, The Osbornes - An account of Thomas Osborne, who arrived in Virginia in 1619, and his descendants, who for five generations lived in Henrico (now Chesterfield) County, Virginia, then moved first to Amelia (now Prince Edward) County, Virginia, then to Charlotte County, Virginia and later to Middle Tennessee. Related families: Jones, Worsham, Fowlkes, Robertson and Gayle. 1983. Chapter 1. [Available on FamilySearch.org] https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/records/item/549305-redirection
38. ↑ http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~tlosborne/genealogy/AusburnSurnameProject/
39. ↑ http://www.osborne-origins.org/linkrecs/eaa.htm#Thomas-4135
40. ↑ From Encyclopedia of Virginia Biography
41. ↑ From page 247 of Decisions of Virginia General Court
42. ↑ From http://www.osborne-origins.org/linkrecs/eaa.htm#Thomas-4135
43. ↑ From Osborne of Henrico, Virginia

• http://www.osborne-origins.org/linkrecs/eaa.htm#Thomas-4135
• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/155062213/thomas-osborne
• https://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/osborn/3745/
• https://www.geni.com/people/Capt-Thomas-Osborne-of-Coxendale/6000000007097406594
• https://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM4RKD
• http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~virginiahuddlestons/genealogy/captain_john_huddleston_of_the_b.htm
• Source: S-902885659 Repository: #R-1299558762 Essex, England, Select Church of England Parish Registers, 1518-1960 Ancestry.com Publication: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.
• Repository: R-1299558762 Ancestry.com
• Source: S-940191730 Repository: #R-1299558762 Virginia, Compiled Census and Census Substitutes Index, 1607-1890 Ancestry.com Publication: Ancestry.com Operations Inc
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• Source: S-940356455 Repository: #R-1299558762 Ancestry Family Trees Publication: Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com. Original data: Family Tree files submitted by Ancestry members. Ancestry Family Tree http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=22768756&pid=269
• "Pedigree Resource File," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/2:2:9WWF-LP7 : accessed 20 May 2018), entry for Thomas OSBORNE; file (2:2:2:MM9R-VBV), submitted 25 May 2003 by cmoore2755886 [identity withheld for privacy].
• https://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/osborn/3745/

Adventurers of Purse and Person: The Musters