If you've recently found Rockwells in your ancestry, there's a high probability that
you descend from one of the four 17th-century immigrants named on the Rockwell Research
Circle logo. They are:
- William Rockwell, born in Fitzhead, co. Somerset, England, who came to Dorchester, Mass., in 1630 on the ship Mary and John, and moved to Windsor, Connecticut, where he died in 1640;
- John Rockwell, who settled in Stamford, Conn., in 1641, and lived at Rye (today in Westchester Co., NY) in 1669-1673);
- Josiah Rockwell, who was at New London, Conn., by 1660 and lived at
Norwich from 1673 to January of 1676, when he was killed by Indians; or
- Robert Rockhold, and early settler of Virginia and Maryland, some of whose descendants have taken the Rockwell surname.
A fifth early immigrant is John, brother of William of Windsor, who is known to have a large progeny through his two daughters Mary (married Robert Watson of Windsor) and Anna (married Zachary Sanford Jr.; they moved to Saybrook). He may also be the father of the aforementioned John of Stamford. At least, that's the most popular theory, since he did have a son John baptized at Fitzhead in 1621, and the
DNA evidence shows that John of Stamford was closely related to William and John of Windsor. Josiah, likewise; while Robert Rockhold of Virginia is found to be unrelated.
If your research gets you back to the 18th century, there's a good chance someone has the details on your line back to the immigrant. Feel free to inquire.
One of my projects is a sort of reverse query list; I like to call it my
"loose Rocks pile." It includes Rockwells whose ancestry is known and who may have had children (as indicated, for example, by early census listings), but whose trails have gone cold. I also list here some early Rockwells not yet linked to the immigrants.