Nr. 344:
A reader suggests that I have not covered the Cook family who were members of the Second Colony. Let's see, if by putting our heads together, if we can't make a few statements about them. Michael Cook (Koch) was from Schwaigern, where he had married Barbara Reiner; however, in Virginia, his wife's name seems to have been Mary. Whether Barbara and Mary are the same person is not proven, but Mary does appear to be a Reiner. In fact, in the Hebron Register she is given as a "Steiner", which is surely a mistake for Reiner. Another minor mystery is why Michael Cook and Jacob Crigler had a joint patent for land.
Michael and Mary Cook had four children in Virginia: Margaret, Dorothy, Adam, and George. The Hebron Church Register has many references to the families and their members, and it is possible to state that the four children and their marriage partners were (keeping the number 1 for Michael):
- George Cook, born before 1723, married first, Mary Sarah Reiner, his first cousin, and married second, Anna Maria Hoffman. He died about 1802. Mary Sarah Reiner came with her family about 1750. Her father is believed to be the brother of Michael Cook's wife.
- Adam Cook, born before 1723 also, married Barbara Fleshman.
- Dorothy Cook, married John Carpenter, Jr.
- Margaret Cook, married Philip Snyder. She died about 1795.
I have the following grandchildren of Michael. Children of George Cook and his first wife, Mary Sarah Reiner:
- Mary Barbara Cook, b. 1751, married John Blankenbaker.
- Margaret Cook, b. 1753, married Christopher Tanner.
- Magdalena Cook, b. 1756, married John Huffman.
- Elizabeth Cook, b. 1758, d. before 1805, no marriage known.
- Dorothy Cook, b. 1762, no marriage known.
- Diana Cook, died at a young age.
- Lewis Cook, b. 1768, married Mary Yager.
All of the above children birth's are in the Hebron Register. Children of George Cook and his second wife, Anna Maria Hoffman:
- Ambrose Cook, b. 1775, married Susanna Fleshman.
- Aaron Cook, b. 1776, married Leanna Garr.
- Sara Cook, b. 1777, married Andrew Huffman.
- George Cook, b. 1778, married Jemina Wilhoit.
- Rosanna Cook, b. 1779.
- Cornelius Cook, b. 1780, married Mary Wilkinson.
- Moses Cook, married in 1804, Elizabeth Grayson.
- ? Jemina ? (This may have been a daughter-in-law, not a daughter.)
Not all of the children of the second family are in Register. Another source of information on the members of the family is the estate settlement of George Cook. As we proceed with the discussion of the Cook family, perhaps readers can add or correct what is said.
Continuing with the Second Germanna Colony family of Michael Cook, some information was given in the last note about his son, George. One reason for starting with George is that the Hebron Register and the estate settlement for George (see Madison County Deed Book for 1805) specify his children, though uncertainties remain. References to other Cooks in the Hebron Register must be references to the children of Adam, if not to the sons George and Adam themselves. (Of course, the next generation could be appearing also.)
Land deeds and the Hebron references establish that Michael Cook had four children, two girls, Dorothy and Margaret, who were older than the two sons, Adam and George. On 1 Aug 1751, Michael Cook gave 100 acres each to Philip Snyder and to John Carpenter, Jr. On 21 Jul 1757, he gave 112 acres to Adam and George. This later date for the son's land is the reason for thinking that the sons were younger than the daughters. The distribution of land was typically German, with both daughters and sons receiving assets. Also, a distribution before death is not unusual.
When the final estate of George Cook, one of the sons of Michael, was divided, there were thirteen heirs who sold smaller pieces of land. Each of the heirs had a set of witnesses to the act. As a consequence, some information can be learned from the names of witnesses. For example, there were two John Blankenbakers in the community at the time. Mary Barbara Cook, the eldest daughter of George Cook, married one of them, but which one? Since the husbands signed for the couples in the estate sale, a John Blankenbaker appeared, and he asked some other Blankenbakers to be his witnesses. The logical persons to ask would be his brothers. Therefore we conclude that this John Blankenbaker was the one who was the son of Zacharias.
In a similar way, Jemina Cook had three witnesses, all different from the other witnesses. Her relationship might be as an unmarried daughter of George, or it might be as a daughter-in-law. Her witnesses were three Garr men. It is hard to escape the conclusion that Jemina was a Garr who had married a son of George who died after his father died and before the estate was settled; however, I have not researched this question in depth. (If I could find my copy of the estate settlement, I might look into this more as I now have a copy of the Garr Genealogy.)
