| Repository: | Western Reserve Historical Society |
| Creator: | Cobb, Philip L. |
| Title: | Philip L. Cobb Papers |
| Dates: | 1858-1929 |
| Extent: | 2.82 linear feet (7 containers and 1 oversize folder) |
| Abstract: | Philip L. Cobb (1870-1929) was a Cleveland, Ohio, civil engineer, surveyor and amateur genealogist. He traced his family's history and published over a dozen books on it and other genealogical topics. The collection consists of genealogical charts, manuscripts of Cobb's publications, correspondence, notes, notebooks, newspaper clippings, genealogical data cards and index cards detailing the genealogy of the Cobb family and its allied families. |
| MS Number | MS 3313 |
| Location: | closed stacks |
| Language: | The records are in English |
Philip L. Cobb (1870-1929) was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on June 22, 1870. His father, Caius C. Cobb, came to Cleveland in 1839 and was active for fifty years in the bookselling business, originally with Moses C. Younglove and later as partner in J. B. Cobb & Co., and Cob, Andrews & Co. His mother, Helen M. Andrews, was born in Cleveland in 1836, daughter of Edward W. Andrews, a gunsmith and early resident of Cleveland.
Philip Cobb received his early education in the public schools of Cleveland, attending Brownell, Sterling, and Central High School. He graduated at Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in 1892, as a civil engineer. While in college he did surveying for the Lehigh Valley Railroad in New York state. From 1892 to 1896, he worked on design and construction for the Brooklyn Elevated Railroad.
He returned to Cleveland in 1897, taking a position with The Brown Hoisting Machinery Co., and then later with the Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company. Cobb spent the remainder of his life in Cleveland, marrying twice - first to Vinnette Vaupel in 1899, and following her death, to Louise Bill in 1909. Philip Cobb died on August 7, 1929.
On of Philip Cobb's major interests was genealogy, and particularly that of his family. He wrote a number of books in the field, including: A History of the Cobb Family Parts I - III; A History of the Cobb Family part IV: Boston Family; A History of the Cobb Family Part V: English Wills and Genealogical Notes; The Andrews Genealogy: With Notes on the Macmillan, Pritchard, Cross and Other Allied Families; History and Genealogy of the Wells Family; Cemetery Inscriptions From Cambridge, N.Y.; Wells Family and Others; and Inscriptions in Willoughby Center Cemetery.
At least three branches of Cobbs settled in the United States; two in Massachusetts and one in Virginia. Philip Cobb's earliest American ancestor was Thomas Cobb. he was born in Oxfordshire, England, and in 1685 emigrated to Boston with his family in pursuit of religious and political freedom. He worked for a number of years as a blacksmith in Boston and then moved with his son, Robert, to Hingham, Massachusetts. Thereafter, the Cobb family quickly settled in all parts of New England.
Members of the family were involved in various American wars. In 1745, Richard Cobb fought in King William's War. Edward Cobb was a captain in the American Revolution, and his son, David, was among the forces at the battle of Lexington in 1755. Numerous members of the Cobb family also served in the American Civil War.
As the American frontier moved westward, so did the Cobb family. Today, descendants of the Cobb family are represented in states from Massachusetts to California. The Cobb family has distinguished itself in various pursuits. They have contributed much to the fields of law, literature, business, and religion, such as Calvin Cobb who owned and operated a newspaper in Boise, Idaho, and Junius Cobb who was a pioneer in the book and stationery business in Cleveland, Ohio, and Chicago, Illinois.
The Philip L. Cobb Papers, 1858-1929 and undated, consist of genealogical information collected by Philip Cobb on both the Cobb and allied families. This material takes the form of genealogical charts, manuscripts written by Philip Cobb, correspondence, notebooks and notes, newspaper clippings, genealogical data cards, and index cards.
This collection traces the Cobb family from 14th century England to 1929, the year of Philip Cobb's death. It should be noted that most of the information in the collection is represented in the publications by Philip Cobb which can be found in the Research Library of the Western Reserve Historical Society.
None.
Related MaterialThe researcher should also consult MS 4360 Cobb-Andrews Family Papers.
Separated MaterialAll photographs have been removed to the photograph and print collection.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 3313 Philip L. Cobb Papers, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio
Provenance unrecorded.
Processed by Donald Haggerty in 1978.
A list of geographic divisions used in the Geographic Files and a list of Cobb allied families is available at the Reference Desk of the WRHS Research Library.
Philip L. Cobb Papers 1858-1929 undated |
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| Box | Folder | ||||||||||
| 1 | 1 | Genealogical charts undated | |||||||||
| 1 | 1 | Manuscripts of Philip Cobb, including A History of the Cobb Family, Part IV: Boston Family; A History of the Cobb Family Part V: English Wills and Genealogical Notes; The Andrews Genealogy: With Notes on the Macmillan, Pritchard, Cross and Other Allied Families; and Cemetery Inscriptions From Cambridge, N.Y.: Wells Family and Others dates vary | |||||||||
| 1 | 2 | Handwritten draft of A History of the Cobb Family part IV: Boston Family; and a photograph of the Cobb family coat of arms undated | |||||||||
| 1 | 3 | Correspondence of Philip Cobb 1881-1929 undated | |||||||||
| 1 | 4 | Correspondence of Philip Cobb with Edward H. Whorf 1904-1909 | |||||||||
| 1 | 5-6 | Notebooks of Philip Cobb undated | |||||||||
| 1 | 7 | Research file on Thomas Cobb including notes, correspondence, and newspaper clippings 1896-1927 undated | |||||||||
| 1 | 7 | Research file on Henry Cobb, including notes, correspondence, and newspaper clippings 1897-1915 | |||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||
| 2 | 1 | Geographic research file on Cobb family in England and miscellaneous material on the Cobb family in the United States undated | |||||||||
| 2 | 2 | Geographic research files on the Cobb family, Connecticut - Illinois undated | |||||||||
| 2 | 3 | Geographic research files on the Cobb family, Main, Bangor - Norway undated | |||||||||
| 2 | 4 | Geographic research files on the Cobb family, Maine, Otisfield - Portland undated | |||||||||
| 2 | 5 | Geographic research files on the Cobb family, Maine, Sumner - Miscellaneous; and Massachusetts, Abington - Attleborough undated | |||||||||
| 2 | 6 | Geographic research files on the Cobb family, Massachusetts, Barnstable undated | |||||||||
| 2 | 7 | Geographic research files on the Cobb family, Massachusetts, Barre - Cape Cod undated | |||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||
| 3 | 1 | Geographic research files on the Cobb family, Massachusetts, Carver - Eastham undated | |||||||||
| 3 | 2 | Geographic research files on the Cobb family, Massachusetts, Franklin - Middleboro undated | |||||||||
| 3 | 3 | Geographic research files on the Cobb family, Massachusetts, Middlesex County - Staughtonham-Walpole undated | |||||||||
| 3 | 4 | Geographic research files on the Cobb family, Massachusetts, Suffolk County - Westborough undated | |||||||||
| 3 | 5 | Geographic research files on the Cobb family, Massachusetts - New York undated | |||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||
| 4 | 1 | Geographic research files on the Cobb family, Ohio and Vermont, Barton-Middleburg undated | |||||||||
| 4 | 2 | Geographic research files on the Cobb family, Vermont, Paulet - Woodstock undated | |||||||||
| 4 | 3 | Research files on allied families, Allyn - Annable undated | |||||||||
| 4 | 4 | Research files on allied families, Baker - Howell undated | |||||||||
| 4 | 5 | Research files on allied families, Ingersoll - Woodruff undated | |||||||||
| 4 | 6 | Genealogical data cards on the Cobb family, Aaron - Amos undated | |||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||
| 5 | 1 | Genealogical data cards on the Cobb family, Andrew - Chloe undated | |||||||||
| 5 | 2 | Genealogical data cards on the Cobb family, Clara - Elias undated | |||||||||
| 5 | 3 | Genealogical data cards on the Cobb family, Elijah - Experience undated | |||||||||
| 5 | 4 | Genealogical data cards on the Cobb family, Ezekiel - Helen undated | |||||||||
| 5 | 5 | Genealogical data cards on the Cobb family, Henry - John undated | |||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||
| 6 | 1 | Genealogical data cards on the Cobb family, Jonathan - Marcia undated | |||||||||
| 6 | 2 | Genealogical data cards on the Cobb family, Margaret - Molly undated | |||||||||
| 6 | 3 | Genealogical data cards on the Cobb family, Morgan - Rhoda undated | |||||||||
| 6 | 4 | Genealogical data cards on the Cobb family, Samuel - Smith undated | |||||||||
| 6 | 5 | Genealogical data cards on the Cobb family, Solomon - Zabdiel undated | |||||||||
| Box | Folder | ||||||||||
| 7 | 1 | Index cards on the Cobb family in three series: Series I contains Abiah E. - Zeruiah and Series II contains Aaron - John William undated | |||||||||
| 7 | 2 | Index cards on the Cobb family in three series: Series II contains Nicholas - Nathaniel and Series III contains Abiah - Zilpah undated | |||||||||
| 7 | 3 | Index cards on allied families, Adams - Williamson undated | |||||||||
| 7 | 4 | Index cards on allied families, Allen - Young; and geographic index cards undated | |||||||||
| Folder | |||||||||||
| 1 | Oversize Folder 1: Two genealogical charts of the Samuel Cobb family undated | ||||||||||