John Cockburn

Abt 1659 - Aft 1712  (> 54 years)

• Name	John Cockburn
  Birth	Abt 1659
  Gender	Male
  Occupation	1675	Melrose, Roxburghshire, Scotland   [1]
  	Mason, and signer, as freemason member of the Melrose Lodge, of an agreement on 29 January 1675 regulating apprenticeships
  Departure	11 Jul 1684	Leith, Midlothian, Scotland
  	Aboard the Shield of Stockton
  Arrival	29 Sep 1684	Patuxent River, Maryland, USA   [2]
  	Imported by John Campbell for Captain Andrew Hamilton
  Role	Oct 1684	Middlesex, New Jersey, USA   [2]
  	Indentured servant
  Name	John Cockborne  [3]
  Name	John Cockbourn  [4]
  Name	John Cowborne  [2]
  Religion	1685	East Jersey, New Jersey, USA   [5, 6]
  	Presbyterian
  Occupation	12 Mar 1684/85	Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA   [6, 7]
  	Mason, employed in building "a great Stone house" for David Mudie
  Residence	12 Mar 1684/85	East Jersey, New Jersey, USA   [6, 7]
  	When he wrote to his uncle James Brown, shoe maker in Kelso. On this date he was a servitor to Captain Andrew Hamilton
  	He also wrote a letter eight days later to fellow Kelso mason, George Fae, amongst other comments he strongly advocated emigration, saying, “It is a very pleasant Countrey and good for all Tradsmen; you was angry with me for coming away but I repent nothing of it myself, for I have abundance of imployment... Any who hath a mind to come here will get good wages; these will do far better than in Scotland”. In his letter to his uncle, he also called for his sister Katherine to join him "and Francie too"
  Property	8 Aug 1686	Elizabethtown, Essex, New Jersey, USA   [8]
  	Petitioned the Board of Proprietors for his headland
  Property	8 Aug 1686	Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA   [3]
  	Petitioned the Board of Proprietors, with John Home and William Thompson, for three back lots in Perth Amboy
  Occupation	1692	Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA   [9]
  	Mason employed by John Reid and David Mudie repair the Governor's house, for a fee of £65
  Property	28 Feb 1691/92	Newark, Essex, New Jersey, USA   [10]
  	Petitioned the Board of Proprietors for 30 acres of headland within the bounds of Newark
  	The record says he arrived in November 1684
  Occupation	1695	New York, New York, USA   [11]
  	Mason
  Residence	Jan 1694/95	New York, New York, USA
  	Freemason
  Property	4 Jan 1694/95	East Jersey, New Jersey, USA   [11]
  	Deed, John Sharp of New York, carpenter, to John Cockburn of the same place, mason, for the headland of 60 acres due him and his brother George Sharp, who came from Scotland to East Jersey as servants of Gilbert Innes in 1684
  Property	4 Jan 1694/95	East Jersey, New Jersey, USA   [12]
  	Deed, Robert Anderson of New York to John Cockbourn, for his headland (30 acres), he having come as servant from Scotland to East Jersey in 1683
  Property	18 May 1695	Newark, Essex, New Jersey, USA   [13]
  	Petitioned the Board of Proprietors for a patent for land he had bought from Richard Limon, along with 120 acres in right of headlands he had bought from Robert Anderson, John Sharp, George Sharp and Matthew Crosby
  Property	20 Jan 1695/96	Newark, Essex, New Jersey, USA   [14]
  	Patent to John Cockburn of Newark, mason for 205 acres there, of which 55 acres are paid for, 30 are given in right of Benjamin Griffith and 120 are for the headland of Robert Anderson, Mathew Gracie, John and George Sharp
  Origin	Kelso, Roxburghshire, Scotland
  Death	Aft 1712
  Person ID	I45231	East Jersey Genealogies
  Last Modified	19 Oct 2025

  
  

  Father	Cockburn
  Relationship	natural
  Mother	daughter Brown
  Relationship	natural
  Family ID	F31730	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Elizabeth (Cockburn)
  Family ID	F31986	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	19 Oct 2025

  
  

• Event Map

  Occupation - Mason, and signer, as freemason member of the Melrose Lodge, of an agreement on 29 January 1675 regulating apprenticeships - 1675 - Melrose, Roxburghshire, Scotland Departure - Aboard the Shield of Stockton - 11 Jul 1684 - Leith, Midlothian, Scotland Arrival - Imported by John Campbell for Captain Andrew Hamilton - 29 Sep 1684 - Patuxent River, Maryland, USA Role - Indentured servant - Oct 1684 - Middlesex, New Jersey, USA Occupation - Mason, employed in building "a great Stone house" for David Mudie - 12 Mar 1684/85 - Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA Property - Petitioned the Board of Proprietors for his headland - 8 Aug 1686 - Elizabethtown, Essex, New Jersey, USA Property - Petitioned the Board of Proprietors, with John Home and William Thompson, for three back lots in Perth Amboy - 8 Aug 1686 - Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA Occupation - Mason employed by John Reid and David Mudie repair the Governor's house, for a fee of £65 - 1692 - Perth Amboy, Middlesex, New Jersey, USA Property - Petitioned the Board of Proprietors for 30 acres of headland within the bounds of Newark - 28 Feb 1691/92 - Newark, Essex, New Jersey, USA Occupation - Mason - 1695 - New York, New York, USA Residence - Freemason - Jan 1694/95 - New York, New York, USA Property - Petitioned the Board of Proprietors for a patent for land he had bought from Richard Limon, along with 120 acres in right of headlands he had bought from Robert Anderson, John Sharp, George Sharp and Matthew Crosby - 18 May 1695 - Newark, Essex, New Jersey, USA Property - Patent to John Cockburn of Newark, mason for 205 acres there, of which 55 acres are paid for, 30 are given in right of Benjamin Griffith and 120 are for the headland of Robert Anderson, Mathew Gracie, John and George Sharp - 20 Jan 1695/96 - Newark, Essex, New Jersey, USA Origin - - Kelso, Roxburghshire, Scotland  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Sources

  [S3687] Stevenson, David, The First Freemasons. pp 113, 116 [S3607] Nelson, William, Calendar of Records in the Office of the Secretary of State, 1664-1703, p65. [S3720] Miller, George J., The Minutes of the Board of Proprietors of the Eastern Division of New Jersey from 1685 to 1705, p136. [S3607] Nelson, William, Calendar of Records in the Office of the Secretary of State, 1664-1703, p232. [S3558] Whitehead, William A., East Jersey under the Proprietary Governments; A Narrative of Events Connected with the Settlement and Progress of the Province, until the Surrender of the Government to the Crown in 1703, p472. [S3550] Scot, George, The Model of the Government of the Province of East-New-Jersey in America, pp265-267. [S3558] Whitehead, William A., East Jersey under the Proprietary Governments; A Narrative of Events Connected with the Settlement and Progress of the Province, until the Surrender of the Government to the Crown in 1703, pp471-473. [S3720] Miller, George J., The Minutes of the Board of Proprietors of the Eastern Division of New Jersey from 1685 to 1705, p137. [S3720] Miller, George J., The Minutes of the Board of Proprietors of the Eastern Division of New Jersey from 1685 to 1705, pp192-193. [S3720] Miller, George J., The Minutes of the Board of Proprietors of the Eastern Division of New Jersey from 1685 to 1705, p201. [S3607] Nelson, William, Calendar of Records in the Office of the Secretary of State, 1664-1703, p231. [S3607] Nelson, William, Calendar of Records in the Office of the Secretary of State, 1664-1703, p233. [S3720] Miller, George J., The Minutes of the Board of Proprietors of the Eastern Division of New Jersey from 1685 to 1705, p214. [S3607] Nelson, William, Calendar of Records in the Office of the Secretary of State, 1664-1703, p272.