The Corbins - My Maternal Grandparents

Gosh, I hardly know where to begin in writing about the Corbins.   I literally have hundreds of pages of material and I'm able to trace our Corbin lineage back twenty-six generations---all the way back to the "Doomsday" book completed in 1086 AD.   William the Conqueror (who was a Norman from the country we call France today) conquered England and wanted to make sure that he was able to identify and tax the nobility.   He ordered a great survey/census taken in 1086 AD and one of the people listed in the book is Nicholas Corbyn, my 26th Great Grandfather.

One of five family crests found for the Corbin family.   This crest belonged to the nobility of the Corbin family in England.

According to ancient traditions, the name Corbin is of Viking/Scandinavian origin.   That is entirely possible because 1000 years ago, the Vikings terrorized most of England, Ireland, Iceland, Greenland and northern Europe.  The Vikings even settled in areas of eastern Canada and what is today New England---a millenium before Christopher Columbus.  In the ancient Anglo-Norman dialect, Corbin means crow.   Perhaps that is why four of the five family crests have crows depicted on them.

Most of those 26 generations of the Corbin family are English.  Most of the genealogical material and research would lead us to believe that there were three Corbin brothers who came from England in the 1600s.   One of the brothers settled in New England, the other in Maryland and the third in Virginia.   The first American descendant of our family line came from England and settled in Baltimore County on the eastern shores of Maryland.   Keep in mind that Maryland was settled as a Catholic Colony.  Our Corbin family was not Catholic, but members of the Church of England or what we also call the Episcopal Church.  My intent here is not to provide a generation by generation genealogy, that will wait for a later writing.   What I would like to emphasize is that our Corbin family is extremely fortunate in that it can be traced for over 1000 years.

In this blog, I would like to provide brief information about the first American Corbins and in later blogs, I will discuss the more recent generations, including that of my maternal grandfather, Robert Corbin and his ancestors.

When I began to trace my family, I asked my mother, Lucille Corbin Clark, if Nick or Nicholas was a family name.   She quickly answered, "No.   Your Dad and I liked the nickname "Nickey" and we weren't thinking about family names at all."   You will quickly determine that Nicholas is a Corbin family name that has been used again and again through the twenty-six generations.   And yes, my family did call me "Nickey" for the first 30 years of my life.   The last birthday card I received from my mother in 2010, was addressed to Nickey Clark.

Here's what I have learned about our first American Corbin ancestor:
English Lord Nicholas Corbin immigrated to Baltimore County, Maryland in 1671, bringing with him, his wife Elizabeth and two daughters, Elizabeth and Mary. He received Royal Patents for a two hundred acre tract, dated the 26th of July 1680,  which he called "Corbin's Hill"; and a one acre tract, dated the 6th of March 1687, called "Costrell Hill". He was the Constable for "Northside Patapsco Hundred" in 1692 and was a Vestryman for "Patapsco Parish" in 1693 and 1696.

Corbyn Hall, the ancestral seat of the Corbyn/Corbin family in Halls End, Warwickshire, England.

Lord Nicholas Corbin  was born at Halls End, Warwickshire, England between 1645 and 1650.   He was married to Elizabeth Kemp, also born between 1645 and 1650, at Halls End, in 1669.   The Corbins had two daughters, Elizabeth born in 1670 and Mary Corbin born in 1671.   Lord Nicholas and his family migrated to Baltimore, Maryland in November 1671.  They were the parents of three more children born in America:  Nicholas, Jr. born in 1677, Edward born in 1678 and Nathaniel born in 1683.    Elizabeth Kemp Corbin died in 1685 and Lord Corbin was married a second time to Alice Bryen in 1685.  Alice Bryen was born about 1655 and died in 1713.   To this union, one child was born:  Providence in 1693.  Lord Nicholas Corbin died  on May 11, 1697 at Corbin's Hill, Baltimore County, Maryland and he was buried in St. Paul's Parish, Baltimore, Maryland.   Let me state again, that there are dozens of variations for dates of birth, death and marriage for every one of the individuals listed in this family.    I am providing the most commonly provided version but I am not any more sure than any of the other genealogists working on the Corbins.

Edward Corbin, the son of Nicholas and Elizabeth Kemp Corbin, is our next ancestor.    He was born in 1678 in Baltimore, Baltimore County, Maryland and was married to Mary Jane Wilkinson at Baltimore, Maryland in 1708.  Mary Jane Wilkinson Corbin was born in 1690 to William and Elizabeth Clarke Wilkinson at Baltimore, Baltimore County, Maryland.   They were the parents of  eight children:  Jane born in 1708; Nicholas born 1710; Edward born 1721; Abraham born 1722, Phyllis Anna born 1725; twins Providence and William Wilkerson born 1727 and Unity born 1730.
Again, there is conflict as to the children and the dates of their birth, but I am providing the most commonly accepted.



Nicholas and Eleanor Corbin's son Nathan is our next ancestor.    Nathan Corbin was born at Baltimore, Baltimore County, Maryland in 1783.   He was married to Sarah James on October 16, 1758 at Baltimore, Maryland.    Sarah James Corbin was born on October 2, 1833 at Baltimore and died in 1838.    To their union were born:  John in 1760; Nicholas in 1762; Shadrack in 1766; Nancy in 1768; David in 1770; Delia in 1772; and Nathan in 1776.     As you can see, so many of the names were used again and again and it makes detailing the family lineage very, very difficult.   There are at least 12 variations of this family on Ancestry.com.

I have no doubt that John Corbin, son of Nathan and Sarah James Corbin, is our next ancestor.   He was born March 31, 1760 at Baltimore, Baltimore County, Maryland.   He married Mary Peddicord in 1775 at Baltimore, Maryland.   Mary Corbin was born on May 30, 1763 in Maryland and died on May 30, 1838 in Clermont County, Ohio.  John Corbin died on July 31, 1852 in Clermont County, Ohio.  John and Mary Corbin were parents of the following:  Nicholas, Shadrack, John, Abraham, Sarah (Anderson); Elizabeth (Mitchell), Lydia (Gray), James and Nathan.   Again dear readers, there is great dissension among genealogists as to names of their children but these names are documented in the will of John Corbin.    As you can see, John would have been 15 when they were married, and Mary 13.    This was not unheard of during this time period, but it would have been unusual, especially for families of means in Baltimore, Maryland.

John Corbin was a veteran of the Revolutionary War.  He served in the 3rd Virginia Infantry.   This is how John came to move his family to Ohio.   Revolutionary War veterans were eligible to receive free land by virtue of their service.   John claimed his land in Clermont County, Ohio and moved there about 1815.

John and Mary Corbin's son Nathan Corbin, born in 1785, is my 3rd Great Grandfather.   He was born in Baltimore, Baltimore County, Maryland and moved to Ohio with his father and mother in about 1815.    Not much about Nathan is known, but I would like cite the following three sources of information.

No record of Nathan's death has been found. But on August 5, 1822, there was a deed of sale for 15 acres from a tract which had been owned by Nathan Corbin, and which the Clermont Court of Common Pleas had set aside for the widow of Nathan Corbin, as her right of dower. The sellers were Elijah Lindsey and Mary Lindsey, which proves that Mary Lindsey was the widow of Nathan Corbin. On the deed, it says, "...late Mary Corbin, widow of the deceased. The buyer was John Corbin, her father-in-law. Deed Book #V20, P. 446.

In the will of Nathan's father, John Corbin, Sr., (Will Book G, page 105, dated April 23, 1826) John Corbin makes the following bequests:

At the death of my wife, Mary, all property is to be equally divided among my eight living children: Nicholas, Shadrach, John, Abraham, Sarah Anderson, Elizabeth Mitchell, Lydia Gray, heirs of my deceased son James; and the son and daughter of my deceased son, Nathan, are to receive $1.00 each.

According to Evert's History of Clermont County, Ohio, page 384, "John Corbin Sr., who I believe came from Maryland, settled in Round Bottom Road area, near where the Carmel Cemetery now is, in about the year 1815. His brother, Abram Corbin, settled just north of him, where Joseph Turner now lives, and Nathan Corbin, son of John Corbin, settled just across the road from Abram Corbin."

We have since learned that Nathan was married to Mary Anderson but we do not know the year.   They were the parents of two children:  James Corbin and Sarah Corbin.   After Nathan's death, Mary Anderson married Elijah Lindsey.   Elijah and Mary Anderson then moved to Crown Point, Lake County, Indiana and took James and Sarah Corbin with them.
According to Goodspeed's "History of Lake County, Indiana," James Corbin and John Lindsey were among the earliest settlers of Winfield Township."  page 590.

This is a photo, made from an original tintype, of Mary Anderson-Corbin-Lindsey-Brewer.  I believe that many readers who have known Aunt Edna and Aunt Sylvia Corbin, will see the resemblance right away.

Elijah and Mary Lindsey had several more children after they moved to Crown Point, Lake County, Indiana.   They were Catherine b. 1820; Elizabeth b. 1822; Nancy b. 1825 and Elijah Jr. b. 1826.  Sarah and James Corbin, his step children, remained with the family until they married.

Elijah Lindsey died in about 1840 and Mary Anderson-Corbin-Lindsey married a third time to John Brewer on May 23, 1844 in Lake County, Indiana.   John Brewer was born in 1790 and died in 1860.

James Corbin, my 2nd Great Grandfather, married and lived near his mother and step-father for a number of years.   On February 5, 1837, he married Cynthia Ann Casteel at Clermont County, Ohio.  Their children are:    William T. b. Feb. 2, 1838 in Lake County, IN; Griffin born Decembe 7, 1839 in Lake County, IN; Elmer Nathaniel b. January 22, 1841 in Michigan City, Lake County, IN; Mary Elizabeth b. February 4, 1844 at Michigan City, Lake County, IN; Sarah Catherine b. February 1, 1847 in Winfield Township, Lake County, Indiana; James Polk born July 13, 1850 at West Liberty, Putnam County, MO; George Washington b. May 16, 1853 at West Liberty, Putnam County, MO; Martha Jane b. May 27, 1856 at West Liberty, Putnam County, MO; and Nancy Anna b. February 2, 1860 at West Liberty, Putnam County, MO.

This is the only known image of James and Cynthia Ann (Casteel) Corbin.   I made a copy of it during a 1973 visit to Reva Todd Dixon, a cousin living near West Liberty/Unionville, Missouri.   It is most unusual in that it appears to be a charcoal drawing on canvas.  Since it did indicate they were living in Ayr, Nebraska the photo/drawing much have been made in about 1880.

I'm going to stop there for now.    I have much information about this family that I will share, as well as many photographs, but I have already provided several generations today and readers will need some time to let it "sink in."    Happy trails!