 Aft 1583 - 1663 (< 78 years)
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| Name |
Francis Cooke |
| Born |
Aft 1583 |
England  |
| Gender |
Male |
| Died |
7 Apr 1663 |
Plymouth Colony, MA |
| Person ID |
I925 |
My Genealogy |
| Last Modified |
1 Dec 2015 |
| Family |
Hester Mahieu, b. Abt 1585, Canterbury, England , d. Aft 8 Jun 1666, Massachusetts (Age > 81 years) |
| Married |
4 Jul 1603 |
Leyden, Hollard |
| Children |
| | 1. Jane Cooke, b. Bef 1613, Leyden, Hollard , d. Abt 1650, Plymouth Colony, MA (Age > 37 years) |
| | 2. John Cooke, b. Abt 1607, d. 23 Nov 1695, Dartmouth, MA (Age 88 years) |
| | 3. Jacob Cooke, b. Abt 1618 |
| | 4. Hester Cooke, b. Abt 1622, Leyden, Holland , d. Aft 21 May 1669, Plymouth, MA (Age > 47 years) |
| | 5. Mary Cooke, b. Abt 1624, Plymouth, MA , d. 21 Mar 1713/14, Middleboro, MA (Age 90 years) |
|
| Last Modified |
1 Dec 2015 |
| Family ID |
F280 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
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| Notes |
- William Bradford recorded his list of passengers that came over in the Mayflower: "Francis Cooke and his son John, but his wife
and other children came afterwards". Later in 1651, he writes "Francis Cooke is still living, a very old man, and hath seen his
children's children have children. After his wife came over with other of his children; he hath three still living by her, all married and
have five children, so their increase is eight. And his son John which came over with him is married, and hath four children living."
Francis and Hester (Mahieu) Cooke had lived in Leyden as early as 1603, about five years before the Pilgrims fled there from
England. In 1606, they left Leyden to live at Norwich, England where they joined a French Walloon church; however, they did not
stay long in England--probably because of religious persecution--and by 1607 were back in Leyden as members of the French
Walloon church there.
Francis Cooke came on the Mayflower with his eldest son John in 1620 and as such was one of the signers of the Mayflower Compact. His wife, Hester, soon followed on the Anne in 1623.
She brought with her three additional children: Jacob, Jane, and Hester. Another child, Mary, was born in 1626.
Freemen
Francis Cooke was also listed on the original list of freemen for Plymouth and was found on this list again in 1633, 1637 and 1658. As a freemen he had several duties which were thrust upon
him. He served twice on the Grand Inquest, once in 1638 and a second time in 1640. Cooke also served on numerous juries from the years 1638-48. His most notable case was that of Allis
Bishop. She admitted to murdering her four year old daughter by slashing her throat and windpipe with a knife. His major service to the community, however, seemed to come in the highway
realm. In 1937 he was appointed to the committee to lay out highways. He followed this appointment with the job of surveyor of the highways for Plymouth in 1641, 1642 and again in 1645. He
even served on a committee to find the best route for a new road.
Occupation
There is no record or what kind of work Cooke was engaged in. He did have and apprentice, John Harmon, for seven years starting in 1636. Francis Cooke was also on the 1643 Plymouth list of
those who were able to bear arms.
Estate
Francis Cooke was not as active in court as his jury duty. He won a judgment against John Browne, the elder, for abusing his cattle. Along with twelve others, he was given 4 black heifers and two
shee goats in the 1627 cattle division. Cooke appears to have been granted many different parcels of land in and around Plymouth. Some of this land he gave to his sons Jacob and John, which
they sold portions of. Francis even sold some land to William Bradford. His neighbors included Isaak Allerton, Edward Winslow, and Thomas Prence as well as his 2 sons John and Jacob.
The End
The will of Francis Cooke, dated 7 October 1659, leaves all his possessions to his wife Hester with Hester and his son John as joint executors of the will. John Aldin and John Howland were
witnesses to the will. Francis Cooke passed away on 7 April 1663 at the age of approximately 80. An inventory was taken of his possessions by Ephraim Tinkham and William Crow on 1 May
1663. His total net worth at that time was 86 pounds, 11 shillings, and 1 pence
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