Bell of Sampson County NC Family History

There appeared, in The Virginia Colony, at least two separate, but related
Bell families, that were related in 15th century England, prior to their
separate immigration to America.

One family was made up of known relatives and direct descendants of *Sir
Robert Bell of Norfolk and London England with roots going back to Yorkshire
Sir Robert Bell’s family members were charter members of *The Virginia
Company of London, England a related venture to The London Company. He and
his sons recruited, encouraged and financed many of his extended family’s
relatives, friends and acquaintances with their efforts to immigrate to
America. Those who had a desire to immigrate to America became employees of
The Virginia Company of London. There were several arrangements by which an
employee, once in America, could work off his indebitdness and become a
freeman in America. His 2nd son Robert Bell even immigrated to The Colony
himself and settled in Accomack County Virginia as did his son Robert Bell.
Sir Robert Bell’s children and grandchildren settled primarily in Accomack
and Northampton Counties, Virginia which are both situated on an island off
the coast of Virginia called the Eastern Shore.

There is a strong probability that John Bell, who died in 1556 in England
and probably born in the Boarder Country of Yorkshire, England, was the
earliest known connecting ancestor of both Bell families who would
eventually immigrate to America. John Barrs is believed to have been an
early ancestor of Sir Robert Bell and our George Bell, father of Richard
Bell. George Bell and his son Richard Bell was our first Bell line’s
generations to immigrate to America. George Bell was the Grandfather of our
Robert Bell, who may have been our Bell line’s first male to be born in
America in the year 1675 in Isle of Wight, Virginia.

There appeared, in The Virginia Colony, about 1645 a George Bell and his son
Richard Bell who would settle in Northampton Counties, Virginia. Richard
Bell’s, son George Bell, George’s wife Hester Webster and their two children
John and Margaret Bell, of County Durham England would follow George the
elder and Richard Bell and immigrate in 1660.

George and Hester Bell, with their two children, would settle in Isle of
Wight, Virginia where George’s father Richard Bell had moved after his
father’s death in Northampton in 1655. Perhaps George Bell, his son, Richard
Bell and later his son George Bell and his family were persuaded to take
advantage of their distant cousin, Sir Robert Bell and his family members,
and The Virginia Colony’s offer of help to immigrate to The Colony as
employees of The Virginia Company in North America.

Sir Robert Bell and his sons were principal backers of The Virginia Colony
trading venture, as was the Clement and Ferguson or Farguson families, who
offered and financed many emigrant’s move to America and The Virginia Colony
for the purpose of acquiring land and hopefully to ensure their family’s
future prosperity. The Virginia Company was a purely financial endeavor and
those who accepted The Virginia Colony offer were considered employees of
The Virginia Company until they worked off their indebitness for
transportation to America.

However, as a disclaimer, I do not claim direct linage to Sir Robert Bell.
My Bell lineage is to a common English ancestor George Bell, born in 1576 in
England. My research is a work in discovery and progress. As new data and
information is discovered I regularly update this book. Always check the
revision date before proceeding. Our Bell lineage family tree, presented
here is but a reflection of existing available data and historic knowledge
and facts to the extent we are aware as of this snap shot in time. But, we
are still and will continue searching, revising and updating our data as new
discoveries are made. You can help by informing us of information you may
have that I do not.

A study of the *Virginia Company Charters of 1606, 1609 and 1612, at the end
of this charter, will layout and explain the purpose and extent of what was
going on at the time in England and North America. It outlines the
principal’s reasons for chartering the Virginia Company and explains why
they encouraged and financed the immigration of relatives and others to
North America during the 1600s.

*The Virginia Company of London and North America was an English trading
venture company, first chartered by King James I, in 1606 to colonize the
eastern coast of North America. Sir Robert Bell’s family were charter
members of the Virginia Company and his 2nd son, Robert Bell was a founding
contributor and share holder of the (London Company) Virginia Company and
the Honorable British East India Company as was the elder Clement and
Ferguson families. Robert Bell immigrated to “The Colony” and settled in
Accomack County Virginia, an island off the coast of Virginia about 1607.

Approximately 105 English colonists, in three ships, the Susan Constant, the
Godspeed and the Discovery reached Virginia in 1607 and founded Jamestown,
Virginia in the name of The Virginia Company. By May 1624, when the company
was dissolved, The Virginia Company had expanded its territory in America
with two new charters in 1609 and 1612. More than 10,000 English emigrants
had immigrated to Virginia, including Sir Robert Bell’s son Robert Bell, his
grandson Robert Bell and Robert’s wife, along with other of their relatives
and friends.

Our own Bell line, George Bell, his son Richard Bell his wife Sarah ___ and
Richard Bell’s son George Bell, George’s 1st wife Hester Webster and their
two children John Bell and Margaret Bell, all immigrated to the Virginia
Colony in Virginia over a period of fifteen years beginning in 1645. Robert
Bell who was born in 1675 in Isle of Wight, Virginia married in 1704 and
moved to other Counties in Virginia and eventually ended up in North
Carolina in his search for suitable plantation lands. Our Bell lineage,
Robert Bell and his family and friends settled in Chowan on the Cashie River
that would become Bertie County North Carolina. Robert Bell died in Bertie
County, North Carolina in 1738.

Following the Elizabethan era in England, a number of Sir Robert Bell's
children, grandchildren, and relatives, including his 2nd oldest son, Robert
Bell, and Sir Robert Bell’s grandson, who’s father was Sir Robert Bell’s 1st
son, Edmund Bell, and his wife envisioned the opportunity to live new lives
beyond the horizon, and endeavored to be bold "adventurers" and “Cavaliers.”
They, with many other Bell relatives and other English hopefuls, set sail
for America over the years and arrived in Jamestown, Virginia, before, and,
after, the ship Mayflower landed at Plymouth Rock.

George Bell’s 1st wife, Hester Webster died in Isle of Wight County Virginia
about 1702, while their son Robert Bell was in England obtaining an
education. In later life we see Robert Bell putting his English education
into practice as he assisted others with land deeds and wills. George Bell,
Robert’s father then married a 2nd time to Joan ________. George Bell may
have fathered other children in Isle of Wight County Virginia with his 2nd
wife Joan but we doubt it because he would himself die before his sons John
and Robet Bell returned to The Colonies in 1704. We don’t know who the exact
mother of all of George Bell’s children was but suspect they were all born
to Hester Webster-Bell. One child we know was Robert Bell born in 1675 in
Isle of Wight County Virginia, from which I claim our Bell line descended.
George Bell died in Isle of Wight County Virginia after 1702 also while his
son Robert Bell was in England attending to his educational studies. Robert
Bell and Penelope ‘Polly’ Clement returned to Isle of Wight in 1704 on the
Clement’s yacht “George” and married that same year, 1704. They shortly
thereafter were transported to King and Queen, Virginia where Robert Bell
would acquire land.

The Clement family owned and sailed their yacht “George” routinely from
England to America beginning with their first voyage in 1611. Robert Bell
and Penelope ‘Polly’ Clement were in school in England at the same time and
married shortly after their return to America on the Clement’s yacht. The
Clement family was a major principle in The Virginia Company and came to
America from County Durham England, the same English county that our Bell
family lived before immigrating to America. It is plausible that the Clement
family persuaded our Bell family to immigrate to America with them and that
they traveled back and forth from England to America on the Clement’s yacht
“George” routinely. The Clement would have received payment from the
Virginia Colony Company in London for transporting our Bell family members
to The Colony each time they returned.

Bell Family Tree of Evia Adetha Bell
Research by Al Barrs, Jr. E-mail: albarrs@wfeca.net
©Copyrighted April 2, 2004; Revised July 14, 2009
by Al Barrs, Junior
In Reverence to others who are researching this line of Bell, this is what I
believe and offer.
It is important to understand: This is SPECULATIVE DATA. Most of it is
unverified. Use it for hints and pointers, but DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH!

<EARLIEST DISCOVERED BELL GENERATION>

John Bell (?)
Birth: About 1490-1500 in York, Yorkshire, England
Death: 1556 in Worcester, England
Note: Served Henry VIII of England, elevated to a status of ‘privileged
family’ of England and become a judge and eventually the Bishop of Worcester
(1539-1543); retired and became Priest of Worcester, England.
Children:
  1. William Bell (?) was born about 1530-1540 Norfolk, England; died
Northampton England
   2. Robert Bell was born about 1537 Norfolk, England; died London England
in 1577
Note: This Robert Bell became Sir Robert Bell of Northampton and London
England, and was a principal, along with several of his sons and grandsons,
in The Virginia Colony of America in 1606. (aka The London Company) a
trading venture.

William Bell (?)
Birth: about 1530-1540 Norfolk, England
Death: 1598 Northampton County, England
Children: 
1. George Bell born about 1576 Wayneford, Northampton County, England

Note: The preceding Bell family members have not been fully validated
because of a lack of historic data in English parish and Crown records of
that period.

Note: First of our Bell lineage to immigrate to America was the following
George Bell born about 1576 in England.

George Bell
Birth: about 1576 Wayneford, Northampton County, England
Death: about 1655 Northampton County, Virginia
Children:
1. Richard Bell born about 1605 Wayneford, Northampton County, England

Richard Bell
Birth: About 1605 Northampton County, England
Death: 1700 Isle of Wight County, Virginia, North America
Note: Virginia was former from The Virginia Colony in 1634
Richard Bell may have moved to County Durham, England sometime before 1630
Wife 1: Sarah _____ born in County Durham, England
Father: George Bell   
Mother: Unknown
Children:
   George Bell born about 1630 County Durham, England

Note: It appears that George Bell, born in 1575 in England and his son
Richard Bell, born 1605 were our first ancestors to immigrate to America in
1645.

We have not determined with how many children, if any, Richard Bell and his
wife, Sarah, immigrated to America with. No names are shown on any records
that we have located. We believe that at least one son, George Bell and his
wife Hester Webster, born in 1630 and 1634 respectfully in County Durham,
England and their two oldest children John and Margaret immigrated to The
Colony about 1660, fifteen years after George’s parents and his grandfather
had emigrated.

We do know that George Bell, son of Richard Bell, and his wife Hester
Webster with their first two children John Bell and Margaret Bell, who were
born in County Durham, England, immigrated to The Colony in 1660. Our Bell
family members may have traveled with the Clement on their yacht “George” at
different times and different trips from County Durham, England to “The
Colony,” in which the Clement and Sir Robert Bell, a distant cousin of our
Bell lineage, were principal stockholders.

There is little doubt that the London Bell and Clement families would have
recruited our Bell family as employees of The Virginia Company if they were
willing to immigrate to the Virginia Colony in America, which was first
chartered in 1606.

George and Hester Bell’s son, Robert Bell, would marry Penelope ‘Polly’
Clement in 1704 upon John Bell, Robert Bell and Polly Clement’s return to
“The Colony” from their studies in County Durham, England on the Clement’s
yacht “George”.

At least one of this Richard Bell’s sons, George Bell and his 1st wife
Hester Webster with their two children, followed his grandfather George Bell
and parents Richard and Sarah Bell, to America and settled in Isle of Wight
County Virginia about 1660. Other children fathered by George Bell were born
in America but we don’t know if all or how any were Hester Webster’s
children, although she did not die until about 1702. Richard Bell and his
son George Bell both married a 2nd time in Isle of Wight County, Virginia
after their 1st wives had died in America.

< NEXT GENERATION>

George Bell
Birth: about 1630 Blaydon, Ryton, County Durham, England
Married: about 1655 Blaydon, Ryton, County Durham, England
Death: NOV 9, 1702 in Isle of Wight, Virginia
Burial: NOV 11, 1702 in Isle of Wight, Virginia
Father: Richard Bell
Mother: Sarah _____
Marriage 1: Hester Webster
   Birth: About 1634 in Blaydon, Ryton, County Durham, England
   Married: Probably about 1655 in Blaydon, Ryton, County Durham, England
   Death: Before 1702 in Isle of Wight, Virginia
   Burial: Before 1702 in Isle of Wight, Virginia
Marriage 2: Joyce _____ in Isle of Wight, Virginia
Children: born in County Durham, England

1. John Bell
    Birth: 1656 in Blaydon, Ryton, Durham, England
    Christening: 2 MAR 1656 in Blaydon, Ryton, Durham, England
2. Margaret Bell
   Birth: 1657 in Blaydon, Ryton, Durham, England
   Christening: 15 FEB 1657 in Blaydon, Ryton, Durham, England

NOTE: English records of George and Hester Bell end here. This normally
means that a person or family migrated to America or elsewhere. I believe
George and Hester Bell immigrated to America about 1660. Our Bell line,
Robert Bell, was born in Isle of Wight County, Virginia in 1675. I know that
because the George Bell and Hester Webster born 1630 and 1634 in County
Durham England appear in English records and a George Bell and Hester
Webster appear later in Isle of Wight County Virginia records. It is
unlikely that two George Bell married wives named Hester Webster born the
same dates. And, we do not know exactly how many children George and Hester
Bell had in America, or what number child our Robert Bell, born in 1675, was


PROOF: Virginia records and deeds stipulate: George Bell, born 1530, show
that he was in Isle of Wight County Virginia in the 1660s; Bell family
descendant George Bell was born in 1630 in County Durham, England. This, our
George Bell sold 755 acres of land in Isle Of Wight County Virginia and
then sold more land there on 7 Feb 1663; George Bell’s 1st wife Hester
Webster, was born in 1634 in County Durham England. Hester Webster died
before 1702 in Isle of Wight County, Virginia and George Bell died 9
November 1702 in Isle of Wight County, Virginia and was buried on 11 Nov
1702 in Isle of Wight County, Virginia. George Bell born 1630 in England is
believed to have fathered at least five sons, John, Thomas, George, William
and Robert Bell in England and America. Only John was born in County Durham,
England. At least one daughter, Margaret Bell was also born in County Durham
England before the family immigrated to America. We don’t know if any other
daughters were born to George and Hester Bell after they arrived in America.

NOTE: George Bell’s children, who were born in Isle of Wight County,
Virginia, after George, Hester, children John and Margaret Bell emigrated
from England after George’s parents were the following. (See below) The
mother of George Bell’s children who were born in Virginia is uncertain, but
Hester die some years prior to 1702, when George died and probably gave
birth to most, if not all of George Bell’s children; however some may have
been born to George’s 2nd wife Joan _____-Bell. We just don’t know…
Marriage 1: Hester Webster married about 1655 in Blaydon, Ryton, County
Durham, England
Marriage 2: Joan ________ married before 1702 in Isle of Wight County
Virginia, North America
Children: born in Isle of Wight County, Virginia
  Thomas Bell was born ____ Isle of Wight, Virginia
   Note on Thomas Bell: I can’t find this Thomas Bell in Isle of Wight
County, Virginia. Thomas may have been a son of the Accomack County Virginia
Bell family who were related but direct descendants of Sir Robert Bell of
London. However, a Thomas Bell was a signatory on one of our Bell family’s
land deeds, so he may have been related after all…
  Richard Bell was born about 1661 Isle of Wight, Virginia
  George Bell was born 1662 Isle of Wight, Virginia

William Bell was born ____ Isle of Wight, Virginia
Note on William Bell: I can’t find this Bell in Isle of Wight County,
Virginia either. William may have been a son of the Accomack County Virginia
Bell family who were related but direct descendants of Sir Robert Bell of
London.
Other children were born…
Robert Bell was born 1675 in Isle of Wight County, Virginia; died 1738
Bertie County, NC
NOTE: There was at least 3 Robert Bell who immigrated to The Virginia Colony
in the 1600s. Two were the son and grandson of Sir Robert Bell, London,
England, a principal in The Virginia Colony venture (company) which was
chartered by the King of England in 1607. Robert Bell born 1675 was born in
Isle of Wight County Virginia, America and that accounted for 3 Robert Bell
in The Virginia Colony after 1704, when our Robert Bell returned to The
Colony after his education in County Durham, England.

<NEXT GENERATION>

NARRATIVE:
Robert Bell of The Virginia Colony, Chowan and Bertie Counties, North
Carolina was born in 1675 and died in 1738 at the age of 63.

Most Bell researchers agree that our Robert Bell was transported to Virginia
from England about 1704. Some assume that he was therefore born in England.
However, his being transported to America in 1704 does not necessarily mean
that he was born in England, as some researchers speculate. It was common
practice for the children of the early Virginia Colonists to be transported
to England for their education and then be transported back to the Colonies,
with land awarded for their transport back to America. Every time an
individual entered The Colonies someone could collect payment. It was a win,
win situation. Robert Bell’s ancestors had attended school and colleges so
it would have been sensible that Robert’s father would send him to be
educated. That would have been relatively easy since they were well
acquainted with the Clement family of County Durham, England by then, who
owned and operated their yacht “George” routinely between England and
America and into the family which Robert Bell would marry in 1704 upon his
and “Polly” Clements return to America from England after their education
had been completed.

Robert Bell was born in Isle of Wight County, Virginia in 1675. Robert Bell
was a son of George Bell and Hester Webster-Bell. George Bell was born in
1630 in County Durham England to Richard and Sarah Bell.

Robert Bell 1st married Penelope “Polly” Clement in Virginia shortly after
he and she arrived back in Virginia in 1704 on Polly’s family yacht “George”


John Bell and his younger brother Robert Bell along with Penelope Clement
and perhaps other children had been transported to England by their parents
to attend school. They had arrived back in Virginia abord the “George” in
1704. The Clement family owned and passed down ownership of their yacht
“George” to various family members over its useful lifetime.

Jeffrey Clement married Elizabeth Fuller and they had five children in
England. Their third son, Jeremiah, was born in 1607. Jeffrey Clement died
in 1609 and his widow Elizabeth Clement and four of her small children
sailed to America on the "yacht George", landing at Jamestown, Virginia on
June 10, 1611. Elizabeth Clement married Colonel Ralph Hamor in Virginia in
1621.  Without question Clement family members used their yacht “George” to
sail back and forth between England to America to the Virginia Colony on a
regular basis. One branch of the Clement family had lived in County Durham
England, the same county our Bell family had lived before immigrating to The
Virginia Colony.

The Clement family had immigrated to the Virginia Colony earlier than our
Bell family, in 1611, and may have been the family that persuaded the Bell
family to immigrate in1645 and 1660. Plus, the Clement would have received
payment from the Virginia Company for bringing the Bell family members over
and probably transported them on their yacht “George.” Both families lived
in County Durham England prior to immigrating to America.

Penelope “Polly” Clement was born in Surry County, Virginia to John and Mary
Clement in 1680. Her father, John Clement, was a Captain in the American
Bacon’s Rebellion of 1675 in “The Colonies.” Penelope Clement’s brother,
John Clement (II) became an “Indian Trader” in America and may have been
responsible for Robert Bell moving his family to the Bertie County North
Carolina area around 1715 and after PollyClement-Bell had died in 1715.

Captain John Clement
Note: The Clement surname, like most surnames, has been spelled a number of
ways over the many years of its existence, so too our Clement family surname
It has been spelled Clement, Clements, Clemmit, etc.
John Clements (I), English Ship’s Captain


He was Bo’sun of the yacht ‘Royal Charles’. He was recommended as a Ship’s
Master by Phineas Pett and served as Captain of several royal yachts.

He was captain of the ‘Cambridge’, a 3rd-rate yacht. John Clements’s last
command was the “St. Andrew”.

Our Bell lineage, Robert Bell was closely associated with Henry Woodnot
(Woodnut), before and after 1715 in Essex, Virginia and Bertie, North
Carolina. Henry Woodnot lived in Essex County, Virginia where Robert had
bought land and lived with his wife Polly Clement.

Robert and Polly Bell had three children while living in Essex County,
Virginia. Robert Bell would eventually receive Henry Woodnot’s estate ‘by
instruction’ in Mr. Woodnot’s Last Will and Testament dated December 29,
1718 and which was probated on 29th June 29, 1719 in Bertie County North
Carolina. Robert Bell would marry Henry Woodnot’s daughter Anne Woodnot, the
widow of John Ferguson (Fargeson), who is also know to have been in Essex
County Virginia in 1704 and died there in 1715, the same year Penelope
Clement-Bell died. Old documents show that Henry Woodnot (Woodnut) and John
Ferguson were on the same jury on February 10, 1704 in Essex County,
Virginia. The Bell, Woodnot and Ferguson families were aquainted in Essex
County, Virginia.

Robert Bell married Anne Woodnot, the widow of John Ferguson, after his 1st
wife Penelope Clement’s death in 1715 and about the same time the Bell
family made their decision to move to the Cashie River region in the Chowan
and Bertie area of northeast North Carolina. We don’t know if Robert Bell
married Anne Woodnot in Essex County, Virginia or in Chowan, North Carolina.
We do know that by 1715 or 1716 the Bell and Woodnot families were in Chowan
North Carolina on the north bank of the Cashie River.

Robert Bell's children, born to his 1st wife, Penelope Clement, were: 1)
Robert, Jr who died at age 7 (1712) in Essex County, Virginia; 2) Jean Bell
and 3) Mary Bell both born in Essex County, Virginia. After Penelope
Clement-Bell’s death, Robert Bell married the widow Anne Woodnot-Ferguson
shortly after his 1st wife Polly’s extended illness and death in 1715.

I believe Penelope Bell had suffered a long and serious illness before her
death in 1715. The death of her first child, Robert, Jr. in 1712, and the
birth of two daughters may have also played a role in her declining health.
Malaria was also a hazard in The Colonies of Virginia in the 1700s. There
was a long period of time between the birth of their daughter Mary Bell with
Polly Clement-Bell and George Bell with Anne Woodnot-Bell. We know that by
1715, or certainly by 1716, Robert Bell had moved his family to property on
the north bank of Cashie River in Chowan, North Carolina (Later to become
the Chowan Precinct of Bertie County) near what would become Windsor, North
Carolina in 1768.

Anne Woodnot-Bell (formerly the widow Ferguson), brought a daughter,
Isabella (Isobel) Ferguson into her marriage with Robert Bell. Isabel
Ferguson was the youngest daughter and perhaps the only child of Anne and
John Ferguson and she is sometime referred to in various records as “Isabel
Bell” and in some instances as the “wife of Robert Bell” which is not
correct. The facts are, Anne brought Isabel Ferguson, her and John
Ferguson’s daughter, into her 2nd marriage with Robert Bell. Isabel was the
stepdaughter of Robert Bell. Whether or not Robert Bell officially adopted
Isabel is not known. Isobel would live in Robert Bell and Anne
Woodnot-Bell’s home on the north bank of the Cashie River from 1715-16 until
her marriage to Michael King III in 1720. Isabel was 14 years of age when
she married Michael King. I have as yet no validated information or the
family tree of John Ferguson (Fargeson) and/or his family, but continue to
search old documents. Isabel’s father was John Ferguson. John Ferguson was
recorded to have died in 1715 in Essex County Virginia, which is the same
year that Anne married Robert Bell and the same year Penelope Bell, Robert
Bell’s 1st wife died. Isabel and Michael King had 7 children in Bertie
County North Carolina after their marriage in 1720. Michael King III would
die in Bertie Conty, North Carolina in 1741.

Robert Bell and Anne Woodnot-Bell had additional children while living in
their home on the north side of the Cashie River in Chowan/Bertie County
North Carolina in what would become the Windsor area of North Carolina.
Windsor was created on the south bank of the Cashie River in 1768 and the
Robert Bell family lived on the North Bank of the Cashie River from 1716.

George Bell was born to Robert and Anne Bell in 1718 in Chowan County, North
Carolina and he was the oldest living son of Robert and Anne Bell. Robert
Bell’s first son Robert Bell, Jr. had died in 1705 at age 7 in Essex,
Virginia. Then Archibald Bell was born in 1719 in Chowan, North Carolina;
John Bell was then born in 1720 in Chowan, North Carolina. He died after
1783. Penelope Bell was the last child born to Robert and Anne Bell in 1724
in Bertie County, North Carolina on the north bank of the Cashie River where
Robert Bell had moved his family in about 1715 or 1716. I am certain Robert
Bell’s last child was named after his 1st wife, Penelope “Polly” Clement,
who was the daughter of John Clement, the “Indian Trader”.

As was often the case, Indian Traders, such as John Clement, because they
ranged far from settlements and into the wilderness and up rivers to trade
with the Native American tribes, would return with information about new and
better lands to settle and establish tobacco, cotton and corn plantations.
Perhaps this is what enticed Robert Bell and Henry Woodnot to migrate with
his family and other families and friends from Essex, Virginia to Chowan,
North Carolina, which would become the Chowan Precinct of Bertie County
North Carolina in 1722.

John Clement died in 1734 in Bertie County, North Carolina. John Clement
willed his estate to Robert Bell and each of Robert Bell’s children. John
Clement’s Last Will and Testament does not mention that the Clement and Bell
were related by marriage or that he and Robert Bell had bought 600+ acres of
land together and this has confused some Bell researchers. Robert Bell’s 1st
wife was Penelope “Polly” Clement, John amd Mary Clement’s daughter who had
died in 1715 in Essex, Virginia.

By the 1730s the Bells were also well connected to the Byrd family of Bertie
County, North Carolina. Robert Bell’s daughter Mary Bell married John Byrd
and her sister Jean Bell married John's brother, William Byrd. Robert Bell's
son, Archibald Bell, moved to Duplin County, North Carolina along with his
brother-in-law William Byrd. The area they settled in Duplin County would
become part of Sampson County in 1784. Other Bell family members would move
to Duplin and later Sampson County, North Carolina. Duncan Bell would be
born in Sampson County in 1795 to Hezekiah Bell and Martha Baggett. Hezekiah
Bell was the son of George Bell, the oldest living son of Robert Bell, and
Deborah Bell who had moved to Duplin/Sampson County, North Carolna from
Bertie County, North Carolina between 1738 and and 1758.

By 1720 Robert Bell and his family were established and living on the north
bank of the Cashie River across the river from what would become the town of
Windsor, Bertie County, North Carolina in 1768. Robert Bell had bought land
on the north side of the Cashie River to build a home and clear forests for
tobacco, corn, cotton and other cash crops. Chowan became a part of Bertie
County in 1722. Chowan became the Chowan Precinct of Bertie County. Robert
Bell bought 640 acres in Bertie County, North Carolina from a Sarah ROSE on
May7, 1726.

Robert Bell died on January 2, 1738, at age 63, in his home on the north
bank of the Cashie River and was buried in a “dedicated cemetery,” at a
place called the “burial ground,” on the north bank of the Cashie River, on
January 6, 1738. Robert Bell may have been in poor health for some time
because a “cane” was included in his property inventory after his death. The
“burial ground” on the north bank of the Cashie River is located near where
he and his family had lived, raised their family and farmed. Robert Bell’s
1st wife, Penelope Clement-Bell was laid to rest in Essex County, Virginia
where she died in 1715 but we are uncertain as to where Anne Bell was laid
to rest, but believe the location to be the same “burial ground” in which
Robert Bell was laid to rest. We have read, on at least one occasion, that
Anne remarried after the death of Robert Bell, but we have not validated
that information. In 1758 Robert Bell’s oldest son, George Bell, bought the
same land (200 acres) his father had first owned and sold, to preserve his
father’s resting place among others who had been buried there earlier. We
don’t know who else was buried there and can’t locate the cemetery exactly
today. We believe the “burial ground” was across the Cashie River from what
would become Windsor, North Carolina on the bank of the Cashie River in 1768
Today the area has been developed and the “turn basin” of the Cashie River
has been enlarged forever changing and perhaps destroying the old “burial
ground” of our ancestor Robert Bell.

A deed proved January 15, 1759 in Chowan County, North Carolina Court to
George Bell [eldest living son and administrator of his father, Robert
Bell’s, estate] of Duplin County, NC bought from John Campbell, Merchant of
Bertie County, dated December 27, 1758, property on the Cashie River. George
Bell paid John Campbell 50 pounds ‘proc’ money (Proclamation Money) for 200
acres, which Roger Smith “sold to my father” (Robert Bell) on August 7, 1721
and was recorded in Chowan Precinct on Oct 16, 1722, and then was recorded
again in Bertie County North Carolina on November 1, 1739 by George Bell.
The “burial ground” and the 200 acre parcel of land were located on the
north side of the Cashie River. The boundaries of the 200 acre parcel were
describes as follows. “North side of Cashie River, joining Colonel Pollock’s
property, Sam’s Branch and Major West’s property.” George Bell stated in the
deed that he was “reserving the burying ground where my (George Bell’s)
father (Robert Bell) and others are laid.” Robert Rainey and Samuel Barron
witnessed the deed to George Bell, dated January 15, 1759.

Robert Bell’s long association with Michael King (III) and his family is not
completely understood by some Bell family researchers. I will try here to
explain the connection. Michael King III, who was born in 1698 in Nansemond,
Virginia and died in 1741 in Bertie County, North Carolina, had a marriage
relationship with Robert Bell and his family. Michael King wrote his Last
Will and Testament in 1741. Michael King III was the oldest son of Henry II
and Catherine King. Michael King III lived most of his life in the Chowan
Precinct and Bertie County North Carolina. Michael King III married Isabel
Ferguson. Isabel was Robert Bell’s stepdaughter and the daughter of Robert
Bell’s 2nd wife, the widow Ferguson, Anne Woodnot. Michael and Isabel King
had seven children. Isabel was not Michael King’s 1st wife. Michael King was
born 1698 and died 1741. Michael King married Isabel Ferguson (Bell) in 1720
This was Isabel’s 1st marriage, but not her last.

Isabel and Michael King III had 7 children before Michael death in 1741. One
son of Isabel and Michael King, Michael King (4th) or “Jr.” who was born
about 1722 in North Carolina, patented 711 acres in Duplin County North
Carolina on March 29, 1753 below George Bell’s property, on Six Runs Creek
and Swamp in Duplin County North Carolina. George Bell had moved to Six Runs
Creek with the King family and settled in Duplin County North Carolina after
Michael King, III had died in 1741 in Bertie County, by 1758 and when he
bought the 200 acres of land in Bertie County where the old Bell “burial
Ground” lay on the north bank of the Cashie River in Bertie County, North
Carolina.

Movement of Robert Bell, born 1675 in America:
Robert Bell born 1675 was in the following North American areas in;
1675: Robert Bell born in Isle of Wight, Virginia;
1700: Robert Bell transported to County Durham, England for education
1704: Robert Bell and Penelope Clement returned from England to Virginia;
- Robert Bell married Penelope ‘Polly’ Clement;
1705: Robert and Penelope Bell were in King and Queen County formerly New
Kent County Virginia;
- Robert Bell, Jr. was born in 1705 in Virginia and died in 1712 in Virginia
at age 7;
- Jean Bell born in 1708 in Virginia;
- Mary Bell born in 1710 in Virginia;
1715: Robert Bell and family in Essex, Virginia;
- Penelope Clement-Bell died in Essex, VA;
- Robert Bell married Anne Woodnot (the widow Ferguson);
- George Bell born in 1718 in Chowan, NC; died 1792 Sampson County, NC;
- Archibald Bell born in 1719 in Chowan, NC; died 1779 Duplin County, NC;
- John Bell born in 1720 in Chowan County, NC died after 1783;
- Penelope Bell born 1724 in Bertie County, NC
1719: Robert Bell in Chowan County North Carolina;
1722: Robert Bell in Bertie County North Carolina and
1738: Robert Bell died JAN 2, 1738 and was buried on the north bank of the
Cashie River, Bertie County, NC on JAN 6, 1738 thus ending an historic era
of our Bell family history…

NOTE: (Sampson divided from Duplin in 1784)

Robert Bell
Birth: 1675 in Isle of Wight County, Virginia North America
Death: JAN 2, 1738 in Bertie County North Carolina
Burial: January 6, 1738 in the dedicated “Burial Ground” on the north side
of Cashie River in Bertie County, North Carolina
Father: George Bell
Mother: Hester Webster
Marriage 1: Penelope (Polly) Clement
     Birth: 1680 in Surry, Virginia
     Death: about 1715 Essex, Virginia
     Married: 1704 in Virginia
Note: on Penelope Clement’s family:
     Father: John Clement born 1659 Surry, Virginia; married Mary ____
before 1680 in Virginia and died in 1734 in Bertie County, NC
      Mother: Mary _______ born abt 1635 in Virginia
  Children of Penelope Clement and Robert Bell:
    1. Robert Bell, Jr. born in 1705 in Virginia and died in 1712 in
Virginia at age 7 (seven)
    2. Jean Bell born in 1708 VA; married William Byrd in 1727 in Bertie
County, NC and died after 1765 in the Sumter District of South Carolina
    3. Mary Bell born in 1710 in Virginia; married Robert Byrd in 1725 in
Bertie County NC and died in August 1745 in Bertie County, NC
Marriage 2: Anne (Woodnot) (the widow Ferguson) was born 1682 in VA
     Father: Henry Woodnot
     Mother: Mary ________
Married: About 1715 in Essex, Virginia or Chowan, North Carolina
Children of Robert Bell and Anne Woodnot:
    1. Isabelle Ferguson was born in 1706 in Nansemond, Virginia to Anne
Woodnot and John Ferguson. Isabel 1st married Michael King about 1720, but
it was not Michael’s 1st marriage. Isabel and Michael had 7 children.
Michael King died in 1741 in
Bertie County, NC. Isabelle remairried in NC. Isabelle died in 1780 in NC.
Michael King’s Last Will and Testament was dated 1741. Isabel and Michael
King were the great grandparents of William Rufus King, Jr. the 13th Vice
President of the United States of America, under President Franklin Pierce.
NOTE: Isabel lived with Robert and Anne Bell, her mother, and was called
“Isabel Bell” beginning about 1715 and until her marriage to Michael King
III in Bertie County North Carolina in 1720
    2. George Bell born in 1718 in Chowan, NC; died 1792 Sampson County, NC
    3. Archibald Bell born in 1719 in Chowan, NC; died 1779 Duplin County,
NC
    4. John Bell born in 1720 in Chowan County, NC died after 1783
    5. Penelope Bell born 1724 in Bertie County, NC

NOTE: Bertie County was divided from Chowan in 1722 and became Chowan
Precinct.

NOTE: There are conflicting opinions about Robert Bell’s children’s mother.
Following is my measured opinion based on all the evidence and data I have
found. There was a period of years between the birth of Mary Bell, in 1710
to Polly Clement-Bell, in Virginia and the birth of George Bell, in 1718 to
Anne Woodnot-Bell, in Chowan, North Carolina. There apparently were no
children born to Robert and Polly Bell between 1710 and 1718, a period of 8
years. This leads me to believe that Penelope Clement-Bell was the mother of
the first three of Robert Bell’s children; Robert Bell, Jr. who died in 1712
at age 7, as well as the mother of Jean Bell and Mary Bell who were both
born in Virginia.

Some speculation exists that Robert Bell married Anne Ferguson “shortly
after his first wife died,” which is plausible, but is in need of an
explanation or at least speculation regarding what may have been going on
with the Robert Bell family during the 8 year period between 1710 and 1718.
One possible and plausible explanation follows. It is my opinion for what it
is worth…

With Robert Bell’s first child, Robert Bell, Jr having been born in 1705 and
his second child, Jean Bell, born in 1708, and then the third child, Mary
Bell born in 1710, and then no children born until George Bell was born 8
years later in 1718 to Robert Bell’s 2nd wife, Anne Woodnot-Bell, and 5
years after Mary Bell had been born, in 1710, simply defies logic without
some sort of explanation. So, here goes! I believe Robert Bell’s first wife,
Penelope Clement-Bell, probably had an extended illness before her death in
1715, which was not unusual for wilderness wives of that period. I believe
her illness began about 1711 or 1712 and that was the reason no more
children were born to Robert Bell until after Polly’s death in 1715. When
Robert Bell, Jr. died in 1712 his mother, Polly Bell may have becomedeposed
and depressed, which would have compounded any sickness she may have had and
hastened her death. Malara was a major problem in early southeast Virginia.
Jamestown was devastated continually with malaria in the 1600s.

This being the case, Robert Bell may have and probably did remarried shortly
after Polly’s death in 1715 to the widow Ferguson, Anne Woodnot. It was
customary for widows or widowers, with young children, to seek out a
replacement spouse immediately upon the death of their spouse.  A widow with
children was considered the ideal candidate for a 2nd marriage because she
would have experience with raising children and would be in need of a
household and family to care for her and her children’s own wellbeing. We
recall, that is exactly what Frontiersman Daniel Boon did when his first
wife died and left him with young children.  Robert and Anne Bell had their
first child, George Bell, in 1718 in Chowan, North Carolina. The rest of
Robert and Anne Bell’s children were born in Chowan or the Chowan Precinct
of Bertie County, North Carolina.

<NEXT GENERATION>

(Sampson divided from Duplin in 1784)

George Bell
  Birth: 1718 Chowan, North Carolina
  Death: 1792 in Sampson County, North Carolina
     Father: Robert Bell born 1675 Isle of Wight, Virginia
     Mother: Anne Woodnot born in Virginia
  Marriage 1: Debra (Debory or Deborah) _______
  Married: 1739 Chowan Precinct, Bertie County, North Carolina
  Children:
    1. Robert Bell born about 1740 in Chowan Precinct, Bertie County, NC;
died ____
    2. Hezekiah Bell born 1758 in Chowan Precinct, Bertie County, NC; died
Sampson County,
        NC 1803
    3. Elizabeth Bell
    4. Jesse Bell
  Marriage 2: Elizabeth ________
  Married: 1747 Sampson County North Carolina
  Children: None

<NEXT GENERATION>

(Sampson divided from Duplin in 1784)

Hezekiah Bell
  Birth: born 1758 in Chowan Precinct, Bertie County, North Carolina
  Death: about 1803 Sampson County, North Carolina
  Father: George Bell
  Mother: Debra ______
  Marriage 1: Martha Baggett born 1760 in Duplin County, North Carolina;
died 1832 Decatur County, GA at age 72, probably while living with her
daughter Elizabeth Bell-Morgan.
  Married: December 10, 1778 in Duplin County, North Carolina
  Children:
    1. Abraham Bell born 1780 in Duplin County, North Carolina
    2. Perthena Bell
        Birth: About 1785 in Duplin County, North Carolina
        Death: 1847 in Lowndes County, Georgia
        Religion: Baptized 12 SEP 1835 Bethlehem Primitive Baptist
                       Church
    3. Duncan Bell, (Sr.) born 1795 in Sampson County, North
        Carolina
    4. Elizabeth Bell
         Birth: About 1802 in Sampson County, North Carolina
         Death: 5 MAY 1838 in Decatur County, Georgia
          Marriage 1: Duncan Morgan born 8 JUN 1806 in
            Sampson County, North Carolina
         Married: 15 FEB 1826 in Sampson County, North Carolina

<NEXT GENERATION>

Duncan Bell, Sr.
   Birth: 1795 in Sampson County, North Carolina
   Death: 1861 in Lafayette County, Florida
   Military Service: Enlisted 1838 during the 3rd Seminole Indian War in
Madison County Florida and served in the East Florida Mounted Volunteers. It
is stated in muster rolls that he
rode his personal “bay horse.”
   Occupation: 5 JUL 1852 served as Justice of the Peace, 11th District,
Madison Co., FL
   Occupation: 4 OCT 1852 served as Clerk of Election, Bell's District,
Madison Co., FL
   Occupation: Land owner and Farmer
      Father: Hezekiah Bell
      Mother: Martha Baggett
   Marriage 1: Unknown, probably to a daughter of a Sampson County NC
family; died in Madison County, Florida between 1842 and 1850 when the
census was taken.
   Married: about 1827
   Children:
     1. George Bell born 1828 in Sampson County, North Carolina
     2. Abraham (“Abram”) Bell born 15 AUG 1830 in Decatur County, Georgia
NOTE: Duncan Bell, his mother Martha and his brother-in-law Duncan Morgan
families moved from Sampson County, NC to Decature County, GA in 1829.
NOTE: Decatur County GA was formed in 1823 from Early County Georgia
     3. Martha Bell born 1833 in Decatur County, Georgia
     4. Patrick Bell born 1835 in Decatur County, Georgia
     5. Duncan Bell, Jr. born 1837 in Decatur County, Georgia; CSA soldier,
died of disease on 25 April 1863 in Tullahoma, Coffee County, Tennessee CSA
Military Hospital and was buried in the Maple Wood CSA Cemetery in Tullahoma
(Contact Al Barrs albarrs@wfeca.net for details)
     6. Lydia J. Bell born 25 OCT 1842 in Madison County, Florida
     7. Enoch Bell, Sr. born 1841 in Madison County, Florida
  Marriage 2: Nancy T. Shortridge  (No children born to Duncan and Nancy
Shortridge)
Married: 8 AUG 1855 in Madison County, Florida
Note: Lafayette County FL was formed in 1856 from Madison County Florida,
so they may have been living in what would become Lafayette County Florida
the year following their marriage. Duncan Bell, Sr. bought land in Lafayette
County, Florida in 1856.

<NEXT GENERATION>

Abraham (“Abram”) Bell
  Birth: 15 AUG 1830 in Decatur County, Georgia
  Death: 29 MAR 1900 in Mayo Junction, Lafayette County, Florida
  Burial: 1900 Rogers Cemetery, Day, Lafayette County, Florida
  Military Service enlistment 1: enlisted CSA *Muskogee County, Georgia
  Military Service Regiment: served in the 5th Georgia Infantry Regiment,
CSA 
  Occupation: 2 OCT 1867 served as County Coroner for Lafayette County, FL
  Occupation: Land owner and Farmer 
     Father: Duncan Bell, Sr. born 1795 in Sampson County, NC
     Mother: Unknown probably of a Sampson County NC family
  Marriage 1: Susan Ann Clark born 25 DEC 1832 in Muskogee County, GA
  Married: 17 SEP 1857 in Madison County, Florida and buried Roger’s
Cemetery Day, Lafayette County, Florida
  Children: 
    1. Joanna Bell born 14 AUG 1858 in Lafayette County, Florida
    2. Judge W. Bell born 4 OCT 1860 in Lafayette County, Florida
    3. Susan Ann Bell born 6 MAY 1869 in Lafayette County, Florida
    4. William Andrew Bell born 30 SEP 1871 in Lafayette County, Florida
    5. Sarah Ann Bell-Cowart born 1 APR 1877 in Lafayette County, Florida
    6. Laura Bell born 1880 in Lafayette County, Florida

<NEXT GENERATION>

Judge W. Bell
Note: There has been a question from some researches as to who Judge W. Bell
and Judge Wilborn Bell were and how they were related. Judge W. Bell was a
son of Abram Bell and Susan Ann Clark. Judge Wilburn Bell was the son of
William Andrew Bell, a younger brother of Judge W. Bell and son of Abram
Bell and Susan Ann Clark. However I believe Judge W. Bell’s middle name was
also ‘Wilborn’ and was written as such by his Granddaughter Eva Adetha Bell
and my Mother and oldest daughter of Judge W. Bell’s son Wilford Franklin
and Maude Annie Bell in her family history writings…AF Barrs, Jr.
  Birth: 4 OCT 1860 in Lafayette County, Florida
  Death: 6 DEC 1902 in Lafayette County, Florida
  Burial: 1902 Rogers Cemetery, Day, Lafayette County, Florida
     Father: Abraham “Abram” Bell born 15 AUG 1830 in Decatur County, GA
     Mother: Susan Ann Clark born 25 DEC 1832 in *Muskogee County, GA
Marriage 1: Lular Toole (Twin to Lalar Toole-Parker) born 12 FEB 1869 in
Lafayette County, Florida
     Father: Henry William Toole born 8 May 1817 in Jones County, Georgia
     Mother: Hester Ann McCardle born 10 Apr 1828 in Wilkinson County,
Georgia
     Married: 10 Apr 1848 in Wilkinson County, Georgia
     Burial: Henry W. and Hester Toole are buried in the Bethel Creek
Baptist Church Cemetery at the “Mill Creek” aka ‘Bethel Creek at
double-bridges on FL SR#53 in north Lafayette County, Florida
  Married: In 1889
  Children:
    1. Bula Bell born 9 MAR 1883 in Lafayette County, Florida
    2. Dora Bell born FEB 1890 in Lafayette County, Florida
    3. Rosa Bell born 13 AUG 1891 in Lafayette County, Florida
    4. Wilford Franklin Bell born 2 JAN 1894 in Mayo Junction, Lafayette Co
FL
    5. Claude E. Bell born 14 APR 1897 in Lafayette County, Florida
    6. Richard Dennis Bell born 7 FEB 1900 in Mayo Junction, Lafayette
County
Marriage 1: Liza Singletary born 1895
  Married: 22 JUL 1909 in Lafayette County, Florida

<NEXT GENERATION>

Wilford Franklin Bell
  Birth: 2 JAN 1894 in Lafayette County, Florida
  Death: 19 NOV 1970 in Lafayette County, Florida
  Occupation: Farmer
  Buried: Day Lafayette County Florida Cemetery
     Father: Judge W. Bell born 4 OCT 1860 in Mayo Junction, Lafayette
County, FL
     Mother: Lular TOOLE born 12 FEB 1869 in Lafayette County, Florida
  Marriage 1: Maude Annie Morgan born 17 SEP 1897 in Lafayette County,
Florida
  Married: 24 SEP 1914 in Lafayette County, Florida
  Buried: Day Lafayette County Florida Cemetery
  Children: 
    1. Charles Elmer Bell born 1916 and died August 4, 1974
        Burial Day Lafayette County Florida Cemetery
    2. Evia Adetha Bell born 6 NOV 1917; died FEB 16, 1998 Orange County,
Florida while a resident of Lake Kathryn, Paisley, Lake County, Florida;
Burial Day Lafayette County Florida Cemetery
    3. Lular Effie Bell born 1918 Lafayette County, FL and died ________
Living in Ft. White, Columbia County Florida near daughter, Myrna Lou
Folsom-Lee

<NEXT GENERATION>

Evia Adetha Bell
Birth: 6 NOV 1917 on Adetha Bell’s fathers, Wilford Franklin Bell’s, farm
in Lafayette
   County Florida
Death: February 16, 1998 in Orange County, Florida while living at Lake
Kathryn, Paisley, Lake County, Florida
Buried: Day Lafayette County Florida Cemetery
    Father: Wilford Franklin Bell
    Mother: Annie Maude Morgan
Marriage 1: Alfonso Barrs, Sr. born January 24, 1917 Lafayette County FL
and died January 26, 1960 in Volusia County, Florida; buried Day Lafayette
County FL
Married: August 16, 1936 in Lafayette County, Florida
Buried: Day Lafayette County Florida Cemetery

 

16 Feb 2010

Alfonso (Al) Barrs, Jr.
albarrs@wfeca.net