Why is there so much confusion about Captain John Bishop being from Scotland instead of England?
When Michael Dean Bishop, Guardian of the House of Bishop set out to find the origins of Captain John Bishop, he followed the tobacco money.
Captain John Bishop immigrated to James City County, Virginia in 1643 and settled on the South side of the James River in Charles City County, Virginia. Captain John had a royal writ to raise tobacco from King Charles I of England and Scotland. It is important to remember however, that Captain John Bishop most likely had been living in England for several years as we shall see.
Captain John Bishop founded Swan’s Bay plantation on the head waters of Upper-Chippokes Creek. He went about the being a planter, served honorably in the Virginia House of Burgesses for several terms and was Captain of the militia in Charles City County, hence the name Captain John Bishop.
While working as a planter, Captain John and his workers would fill large tobacco barrels known as “hogsheads” then roll them onto the ship “The Golden Lyon” that he was part owner in along with other Virginia tobacco merchants. When filled, these large barrels weighed in excess of 1,000 lbs. The tobacco would be shipped to Captain John’s brother James Bischop (note the change in spelling), for pick up at the port of Greenock (also called port Glasgow) near Glasgow and would later become the city of Bishopton in Western Scotland.
The tobacco money led to Glasgow Scotland and the Bischop family led to Linlithgow and Currie Scotland!
We have not found any record of Captain John Bishop arriving in Virginia on a specific ship, as he may have traveled on the Golden Lyon?
After tracking down the origins of Captain John’s brother James Bishop, the trail led to the royal burgh of Linlithgow and Currie in West-Lothian, Scotland.
St. Michael’s Cathedral in Linlithgow, West-Lothian Scotland
After several weeks of tracking down documents, estates and tombstones relating to Captain John Bishop’s family, Guardian of the House of Bishop Michael Dean Bishop finally hit pay dirt in the basement of St. Michael’s Cathedral in Linlithgow. The baptismal records for Captain John and his whole family were there!
In Michael’s own words, addressing these records, which can be seen under the gallery section of Captain John Bishop, his siblings and his parents are printed here and can also be seen in each family members gallery section:
Many important facts were discovered regarding our Bischop/Bishop family. For instance, Sir William Bischop, the elder (Captain John’s father) was a sheriff and Burgess of Edinburgh. The tombstones of both he and his wife (Captain John’s mother) Elizabeth Ramsay were discovered. Guardian Michael Dean Bishop visited the former estates of Sir William and Elizabeth in Currie and the estate of Captain John’s brother James in Bishopton, near Glasgow. Michael also found the site of the grain mill run by Sir William, the elder and his son William, the younger (Captain John’s brother).
The name of Captain John’s grandfather Sir James Bischop was not only discovered, but it was learned that Sir James died a hero’s death protecting his friend Sir William Lauder at Haulton/Hatton House, from being killed by Thomas Henderson henchman of Patrick Hepburn, 3rd Earl Bothwell.
Captain John Bishop’s entire family was full of knights, burgesses, sheriffs, merchants, armigers, ladies, privy council members and Masons. Their marriages reinforced connection to the Anglo Norman nobility of the day, that can be viewed in our allied family section.
The Bischop/Bishop family by their longevity and status in their community demonstrate tenor and history in Scotland. The tobacco trade was not just a short term business adventure North of the Border!
Numerous documents were found over the years, including Privy Council records showing Captain John Bishop’s family were well connected due to their hard work and faithful service to Royal Stewart family, all the way back to King Robert the Bruce. Most importantly, friendships were built along the way with kith and kin across the sea!
Why did Captain John Bishop end up in England prior to immigrating to Virginia?
When Queen Elizabeth I died on 24 March 1603, King James VI (Stewart) of Scotland became King James I of England and the new United Kingdom. Perhaps some of you have the heard the term “Union Jack”?
In one sense, Union Jack refers to the English white and red St. George Cross flag and Scottish blue and white St. Andrew’s cross being over laid with each other to form what we know today as the British or United Kingdom (UK) flag (the rectangular red lines came later with the occupation of Northern Ireland and the white and red St. Patrick’s cross.)
In a stronger sense, the term was a derogatory term for King James himself. He in essence after centuries of war and struggle for Scotland’s independence reunited the countries. It is important to put all this in perspective however. King James had grown up for sometime without his mother Mary Queen of Scots who had been imprisoned for several years and eventually executed by her cousin Queen Elizabeth I of England.
King James VI of Scotland changed the spelling of his last name to the French spelling (Stuart) and started moving his court South to London, England to assume the English throne as King James I. He would not travel lightly however. During this time period in Scotland, first born sons (by law) inherited their fathers estates. This left younger siblings such as Captain John Bishop with motivation to improve their lots in life. King James sent emissaries throughout Scotland ordering and soliciting non-first born sons and daughters from noble families he already knew and trusted to go with him, work in his service, protect him in England, and get opportunities to improve their station in life they would not have otherwise had in Scotland. Captain John Bishop was one of these men. He would have been 14 years old at the time.
Although we have not done a tremendous amount of research on the subject, King James took to England with him between 500-1000 persons initially and added many more over the years. King James did not trust the English. After all they had persecuted and killed his mother. King James prior to being succeeded by his son Charles I (Stuart) on 27 March 1625, brought the world the treasured King James Bible.
Was Captain John Bishop a previous gunsmith to King Charles I ?
We are not sure what the young and future Captain John Bishop initially did, or eventually did in England for King James I or his successor King Charles I in England, but we do know he spent a majority of his life there. He became of age, took a wife and had children either prior to or shortly after arriving in Virginia. We also know that his wife, children, friends and associates for the rest of his days, included some of the most powerful planter families that traveled to Virginia from England.
One of the theories we are looking into references a John Bishop that was a gunsmith or “gunner” to King Charles I and worked in and around Exeter. One of the intriguing things about this theory centers around a Virginia plantation known as Martin’s Hundred that sat on the current site of the surviving Carter’s Grove Plantation, East of Jamestown on the North side of the James River.
Martin’s Hundred was one of the subsidiary “particular” plantations of the joint-stock Virginia Company of London. It was owned by a group of investors known as The Society of Martin’s Hundred, named for Richard Martin recorder of the City of London.
The Society of Martin’s Hundred obtained a grant for 80,000 acres from its parent company in 1618. In October of that year, about 250 settlers departed for the plantation, arriving in Virginia about January or March, 1619.
Like all of the land the English claimed along the river, the plantation’s 21,500 acres (87 km2) had been part of the domain of the Powhatan association of Native American Tidewater tribes formed at the end of the 16th century by the Indian Chief Powhatan On March 22, 1622, the Powhatans rose to kill as many English as they could surprise in their homes and fields. From near modern Richmond to Newport News, Virginia, the Powhatans burned and looted dwellings and desecrated corpses. Death counts vary, but about 400 English died. Martin’s Hundred, the plantation hardest hit, lost more than 50, perhaps as many as 70. Wolstenholme Towne’s death toll was not separated in the death rolls.
The Powhatan attack of 1622 nearly accomplished its purpose. The English withdrew from their scattered settlements to the safety of Jamestown. Wolstenholme Towne was resettled a year or more later but abandoned sometime after 1645.
Martin’s Hundred was represented in the Virginia House of Burgesses from 1619 until 1634, when Virginia’s counties were formed.
An ongoing modern day archaeological excavation is going on at the site of Martin’s Hundred. The oldest items they have pulled from the ruins is led lattice used to frame windows. The back of them are clearly marked John Bishop of Exeter Gunner 1625. While this proves nothing about Captain John Bishop’s time in England, it is worth noting that these lead lattices were found less than 40 miles from where Swan’s Bay Plantation, the home of Captain John Bishop once stood.
If this Gunner is our younger Captain John Bishop, he would have had plenty of time to apprentice before possibly being appointed Gunner to King Charles I in 1625. The timetables fit, since Captain John did not immigrate until 1643. Additionally, it is of note that This John Bishop Gunner would have been living and working in Exeter, Devon, England a mere 17 miles from where we believe Elizabeth Menefee/Menifie, possible wife to Captain John Bishop and her family lived in Honiton On Otter, Devon, England.
Additionally, Captain John Bishop donated windows to the church in Jamestown, Virginia. These windows had the same markings on the lead lattices that were found in the archeological excavation at Martin’s Hundred.
There were two John Bishop families
Over the years, two John Bishop’s have in large part been morphed into one John Bishop. Why would this happen? We believe the record keeping for this time and place is above average? Since we are no smarter than any other researchers out there (and won’t be building you a rocket anytime soon), here is why we think two different John Bishop’s were morphed into one:
Captain John Bishop born 1590 in Scotland immigrated to Virginia in 1643. Built Swan’s Bay plantation on Upper-Chippokes Creek in Charles City County (Southside of the James River) and representing Charles City County in the Virginia House of Burgesses and as their Captain of Militia. Captain John Bishop married (most likely) either Elizabeth Booker or Elizabeth Menefee/Menifie. Captain John Bishop died in 1656. Captain John Bishop’s son John Bishop, Jr. Esquire married Sarah Lawrence. John Bishop Jr., Esquire was born in approximately 1640 and died in August of 1716. There are records of him selling Swan’s Bay plantation after the death of his father Captain John Bishop and living with and around families associated with Captain John Bishop.
The John Bishop that was born 1612 in England and immigrated to Virginia (most likely John Bishop on the ship Paule) in 1635. He lived and worked on Lower-Chippokes Creek in Surry County (Southside of James River) and also lived and worked in Surry County. This John Bishop married Elizabeth Burgess and died in 1658. This John Bishop’s son John was born in approximately 1640, did not marry and was hanged for his part in Bacon’s Rebellion in 1676. Francis Mason the family layer ended up with all their land.
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Both John Bishop’s were within 15 years of age of each other and immigrated within 8 years of each other.
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Both men lived on the same side of the James River less than 25 miles from each other.
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Both men’s land involved the name Chippoaks Creek (Captain John’s 25 miles Up river to the Northwest).
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Both men had wives named Elizabeth and sons named John, born about the same time.
We were able to easily separate these two John Bishop’s using “headrights” for land, their family associations and connections and especially their lineages.
We put the John Bishop from England in our tree for all to see, so these differences could be seen visually. We listed this family as Bishopp to separate them, as they did know some of the same families.
Bishopp with two P’s does not reflect how either man may or may not have spelled their own name. It is simply a separator in the House of Bishop working tree so they can be easily looked up.
In their gallery are some land records and family associations to help explain it visually.
We hope this helps everyone understand our claim that Captain John Bishop came from Scotland. Please email us with any questions.
Thank you and talk to you soon!