Husband: John COBB
Birthdate: 19 May 1814 , Henry County, KY
date and place of marriage: 17 August 1848, Quincy, Adams County, Illinois
other marriages: Jane Ann Leypold - 1844, Quincy, Adams County, Ill. Died 1848
military service:
Death date: 13 November 1893 , Lower Lake, Lake County, California
father: unknown
mother: unknown

Wife: Ester DEMMING
aka: Esther Deming
Birthdate: 7 October 1826 , Belmont County, Ohio
other marriages:
date and place of marriage: 17 August 1848, Quincy, Adams County, Illinois
Death date: 19 December 1900 , Lower Lake, Lake County, California
father: Rufus Curtis Damon (Demming/Deming)
mother: Mary Farra (Farrah)

CHILD 1: John Rufus Cobb
Birthdate: 22 September 1849, Quincy, Adams County, Illinois
married: Laura F. Davis
date and place of marriage: 18 January 1880, Lower Lake, Lake County, California
other marriages: Mary Ellen Crabtree, 3 May 1889, Long Ridge, Trinity County, California
Death date:

CHILD 2: George Oliver Cobb
Birthdate: April 1851, Green River, Utah (now Fort Bridger, Wyoming)
married: Tennessee Josephine Scribner
date and place of marriage: 05 October 1873, Paskenta, Tehama County, California
other marriages:
Death date: 26 August 1885, Newville, Colusa County, California

CHILD 3: Joseph Deming Cobb
Birthdate: 23 November 1853 probably Yamhill County, Oregon
married: Sarah Elizabeth Kiphart
date and place of marriage: 1873
other marriages:
Death date: 17 December 1931, Cobbs, Van Duzen River, Humboldt County, California

CHILD 4: Mary H. O. Cobb
Birthdate: Bef. 22 June 1854, Cobb Ranch, Cobb Valley, Lake County, California
married: George William Hinton
date and place of marriage: 19 November 1868, Cobb Ranch, Cobb Valley, Lake County, California
other marriages: Washington Irving Henderson, 31 August 1875, Lower Lake, Lake County, California
Death date: 20 October 1916, Monterey County, California

CHILD 5: William Thomas Cobb
Birthdate: 20 May 1856, Cobb Ranch, Cobb Valley, Lake County, California
married: none
date and place of marriage:
other marriages:
Death date: 10 November 1884, Lower Lake, Lake County, California

CHILD 6: Hester Cobb
Birthdate: 08 July 1858, Cobb Ranch, Cobb Valley, Lake County, California
married: Samuel Harris
date and place of marriage: 05 September 1877, Little High Valley, Lake County, California
other marriages:
Death date: 07 November 1885, Lower Lake, Lake County, California
 

SOURCES:
History of Lake County, Valley Publishers, 1759, Fulton Street, Fresno, CA 93721, 1974. Reprinted from History of Napa and Lake Counties, CA, Slocum, Bowen and Company, San Francisco, 1881. Historian of this book was Lyman L. Palmer. Biographical Sketch, p. 227
    "COBB, JOHN. Was born in Henry County, Kentucky, May 19, 1814. His father was a farmer. When John was but a child, his father moved to Indiana where they remained for six years, when they returned to Kentucky. When John was sixteen years of age, they returned to Indiana and his father resided in Jefferson County for five years, and then moved to Arkansas, where he died.
    In 1832, John went to Vigo County, Indiana, on the Wabash River, where he followed keel-boating, carrying freight to all the towns on the river. In October, on one of his trips, he laid up for the night at the foot of Coffee Island, eight miles below the Grand Rapids and two miles below Mount Carmel. About eight o'clock, he noticed quite a commotion taking place with the stars; they all seemed to be falling towards the earth; they seemed to increase thicker and faster until about midnight, when all of them seemed to part in the center above, falling towards the earth in all directions. They resembled many balls of fire, each leaving a brilliant light behind it; one would not get out of sight til another would be coming on the same line. The whole firmament seemed to be in a blaze of fire; it was the most beautiful sight he ever saw in his life. The stars seemed to gradually decrease in motion until about four o'clock in the morning, when all was quiet and every star was in its proper place.
    He then proceeded down the rive into the Ohio, and down that stream to Paducah, at the mouth of the Tennessee River; he then went up the Tennessee with the keel-boat to Florence, in Tennessee; then he returned to Indiana - to the Grand Rapids, on the Wabash River. There he put in a crop of corn, sold it out, and went to Lafayette, Tippecanoe County, Indiana, where he got a team and went back to Madison, in Jefferson County, after his mother, two sisters and brother and moved to Iowa Territory. They stopped at a place called Bloomington, which had one house in it, owned by John Vanater, the proprietor of the place. It soon grew up, however, to be quite a village and place of trade. It is located on the banks of the upper Mississippi River, thirty miles below Rock Island and sixty miles above Burlington. The name has since been changed to Muscatine City, Muscatine County.
    He then resided in that place where he followed farming and trading, for three years. In 1839, he took his mother on a visit to her mother who resided in Madison, Indiana, left her there and went south to New Orleans February 29, 1840. His mother died during his absence. He returned to Madison, Indiana in April of that year. From there he returned to Iowa; staying there until fall, and started for Texas; got as far as Arkansas and was taken sick with the white swelling, which left him a cripple for life. He gave up the trip to Texas and returned again to Iowa in the spring of 1841, and remained there until 1843.
    He then went to Quincy, Illinois. Was married to Miss Jane Ann Leypold, April 18, 1845, who was a native of Ohio. Their first child, a son, was born February 18, 1845 and died August 15, 1845. The next, a daughter, was born January 13, 1847. He lost his wife on January 12, 1848 and his daughter died January 16, 1848.
    On August 17, 1848, he was married to his second wife, Miss Esther E. Deming, who is still living. She is a native of Ohio, and the mother of six children, whose names are as follows: John Rufus, George Oliver, Joseph Deming, Mary H. O., William Thomas, and Hester E., who are all living. The first one, John R. was born September 22, 1849, and the sixth one, Hester E., was born July 8, 1858.
    In the spring of 1850, he started across the plains with an ox-team en route for California, bringing his family, consisting then of his wife and one child with him. They reached Salt Lake, August 17, 1850, but owing to the delicate health of Mrs. Cobb, they remained there until the spring of 1851, when they crossed the mountains, and arrived at Ringgold, near Placerville, California on July 1st of that year. He then engaged in mining for about three weeks, when he bought into a grocery store and kept boarding house, which business he followed until September.
    He then sold out and moved to Napa Valley, Napa County and rented a place of John S. Start, about four miles below Calistoga Springs, which he farmed one year. He sold his crop and went to Oregon in September 1852, and spent one year there, and returned to Napa County in August 1853. He then rented a place of John Tucker and Peter Teal for farming purposes.
    In October of the same year, he went north of Napa Valley, towards Clear Lake, and took up a place in what is now known as Cobb Valley, which took its name after him, he being the first settler there. He then moved his family there in November 1853; a wild wilderness of a place, inhabited by various kinds of wild game and animals; elk, deer, bears, panthers, wolves, wild cats and foxes. In 1854, he was solicited to run for the office of County Assessor and was elected. He assessed Napa County in 1855. He lived about five years in Cobb Valley, then sold out and moved to Napa Valley again; bought a tract of land in the said valley of M. D. Ritchie, and remained on it about eighteen months, and sold it out. He then moved out to Calyomi Valley and settled near where Middletown is now. He then farmed and raised stock on that place about three years.
    About that time, Lake County was segregated from Napa County. He was then put in charge of the grants by Robert Waterman. He farmed that ranch two years, and leased out the farms on the grants to the settlers.
    He then moved to Sonoma County; remained there two years educating his children, and then returned to Lake County with his family to his place that he had previously entered, containing five hundred and twenty acres.
    He resided on this farm about four years, improving it; then moved to Healdsburg; resided there about eighteen months, completing the education of his children.
    He then returned with his family to Lake County, to his farm, where he has resided ever since. By referring to the dates, it will be found that Mr. Cobb is about the first white settler, or the oldest settler, now in Lake County."
*John Cobb died 12 November 1893 at his home in the Little High Valley, Lower Lake, Lake County, California.
*Utah Territory Census 1850, Green River Precinct
lists John Cobb, Esther Cobb and John R. Cobb. This is now the area known as Fort Bridger, Wyoming.
*COBB MILL, In 1859, John Cobb, the pioneer settler in Cobb Valley, built a combined saw and grist mill in Cobb Valley. Its capacity both for lumber and for flour was very small, and it was run by water power. It was burned in 1866 or 1876.
*California Census 1860, Napa County, Clear Lake Township, Post Office, Lower Lake, taken 22 June 1860, Page 21, Dwelling #224, Family # 218
John Cobb, 46, male Farmer, $500, $900, Kentucky
Esther Cobb, 34 female Ohio
John R. Cobb 10 male Illinois
George D. Cobb 9 male Utah Territory
Joseph B. Cobb 7 male Oregon
Mary Cobb 6 female California
William Cobb 4 male California
Hester Cobb 2 female California
*RLDS Deceased Members File: John Cobb, Birth 19 May 1814, Henry County, Kentucky. John Cobb was baptized a member of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints on 2 May 1867 by W. M. Potter (according to a letter Ralph received from the RLDS archivist, John was baptized at Petaluma, Sonoma County, CA.). He was ordained an elder in August 1874 by Jacob Adamson. He served as branch president (Lower Lake probably) from 1883 to 1893. Death: 13 November 1893, Lower Lake, CA.
*Early Reorganization Minutes: 1852-1871, Book A. pp 387, 537
*Early Reorganization Minutes, 1872-1905, Book B.
*Early Reorganization Minutes, 1872-1905, Book E.
*Saints' Herald Obituaries, 1893, p. 452
*The History of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, p. 698.
*Great Register: Lower Lake, Lake County, California: 15 October 1868, John Cobb, age 52, 5 ft. 10 1/2 inches tall, sandy complexion, blue eyes, grey hair.
*Census Year 1870, Microfilm # M593-73 State California County Lake CENSUS YR: 1870 STATE: California COUNTY: Lake DIVISION: Lower Lake REEL NO: M593-73 PAGE NO: 414A REFERENCE: ?? ??? 1870 by H. M. Trude PO: Lower Lake
16 602 464 Cobb John 56 M W Farmer 2,000 600 Ky X
17 602 464 Cobb Esther 44 F W Keeping House Ohio
18 602 464 Cobb John 20 M W Ill
19 602 464 Cobb George 19 M W Utah
20 602 464 Cobb Joseph 17 M W Oregon
21 602 464 Cobb Wm 14 M W Cala
22 602 464 Cobb Hester 12 F W Cala
23 603 465 Hinton G. 30 M W Labourer Mo X X
24 603 465 Hinton Mary 16 F W Keeping House Cala
25 603 465 Hinton Friday 11/12 F W Cala July
*RLDS Deceased File - Early Reorganization Minutes, 1852-1871, Book A. pp 387, 537; 1872-1905, Book B, 1872-1905 Book E; John Cobb, born 19 May 1814, Henry County, Kentucky; John Cobb was baptized a member of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints on 2 May 1867 by W. M. Potter. He was ordained an elder of this church in August 1874 by Jacob Adamson. He served as branch president [Lower Lake, Lake County, CA] from 1883 to 1893.
*1880 California Census, Excelsior District, Lake County, California, ED 49, page 6, line 2
Cobb, John, 66, Farmer
Cobb, Esther, 54, wife
Cobb, John, 30, son
Cobb, Laura, 18, daughter
Cobb, William, 23, son
Hinton, Freddie, 10, grandson
Hinton, Edward, 8, grandson
Hinton, Dora, 4 granddaughter
*John Cobb died 13 November 1893. His obituary is recorded in the Saints Herald, (RLDS Church Magazine], 1893, p. 452 but there is no record of his death in Lake County.
*RLDS Archive Records, Independence, Missouri
Esther E. Cobb born 7 October 1826, Belmont County, Ohio - Esther E. Cobb baptized a member of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints on 25 May 1867 by William Potter. She attended the Lower Lake California branch.
*RLDS Deceased File:
*Early Reorganization Minutes, 1852-1871. Book A, pp 387, 537
*Early Reorganization Minutes, 1872-1905, Book B
*Early Reorganization Minutes, 1872-1905, Book E
*Lower Lake, California, RLDS Branch Records
Esther (Demming) Cobb died as a result of a runaway carriage accident.
*RLDS Archive Files: John R. Cobb born 22 September 1849, Quincy, Adams County, Illinois, Baptized 29 September 1895, Lower Lake, California by J, F. Burton. Ordained elder: 2 May 1897 at Lower Lake, California by Benjamin N. Fisher
*California 1890 Great Register of Voters Index:
Cobb, John Rufus, age 41, born Illinois, living in Spruce Grove, Lake County, registered 23 Jul, 1890, page 3.
*1880 Census - California
George O. COBB Self M Male W 29 UT Hotel Keeper KY OH
Tennese J. COBB Wife M Female W 22 CA Keeping House TN OH
Hester E. COBB Dau S Female W 6 CA UT CA
Geo. O. COBB Son S Male W 4 CA UT CA
Byron O. COBB Son S Male W 2 CA UT CA
Micle JOHNS Other S Male W 35 MO Bar Keeping TN TN
Cora SPECK Other S Female W 19 CA Servant IA NY
Source Information: Census Place: Newville, Colusa, California, (Frog Creek) Family History Library Film 1254064 NA Film Number T9-0064 Page Number 515B
*California 1890 Great Register of Voters Index: Cobb, Joseph D., age 36, born Oregon, living in Hydesville, Humbolt County, registered to vote on 25 February 1888, page 21.
*1900 California HUMBOLDT HYDESVILLE TWP Series: T623 Roll: 86 Page: 108 (sheet B) p. 4B, 14th June 1900
COBB JOSEPH D November 1852 47 married 26 yrs, OR IND OH farmer, rents
Cobb, Sarah E., Jan 1846, 44, married 26 yrs, 5 children, 4 living,
Cobb, William T.. son, Dec 1886, 13, CA OR CA At school
Cobb, Esther, mother, Oct 1825, 74, widow, OH OH OH
Kiphart, Emarine, m-in-law
*1920 California HUMBOLDT VAN DUZEN Series: T625 Roll: 99 Page: 105
COBB JOSEPH D 66 M W OR CA owns home, ORE, KY, ILL Stock Farmer
Cobb, Sarah E., 63, CA IND, IND
*1880 Census Washington State
Washington I. HENDERSON Self M Male W 38 MO Has None KY KY
Mary HENDERSON Wife M Female W 25 CA Keeping House KY OH
Gracie V. HENDERSON Dau S Female W 2 OR MO CA
Birdie HENDERSON Dau S Female W 1M OR MO CA (actually- Gertrude)
Source Information: Census Place District 3, Vancouver City, Clark, Washington Family History Library Film 1255396 NA Film Number T9-1396 Page Number 78C
*Obit: Salinas Daily Index, Fri. Oct. 20, 1916, p. 1: Mrs. Vernon BABIN, a resident of Monterey, died near this city this morning. The deceased, who is a widow, was born in Napa 62 years ago. She spent her life in California, 15 years of which she lived in this county. Those of her relatives who survive her are 2 sons and a daughter who lives in Chico. The funeral arrangements will not be made until the arrival of the 3 children who are expected this evening. The Salinas Undertaking company has charge of the remains.