Tag: NewEngland

This post is an update to the 2021 post.

Is that year correct?  The 1600’s?  You betcha!  My 10th Great Grandfather.

There are many, many spellings of his last name.  Hicox, Hikox, Hickox, Hecock, Hickcock, Heacock, Hickock(s), etc.

William arrived in America in about 1635 on the ship “Plain Joan, ” a passenger ship from England to Virginia when he was about 36 years old.  He soon went and was one of the original settlers of Farmington, Connecticut.    William’s wife was named Elizabeth, however, historians are unsure of her maiden name.

“Farmington was settled almost entirely from Hartford, and a large proportion of the early landowners were nonresident proprietors who continued to live in Hartford. The original purchase of Farmington was made from the Indians by John Haynes on behalf of the settlers of Hartford. The deed was dated 1640. The earliest-known Farmington landowners with the possible exception of Nathaniel Watson and Ezekiel Banks, whose origins have not been traced, were all Hartford men.” Source:  Bickford, Christopher.  Farmington in Connecticut. Canaan NH: Phoenix Publishing, 1982. At Salt Lake City, Utah: FHL 974.62/F1 H2b. 

William and Elizabeth had two sons, Samuel and Joseph, the latter being our ancestor.  Soon after William bought his home lot in Farmington in 1645, he died while farming the land.

Elizabeth remarried and had two more children.  However, in 1655, her second husband died.  And, tragically, a few weeks after that, Elizabeth died.  Four children ages 3 through 12 were left without parents.  In 1655, smallpox and fever were rampant in New England, which may have been the cause of the deaths.

By the time Mr. Adam’s Estate was taken on 6 September 1655, his widow also was gone. The value was determined at £36:03:00. The children listed were as follows:
Benjamin age 6 years
Elizabeth 3 years
Samuel Heacock 12
Joseph Heacock 10 years of age

Not much is known about his and Samuel’s upbringing after that.  We do know that Joseph married Mary Carpenter and died in 1687 shortly after their fifth child was born.  Thanks to their first child, Joseph, our line continues…

There are two William Hickoks of similar age and in all probability, the family came from Stratford-on-Avon, Warwickshire, England as did the other William. As a great many of this family removed to London as early as 1567, it is believed that our William was born in London.

Supposedly, James Butler “Wild Bill” Hickok is a descendant of Joseph.

Wild Bill was the 5th great-grandson of William Hickocks, patriarch of the Hickok family. His line is as follows: William Hickoks – Joseph – Joseph – Stephen – Aaron – Oliver Otis – William Alonzo – James Butler Hickok.  I’ll have to see if I can prove this.  I’ve only traced this line to Stephen.  🙂

UPDATE:  Yes, “Wild Bill” and I are related.  He is my 4th cousin 5x removed through Joseph’s son, Stephen.  I wonder if he knew that his 4th great-grandmother was accused of being a Salem Witch!

From the book, They Called Him Wild Bill: The Life and Adventures of James Butler Hickok, By Joseph G. Rosa

Were he and Shakespeare neighbors?  If you look up Shakespeare’s Birthplace on Wikipedia, it states, “The ownership of the premises passed to William on John Shakespeare’s death. However, by that time William already owned New Place in Stratford and had no need for the Henley Street premises as a home for himself or his family. Consequently, the main house was leased to Lewis Hiccox, who converted it into an inn known as the Maidenhead (later the Swan and Maidenhead Inn), and the small, one-bay house to the north-west was put to residential use.”

 1863 Picture below

2017 Picture Below

The Hickox family came to Connecticut as did the Logan family, lucky for John as that is where he met Dorcas Root, Joseph Hickox’s granddaughter,  and became my 6th great-grandmother.

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Your Family Tree Research Specialist

Research Specialist