'Rolfe2'
Index links to: Lead / Letter
Families covered: Rolfe of Enford, Rolfe of Heacham, Rolfe of Lynn
[Much of the following was released on 16.03.17 as a single upper section on a DRAFT page, being based on BLG1886 & Wikipedia. The lower section was added on 29.07.21. The page was reviewed & amended on 02.11.26 after using BLG1850 and revisiting Wikipedia. This led to the splitting of the old upper section into the new upper & middle sections shown below. The lower section has been left unchanged after acceptance that there was little chance of our making a significant improvement to it in the near future and that it was 'good enough' to be promoted into the main database.]
| (1) BLG1886 shows the Rolfe coat of arms as "gyronny of eight or and az., on a chief sa. three annulets arg." (2) Various web sites suggest that the undermentoned Eustace had a brother named John and was son of Robert. |
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| Robert Rolfe | |||||||||||||||
| 1. | Eustace Rolfe of Heacham, Norfolk (b c1516, d 06.1593) the first mentioned | ||||||||||||||
| m. (27.05.1560) Joanna Jenner | |||||||||||||||
| A. | John Rolfe of Heacham (b 17.10.1562, d 29.11.1594) | ||||||||||||||
| m. (24.09.1582) Dorothea Mason (d 17.10.1645, m2. Robert Redmaine) | |||||||||||||||
| BLG1886 jumps from the unnamed son of Eustatius (Eustace) who married Dorothea Mason to the "last direct male respresentative", Edmund, only son of Edmund by Dorothy Folkes. BLG1850 reports that "By the loss of the parish register, we do not meet family again till 1639". | |||||||||||||||
| i. | ?? Rolfe various web sites suggest that this was Eustace (bpt 06.05.1585), possibly father or grandfather of ... | ||||||||||||||
| a. | Henry Rolfe of Narford | ||||||||||||||
| (1) | Francis Rolfe (bur 1678, town clerk of Lynn) | ||||||||||||||
| m. (1639) Margaret Horsnell (dau of William Horsnell of London) | |||||||||||||||
| (A) | John Rolfe (b 1641, d 1706) | ||||||||||||||
| m. Dorothy | |||||||||||||||
| (i) | William Rolfe (b 1669, dsp 1754) | ||||||||||||||
| m. Thomasine Ringall (dau of John Ringall of Easton) | |||||||||||||||
| (B) | Edmund Rolfe 'of Heacham', Mayor of Lynn (d 1726, 5th son) | ||||||||||||||
| m. (1675) Elizabeth Scott (dau of John Scott, alderman of Lynn) | |||||||||||||||
| (i) | Jonas Rolfe (b 1677, dvp 1725)) | ||||||||||||||
| m1. Anne Keene (dau of Benjamin Keene of Lynn) | |||||||||||||||
| (a) | Edmund Rolfe of Heacham (b 1700, d 1774) | ||||||||||||||
| m1. Anne Smith (d 1739, dau of Humfrey Smith of Brancaster) | |||||||||||||||
| ((1)) | Edmund Rolfe of Heacham, Sheriff of Norfolk (b 1738, d 1817) | ||||||||||||||
| m. (1764) Dorothy Fulkes (dau of William Fulkes of Hillington Hall) | |||||||||||||||
| ((A)) | Edmund Rolfe of Heacham (dsp 17.12.1836) | ||||||||||||||
| m. Catherine Frances Biscoe (d 26.01.1837, dau of Elisha Biscoe of Spring Gardens) | |||||||||||||||
| BLG1886 reports that Edmund bequeathed Heacham Hall to Strickland Charles Edward Neville, vicar of Heacham, who then assumed the surname and arms of Rolfe. | |||||||||||||||
| ((B)) | Dorothy Ethelred Rolfe (b 1765, dsp 1807) | ||||||||||||||
| m1. Walter Strickland (Colonel) | |||||||||||||||
| m2. Charles William Michel of Northerwood | |||||||||||||||
| ((2)) | Elizabeth Rolfe | ||||||||||||||
| m. Edmund Elsden of Lynn | |||||||||||||||
| ((3)) | Bridget Rolfe | ||||||||||||||
| m. Peter Finch of Norwich | |||||||||||||||
| ((4))+ | other issue - Anne, Katherine, Lucy | ||||||||||||||
| m2. (sp) Sarah (widow of _ Bagge) | |||||||||||||||
| (b) | Bridget Rolfe | ||||||||||||||
| m2. Lucy Smith (dau of Charles Smith of Colkirke, widow of _ Pett) | |||||||||||||||
| (c) | Jonas Rolfe | ||||||||||||||
| (d | Catherine Rolfe ## possible confusion with this Catherine Rolfe? ## | ||||||||||||||
| m. Stephen Offley | |||||||||||||||
| (e) | Theodosia Rolfe | ||||||||||||||
| m. William Emperor | |||||||||||||||
| (ii) | Susan Rolfe | ||||||||||||||
| m. (05.08.1696) Charles Keene, Mayor of Lynn | |||||||||||||||
| (iii) | Catherine Rolfe | ||||||||||||||
| m. Robert Cobb | |||||||||||||||
| (iv) | Mary Rolfe | ||||||||||||||
| m. Rev. Thomas Pyle of Lynn | |||||||||||||||
| (v) | Margaret Rolfe | ||||||||||||||
| m. William Allen of Lynn | |||||||||||||||
| (vi) | Elizabeth Rolfe | ||||||||||||||
| m. Thomas Philips | |||||||||||||||
| (vii) | Frances Rolfe | ||||||||||||||
| m. James Gyles | |||||||||||||||
| (viii) | Sarah Rolfe | ||||||||||||||
| m. Francis Boteler | |||||||||||||||
| (ix)+ | other issue - Elizabeth (d infant), Anne | ||||||||||||||
| (C)+ | other issue - Francis (b 0643), Henry (b 1644, d 1647), Wlliam (b 1645, d 1649), Margaret (b c1646), Susannah (b 1648), Sarah (b 1650), Mary (b 1663) | ||||||||||||||
| 2. | John Rolfe | ||||||||||||||
| It appears that, on 16.03.17 when this page was first worked on, Wikipedia followed the view that the undermentioned John, who m2. Pocahonras, was son of the above-shown John of Heacham and Dorothea Mason. However, on 02.11.26, Wikipedia ("John Rolfe") reported that "At one point in time it was believed that John was the son of John Rolfe and his wife Dorothy Mason. However, historians have now determined that this relationship is incorrect." Not least to provide a connection to the above family, and so 'give us an excuse' to inlude the following, we speculate that the undermentioned John was descended from this John as follows. | |||||||||||||||
| A. | ?? Rolfe presumed father or grandfather of ... | ||||||||||||||
| i. | John Rolfe in Virginia (bpt 06.05.1585, d 1622) - continued just below | ||||||||||||||
| m1. (1608) Sarah Hacker (d 1610) | |||||||||||||||
| m2. (05.04.1614) Matoaka (aka Pocahontas & Rebecca) (b c1596, d 03.1617, dau of Powhatan, chief of the Tsenacommacah) | |||||||||||||||
| m3. (1619) Jane Pierce (m2. Captain Roger Smith) | |||||||||||||||
| ii.+ | other issue - Edward (bpt 22.02.1591), Henry | ||||||||||||||
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| John Rolfe in Virginia (bpt 06.05.1585, d 1622) - continued just above | |||||||||||||||
| m1. (1608) Sarah Hacker (d 1610) | |||||||||||||||
| 1. | Bermuda Rolfe (b 1609, d 1610) | ||||||||||||||
| m2. (05.04.1614) Matoaka (aka Pocahontas & Rebecca) (b c1596, d 03.1617, dau of Powhatan, chief of the Tsenacommacah) | |||||||||||||||
| 2. | Thomas Rolfe (b 30.01.1615, d c1680?) | ||||||||||||||
| m. Jane Poythress (dau of Captain Francis Poythress of Virginia by Alice Payton of England) | |||||||||||||||
| A. | Jane Rolfe (b 10.10.1650, d 1676) | ||||||||||||||
| m. (1675) Robert Bolling of Virginia (b 26.12.1646, d 17.07.1709, Colonel, (m2. Anne Stith Drury), son of John Bolling (son of Robert) by Mary Clarke) | |||||||||||||||
| m3. (1619) Jane Pierce (m2. Captain Roger Smith) | |||||||||||||||
| 3. | Elizabeth Rolfe (b 1620, d 1635) | ||||||||||||||
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| Visitation (Hampshire, 1623, 'Rolfe') suggests that Enford was in Wiltshire which is suppored by the upper section on the relevant page in MGH. However, Visitation (Wiltshire, 1623, 'Rolfe'), which like the Hampshire Visitation shows just the 3 generations of men (and their wives) without mentioning Sarah Rolfe, suggests that Enford was in Southamptonshi re (i.e. Hampshire). Note that the Wilshire Visitation identifies the arms of the family as "Argent, three ravens sable". | |||||||||||||||
| Thomas Rolfe of Enford | |||||||||||||||
| 1. | William Rolfe of Enford | ||||||||||||||
| m. Sarah Blake (dau of John Blake of Estontown (by Margaret, dau of William Blake of Estontown), m2. John Gerle of Enford) | |||||||||||||||
| A. | William Rolfe of Enford (d 1646) | ||||||||||||||
| MGH shows that William m1. Sarah Deane and does not identify his 2nd wife. The Visitations identifies his marriage as follows. | |||||||||||||||
| m1. (sp) Johanna Wright (dau/heir of William Wright of Sevenoaks) | |||||||||||||||
| m2. Sarah Deane (dau/coheir of Richard Deane, alderman of London) | |||||||||||||||
| B. | Sarah Rolfe (d 1630) | ||||||||||||||
| m. (1616) George Dyer (b 1596, d 1661) | |||||||||||||||
Main source(s):
(1) For upper section : BLG1850 (vol 3, 'Rolfe of Heacham'), BLG1886 ('Rolfe of Heacham') with some details (shown in italics) from various web sites
(2) For middle section :Wikipedia ("John Rolfe", "Pocahontas" & "Thomas Rolfe") with input/support from various web sites
(2) For lower section : MGH (NS4 vol 1 1906), p321, lower pedigree)
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