A 450 Year History of
The Bates Family
from
William Bate, of Aston Clinton,
Buckinghamshire, England
to
Otto Francis Bates, of Belleville, Kansas, U.S.A.
1
Table of Contents
Preface...... ii
Introduction...... 1
The Origin of the Bates Name...... 4
The English Setting of Otto Bates’ Ancestors...... 5
Ancestors of Otto Bates in America...... 7
The “Edward Problem”...... 7
Biography of Elder (or Deacon) Edward Bates, the Emigrant.....9
From Massachusetts to Kansas...... 11
Heraldry...... 18
Background...... 18
Bates Coat of Arms...... 25
Genealogy of Otto Francis Bates...... 28
Children of Otto and Mamie Bates...... 32
The Lives and Times of the Otto Bates Family
and their Ancestors...... 34
Map of Great Britain...... 42
Map of Buckinghamshire (“Bucks”) England...... 43
Table of Consanguinity...... 44
i
1
A 450 Year History of
The Bates Family
from William Bate, of Aston Clinton,
Buckinghamshire, England,
to Otto Francis Bates, Belleville, Kansas, U.S.A.
Preface
I first compiled this report in May 2000 for my mother, Margaret Genevieve (Bates) Hoard, daughter of Otto and Mamie Bates. I have amended it and updated it in May 2002, primarily to correct certain information with regard to Elder (or Deacon) Edward Bates (now correctly noted as 3rd generation), our ancestor who emigrated to America from England in the early 1600s.
The original inspiration for this project came from The Bates Lifeline and other materials researched or written by Marjorie Olive Bates Iske provided by her to my late maternal uncle, Robert Eugene Bates. Sometime before his death, Uncle Bob gave my mother a copy of Mrs. Iske’s materials, and Mom allowed me to use them to do further research into her family history. Some of what appears here is verbatim from Mrs. Iske’s work, some has been edited, corrected and updated, and some portions are arranged differently than it was originally. The important point, however, is that what you see here is, in the main, the work of Mrs. Iske and others, and not me. It is not my intention to take any credit for the work of Mrs. Iske or anyone else. I take full credit, however, for any errors that may appear here.
After I had compiled my May 2000 report, I came to know Mary Jean (Bates) Evans, former President of The Bates Association, long regarded as a preeminent Bates genealogical society. Mary Jean helped me discover and clarify errors in Mrs. Iske’s materials, particularly with regard to the “Edward problem” (See page __). There has been a fair amount of confusion over the years about Edward Bate, as there was a man of the same name who settled in Boston at about the same time Elder Edward Bate was in Weymouth, Massachusetts, which is not far from Boston. Thus, Mrs. Iske was not alone in mixing up details about the two Edwards. The controversy now seems settled, however, and I am convinced that Mom’s lineage is through Elder Edward Bate of Weymouth, not Edward Bate of Boston. As a result, you will see that with this correction, we can now only trace our Bates lineage back to about 1550 in England, and not to 1380 or so, as we originally thought.
E. David Hoard
Arlington, Virginia -- May 2002
ii
1
Introduction
This little history of the ancestors of Otto Francis Bates goes back to the mid-sixteenth century. Research into the family line disclosed several Bates figuring significantly in English and American history. Some records indicate a Bates family was prominent among the citizens of Lydd, Kent County, England, as early as the 12th century. It seems clear now, however, that Otto Bates did not descend directly from them. A John Bate was a legendary soldier at the Battle of Agincourt. Although the date is not noted, one source indicates a Bates served as Lord Mayor of London, the highest ranking commoner in England, at one time.[1] A Nathaniel Bate was noted as one of the knights of the proposed order of the Royal Oak, and a Thomas Bate was a major in the army of King Charles I. The chaplain of Charles II was William Bate. Although this family history traces Otto Bates’ lineage to William Bate of Aston Clinton, Buckinghamshire, England, there is no evidence this William (Charles II’s chaplain) was the direct ancestor of Otto Francis Bates. In fact, it is unlikely, as the reign of Charles II began in 1660, some 22-25 years after Elder Edward Bate emigrated to America. Further, William Bate, the father of Elder Edward Bate, if he were alive, would have been some 90 years old at the beginning of the reign of Charles II.
Since their arrival on these shores, the Bates in America have served in the establishment, operation and defense of their country. An Israel Bates was a Minuteman who apparently fought at the Battle of Bunker Hill during the American Revolution. Several other Bates relatives were also in the Continental Army. A Colonel Jacob Bates, apparently from that branch of the family which settled in Virginia, is reported to have been with Washington when he crossed the Delaware. A Jacob Bates fought in the War of 1812. An Edward Bates was a candidate for the Republican Presidential nomination in 1860, and later served as a member of Lincoln’s Cabinet. From 1907 to 1937, the Bates family was the only family in America with its own newspaper, The Bates Bulletin.[2] The Bates Association was founded by John L. Bates, who was a former governor of Massachusetts.[3]
Otto’s branch of the Bates family begins in America with Elder (or Deacon) Edward Bate (or Bates), who is believed to have arrived in Weymouth, Massachusetts, around 1637 on a ship of unknown name. The American ancestors of Otto Bates eventually left Massachusetts for Connecticut. After a generation or two in Connecticut, the family moved to New York state for a relatively short time, then to Ohio, then after a few more generations to Iowa, Nebraska, and finally, by the late 19th and early 20th centuries, to Kansas. Some of the late 19th century Bates in Otto’s lineage appear to have had some connections with the Mormon religion, although it is not clear as to whether any of those Bates were themselves Mormons.
There have been several prominent, if not interesting, American Bates personalities, although not necessarily in the direct lineage of Otto Francis Bates. For example, Katherine Lee Bates, who taught English at Wellesley College and wrote “America the Beautiful”, is probably the most well known Bates in America. Joshua Bates was a financier and benefactor of some note – his company made foreign payments of some sort for the U.S. government, for which he was later reimbursed. He built and equipped the main Boston library with 50,000 leather bound books. Bates Hall in the library is named after him. Abigail and Rebecca Bates helped frighten off a British warship when it threatened Scituate Harbor in 1814. They marched toward the sea, playing loudly on drum and fife, causing the British to think there was an approaching column of militia, and then to turn around and flee in their longboats.
Another Joshua Bates, General Joshua Hall Bates, born in Boston in 1817, attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, and served in several battles, including the Civil War. Between his active duty tours in the Army, General Bates practiced law in Cincinnati, Ohio. A Republican, he also served in the Ohio state senate after the Civil War.
There is a Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, recognized as one of the nation’s finest colleges of the liberal arts and sciences. When it was founded in 1855, Bates College was the first coeducational college in New England, admitting students without regard to race, religion, national origin or sex. It was originally founded as the Maine State Seminary by Freewill Baptist minister Oren B. Cheney. Within a few years it became a college, and Cheney obtained financial support from Benjamin E. Bates, the Boston manufacturer for whom the school is named.[4]
The Origin of the Bates Name
No very satisfactory theory has ever been advanced to account for the name “Bates”. “Bate” is a frequent form of the name in England and early America. About the end of the 18th century, “Bates” came into general use. Earliest spellings of the name appear to have been Bette, Batte and Bate. Some authorities derive the name, “Bate” or “Bates”, from “Bartholomew’s son”, and some insist that it comes from the old Saxon word, “bate”, which means “contention”. The interchange of spelling Bette and Batte, Bette and Bate, as derivatives of Bartholomew’s son or Batson, did not survive the earliest times.
There appear to be several viewpoints as to the precise meaning and history of the Bates name. The Family Chronicle provides this entry:
BATES (British): Son of diminutive of "Bartholomew"; or "boat(man)" with a Northern England accent; or "profit, gain" (Old Norse).[5]
Another source adds a little more:
Bates: Sometimes a shortened form of Bartholemew. It may come from the Norse bati, meaning "someone who lived on rich pastureland". Another possibility is from bat, the Old English for boat, and hence a boatman.[6]
Yet another source provides another possibility for the history of the Bates name:
The English surname Bates is one of the most well known in English history. There are about 300,000 Bates in the English speaking world, . . . In the years of the Viking invasions of England, about 700-800 AD, some people of Scandinavian descent by the name of "Bati" settled in what is now Kent County England. The name Bati meant, "those who came in boats". This name later became "Bate". . . . "Bates" . . . became the plural form of that name. This change was made during the 1400s. Some of the original people with the name "Bate" changed it to "Bateson" and "Bateman". There is another group of people with the name Bates that originated from Germany, but those with this lineage are really "Betz". Their ancestors were Hessions brought to America by the British during the American Revolution to fight as mercenaries. They changed their name to the English version of Bates so they would not face reprisals from the Early Americans after they lost the war.[7]
TheEnglish Setting of Otto Bates’ Ancestors
The ancestors of Otto Francis Bates lived in the town of Aston Clinton, county of Buckinghamshire, England.[8] A short history of Aston Clinton states:
Before the Norman Conquest [in 1066], the manor of Aston Clinton was held by Wlwen, a 'man' of King Edward. Wlwen is a woman’s name, and she seems to have been the predecessor of Edward de Salisbury who at the time of the Domesday Book held Aston Clinton which was assessed at 20 hides. At that time there was enough land for 17 ploughs. There were 28 villagers and 4 smallholders and 13 slaves. There was also a mill, woodland and 300 pigs.
Edward de Salisbury was the standard-bearer of King Henry I at the battle of Brenville in 1100 and was made Earl of Salisbury. It is not certain whether the tenancy descended to his heir Walter de Salisbury, but at the end of the 12th century it belonged to the family of Clinton.[9]
Aston Clinton lies in the southeast of Buckinghamshire, or “Bucks”, a county of about 175,000 in population covering some 730 square miles just northwest of London, located between London and Oxford. The county town (i.e., county seat) is Aylesbury, located toward the southern end of Buckinghamshire. According to the internet website touting tourism there, the county has many hidden villages, friendly rural pubs, thatched cottages and gentle country walks plus historic houses and museums, and there are many small market towns to explore with a multitude of antique shops.[10]
Bucks is intersected by the chalk range of the Chiltern Hills, which extend northeast from Oxfordshire on the west to Bedfordshire on the northeast. The country there is said to be beautifully wooded, chiefly with oak and beech. South of the Chiltern Hills is much excellent grazing land. The "Vale of Aylesbury" lies in the middle of the county, with rich meadows and pasturage. Further north, small farms grow wheat, beans, and the like, and pigs and calves are raised on numerous dairy farms. Making wooden spades, brush-handles, bowls, etc., from beech is a considerable industry, and the manufacture of thread-lace and straw plaiting appears to be a fairly large industry in Bucks, as well.[11] The Prime Minister's country residence, Chequers, is located in the Chiltern Hills of Buckinghamshire. Its name notwithstanding, the county does not contain Buckingham Palace. Buckingham Palace remains where it has always been -- in the center of London.
As a matter of interest, a number of famous people live or have lived in Buckinghamshire, such as John Milton, the author of Paradise Lost, who lived in a cottage in Chalfont St Giles in the east of Buckinghamshire. The 19th-century prime minister Benjamin Disraeli grew up at Bradenham Manor and later bought Hughenden Manor near High Wycombe, where he lived until his death. Contemporary jazz composer and saxophonist John Dankworth and his wife, singer Cleo Laine, live at Wavendon. Sir John and Lady Mills live at Denham, and Hugh Grant and Andie MacDowell had their first night of passion at the Crown Hotel, Amersham, in the film Four Weddings And A Funeral.[12]
Ancestors of Otto Bates in America
The first member in the direct ancestry of Otto Francis Bates to emigrate to America was Elder Edward Bate, son of William Bate and Margery Phillips. Edward emigrated to Massachusetts about 1637 on a ship whose name is presently unknown.
The “Edward Problem”
There has been a fair amount of confusion over the years about Edward Bate. Prior research into American Bates genealogy often confused Elder Edward Bate of Weymouth, Massachusetts (now a suburb of Boston), with another Edward Bate who came to Boston from England in September 1633 aboard the ship Griffin.[13] However, it is clear that Otto Bates descended from Elder Edward Bate of Weymouth, as we can trace his line through Increase Bates, the son of Elder Edward Bate.[14] Edward Bate of Boston did not have a son named Increase.
The summary of Genealogy of the Descendants of Edward Bates of Weymouth, Mass, by Samuel Bates, states Edward was born in Lincolnshire, England in 1605.[15] However, those reports appear to refer to the Edward Bate of Boston, not Elder Edward Bate of Weymouth. Also, some reports have erroneously traced the lineage of Edward Bate of Weymouth as far back as 1380 to a John Bate of Lydd, Kent County, England. Many earlier genealogical reports, however, confuse and combine the family histories of the two Edwards. Later research has indicated that, in fact, there is no record of an Edward Bate in Lydd. Existing records indicate that Elder Edward Bate of Weymouth, Massachusetts, was born in Aston Clinton, Buckinghamshire, England.[16]
According to Mrs. Iske’s report, between 1630 and 1640 five of the Bates name came from the old country to Massachusetts, settling in Boston or near it. There were Clement and Ann; William, who came in the Freelove, in 1635; James, with wife, Alice; George, a freeman; and Edward of Weymouth.
Because Edward was the direct ancestor of Otto Bates who emigrated to America from England, we offer some detail about his life here.
Biography of Elder (or Deacon) Edward Bates, the Emigrant
Edward Bate settled as a freeman in Weymouth, Massachusetts in 1637. He was a Deputy of the General Court from 1639-42 and again in 1660, and Commissioner of Marriages on June 2, 1641. He held the office of townsman in 1643. On February 3, 1651/52, he was an Elder of the Weymouth church. He was an Elder of the church at Weymouth for more than thirty years. This was an important position at that time. According to the Cambridge platform, it was the duty of the ruling elder “to open and shut the doors of God’s House (officially) by admission, ordination, excommunication and restoring; to call the church together; to prepare matters in private for public church meetings; to moderate church meetings; to be leaders and guides in church actions; to see that none of the church live without a calling; to prevent and heal offenses in life or church doctrine; to feed the flock, visit the sick, and pray with them when sick and at other times.”
A large landowner, he had a part interest in a corn mill and a saw mill. When his October 22, 1682, will was proved on July 22, 1686, after his death on March 25 of that year, the inventory for his estate amounted to £657, 15s (657 pounds, 15 shillings).[17] In 2002, an English pound (£) is worth about $1.50 American. Thus, using today’s exchange rates, he was “worth” about $1,000 when he died – perhaps in 1686 a small fortune were it calculated in today’s money. Of course, since Elder Edward Bate died 90 years before the Revolutionary War, there was no “exchange rate” from English pounds to American dollars at that time.