Possibility 1
Although it was not proven it has commonly been accepted that the following Valentine was the father of Valentine (II) below and William Bowles: 1. Valentine (I) Bowles b. ~ 1618, lived Rochester m. Frances (or at least F something, register is not clear) 1.1 Valentine Bowles (II) b. ca. 1638 (a grocer of Deal, Kent) 1.2 William Bowles bp. 18 October 1641 St. Nicholas, Rochester, Kent (a merchant in Mincing Lane, London)Possibility 2
By the time Valentine Bolle appears in Deal references in about 1660 Bolle families had been in this area for over 240 years (see The Bowles of Sandwich). It shouldn't be necessary to look as far as Rochester to find an ancestor for him. From the few things that we know about Valentine: that he was married to Elizabeth daughter of Tobias Cleere of Sandwich, Mayor of Sandwich in 1670; that he had 14 (Tobias, Valentine, Phineas, Thomazin, Jane, Anthony, Edward, William, Elizabeth, John, Thomas, George and Ann) and possibly 15 children (Clearanna); that he was a merchant with offices in Deal and London and that he was a Quaker. The Quaker register which contains his burial record was from the Folkestone, Kent Meeting.
Valentine's wife Elizabeth was the daughter of Tobias Cleere who was Mayor of Sandwich in 1670 and wife Jane Owsname (m. Jan. 27, 1627 Sandwich St Peter), (Archaeologia Cantiana, Vol. 15, p. 144). He was one of the Canopy holders at the coronation of Charles II on 22nd March 1661. The Clear surname is known as a common English name elsewhere in England but in Sandwich, the Cleere (Clare) family first appears in the St Peter register in 1565, the year that Queen Elizabeth allocated St Peter to the Dutch cloth workers to segregate them from the English community when the plague ravaged the Dutch. The surname Owsname may not have been recorded correctly as it doesn't seem to occur again anywhere but there was an Owxser Owtsonne in the Dutch Church in 1567 in Bridge Without warde, London and a John Owesame in the Aliens in London register of 1571.
Sandwich became a free port and town by the Charter of Sandwich given by Charles I in 1685 and appointed Phineas Ellwood, Esquire to be the first mayor; Geoffrey Wells, Geoffrey Sackett, Thomas Wheeler, John Jarvis, Edward Fellow, Alexander Mills, John Pigott, John Bowdler, John Jeken, William Rickefies, John Wheeler and John Peirs, gentlemen to be the first jurats; John Strode, Esq. to be the first Steward; Christopher, Duke of Albermarle to be the first recorder; William Verrier, Gent to be the first clerk; Stephen Hobdy to be the first land treasurer; George Hirst to be the first water treasurer; Thomas Stringer to be the first wardman and the first councilmen were Thomas Wiseman, John Ladd, John Carder, Valentine Norwood, Robert Stringer, Stephen Hobday, George Hirst, Valentine Jeken, George Burford, Edward Swayne, Thomas Crookenden, Benjamin Kelley, Jeremiah Kelley, Alexander Smith, Jophuz Paramore, John Stone, Joshua Hogban, Thomas Young, mariner, William Jurden, Isaac Rickefies, John Foster, cordwainer, William Carder, John Cricket and Thomas Hogben. In 1664 the Mayor of Sandwich was Reynald Peckham and his jurats and the leading citizens of Sandwich were Tobias Cleere, Phineas Elwood, John Verier, Valentine Jekin, Jeoffrey Wells and Jeoffrey Sacket. ref. In 1677 the Commissioners named For the Towne and Port of Sandwich were: The Maior for the time being John Thurburne, Water Bayliffe, Phineas Eldwood, James Thurburne, John Verrier, Valentine Jenkin, Jeffery Wells, Jeffery Sackett, Edward Elsted, John Pantry and Peter Nowell. ref. Valentine and Elizabeth baptized most of their children in Deal but their eldest, Tobias, was baptized in 1659 in Sandwich St Peter.
Deal received its charter in 1699 from William nn removing it from being under Sandwich's administration and appointed Joshua Coppen to be the first mayor, amongst the first jurats was Valentine's son Tobias Bowles.
The Quaker register of Valentine's children was not made as they were born, it was recorded from the Minutes of the Folkestone Meeting as of 1690 so he may have converted only after his children were born. Quakerism first arrived in Kent in 1655. During his tour of Kent in 1672 William Penn stopped at Sandwich on October 16 where he held a meeting with "several Professors there". Then at Nonington and Deal on October 17 and held an open meeting the next day. In his diary he only mentions staying at Thomas Holiman's overnight and that "one Valentine Brooks a notable wise man is there convinced" and then they went on to Dover. (William Penn's Journal: Kent and Sussex, 1672) The editor of his journal writes in a footnote: "Valentine 'Brooks' probably Valentine Bowles of Deal, to whom his wife Elizabeth bore 11 children from 1659 to 1676. A Friend of this name died 5m. 10, 1711 and was buried at Wingham where at that time was one of the six meetings of Friends in East Kent. Besse refers to him under 1678 and 1684. So does the Calendar of State Papers for 1682." One of the 'Professors' in Sandwich was Phineas Ellwood of Corpus Christi College Oxford, doctor in physick.
Possibility 3
Recent research by Sue Buckman makes a good case for Valentine II being the son of Anthony Bowle of Ringwould who was in turn the son of a Richard Bowle who married Annis Heringe in Deal in 1568. To test that solution I have applied it to the traditional Bolles of Deal family tree and attempted to insert all the other known Bowles entries (or spelling variations of Bowles as imagined by inventive parish clerks) from the parishes of Deal, Ringwould and Walmer and a few others that seemed likely to be related. Any suggestions, concerns, contributions or constructive criticism from anyone interested in the Bowles of Deal family history would be welcome. Proposed Family Tree for the Bowles of Deal for Discussion Purposes (Please: this tree is not to be posted to ancestrycom or any other family history site; this is not fact, just a developing proposal) Note: See Other Bowles of Deal And Area for many other Bowles births, marriages and deaths in the Deal/Walmer/Ringwould area which still need to be connected up to this proposed family tree. See images of many of these register entries at Bowles in the Parish Registers of: Deal Dover Eastry Great Mongeham Ringwould Walmer Mr Bowle of ? 1. Richard Bowle b. ca. 1545 m. Annis Heringe July 27, 1568 St Leonards, Deal (This marriage probably occurred in Deal as it was the bride's home town, there is a Will for Thomas Herrynge of Deal from 1576 and a John Herringe of Deal from 1592. However, there are no earlier signs of Bolles in Deal and the couple then settled in Ringwould just out of Deal to the south; the Ringwould register goes back to 1569 but there are no other Bowles-like entries until the couple start baptizing their children there in 1575 so this was probably the first Bowles family connection to Ringwould. We are now working on where Richard could have come from.) 1.1 Felix (Felicia?) Bowle bp. Nov. 30, 1575 St Nicholas, Ringwould (it appears to say Felix but it also says ‘d’ for daughter) 1.2 Agnes Bowle bp. Mar. 11, 1577/78 St Nicholas, Ringwould m. Robert Culverden July 26, 1604 St Nicholas, Ringwould 1.3 Richard Bowle bp. Dec. 21, 1580 St Nicholas, Ringwould (possibly bur. Dec. 29, 1580 St Nicholas, Ringwould) 1.4 Sarah Bowle bp. Jan. 1, 1581/82 and bur. Dec. 25, 1583 St Nicholas, Ringwould 1.5 Anthony Bowle bp. Dec. 13, 1584 St Nicholas, Ringwould m. Thomasin Pelham Jun22, 1611 St Margarets at Cliffe 1.5.1 Richard Bowle bp. Sept. 25, 1614 St Nicholas, Ringwould (possibly d. bef. 1620, not mentioned in Uncle John Bowle's Will) 1.5.2 Mary Bowle bp. Dec. 8, 1616 St Margarets at Cliffe 1.5.3 Symon Bowle bp. July 25, 1619 St Nicholas, Ringwould (he's also not mentioned in Uncle John Bowle's Will which may have been written prior to his birth) m. Mary (possibly the Simon Boule m. Marie Glodden Aug. 14, 1643 Canterbury All Saints) 1.5.3.1 John Bowle bp. Sept. 29, 1644 St Mary Walmer m. Sarah 1.5.3.1.1 John Bowld bp. Apr. 1, 1678 St Mary Walmer 1.5.3.1.2 Anthony Bowld bp. Nov. 13, 1679 St Mary Walmer m. Anne 1.5.3.1.2.1 Elizabeth Bowles bp. Oct. 10, 1708 St Mary Walmer 1.5.3.1.2.2 John Bowles bp. Feb. 26, 1710/11 St Mary Walmer m. Hannah 1.5.3.1.2.2.1 Ann Bowles bp. Nov. 9, 1729 St Mary Walmer 1.5.3.1.2.2.2 Hannah Bowles bp. Nov. 21, 1731 St Mary Walmer Hannah Bowles wife of John Bowles bur. Nov. 30, 1731 St Mary Walmer m.(2) Mary 1732 1.5.3.1.2.2.3 John Bowles bp. July 19, 1733 St Mary Walmer 1.5.3.1.2.3 Anthony Bowles bp. April 27, 1712 St Mary Walmer 1.5.3.1.2.4 Anthony Bowles bp. June 13, 1714 St Mary Walmer 1.5.3.1.2.5 Anne Bowles bp. Aug. 26, 1717 St Mary Walmer 1.5.3.1.2.6 Anthony Bowlds Junr. bp. Dec. 1, 1717/18 St Mary Walmer m. Jane 1.5.3.1.2.6.1 Anthony Bowles bp. June 25, 1738 St Mary Walmer and more yet to record 1.5.3.1.2.7 John Bowls bp. Jan. 10, 1719/20 St Mary Walmer 1.5.3.1.2.8 Mary Bowlds bp. Dec. 3, 1721 St Mary Walmer 1.5.3.1.3 Thomasin Bowld bp. June 25, 1682 St Mary Walmer 1.5.3.1.4 Elisabeth Bowld bp. Aug. 15, 1686 St Mary Walmer (a John Bold, householder bur. Oct. 15, 1691 Ringwould) 1.5.3.2 William Bowle bp. Sept. 3, 1646 St Mary Walmer 1.5.3.3 Symon Bowle bp. Dec. 21, 1648 St Mary Walmer 1.5.3.4 Anthony Bowle 1.5.3.5 Thomasin Bowle (possibly the one who m. Benjamin Lampar Oct. 4, 1677 St Mary Walmer or who m. Thomas Blengton Oct. 11, 1683 St Nicholas, Ringwould) 1.5.3.6 Mary Bowle Simon (as Bold) bur. July 12, 1674 St Nicholas, Ringwould Mary (as Bold) bur. Sept. 27, 1680 St Nicholas, Ringwould 1.5.4 Robert Bowle bp. Oct. 7, 1621 and bur. Feb. 3, 1621/22 both St Nicholas, Ringwould 1.5.5 Anne Bowle (Bold) bp. Dec. 29, 1622 St Nicholas, Ringwould m. Henry Kellsy Feb. 2, 1642/43 St Nicholas, Ringwould 1.5.6 William Bolde bp. Mar. 18, 1625/26 St Nicholas, Ringwould (note: the change in surname spelling coincides with a change of handwriting in the register) 1.5.7 Anthony Bold bp. Mar. 27, 1628 St Nicholas, Ringwould 1.5.8 Thomasin Bold bp. Nov. 28, 1630 St Nicholas, Ringwould 1.5.9 Valentine (II) Bold bp. Sept. 15, 1633 St Nicholas, Ringwould (Valentyne Bowles, Grocer of Deal, Kent; a Quaker) (the dates of the birth of his children at Deal are from Kent Quaker Meetings) m. Elizabeth Cleere (bp. Sept. 4, 1636 St Peter Sandwich; Tobias Cleere, Jane Owsname; Tobias was Mayor of Sandwich in 1670 (Archaeologia Cantiana, Vol. 15, p. 144); He was one of the Canopy holders at the coronation of Charles II on 22nd March 1661 ) ~1658
1.5.9.1 Tobias Bowles b.
Jan. 31,
1659
Deal bp. ? 2, 1659 Sandwich St Peter
(Tobacco merchant of
Deal, Kent and Dunstan’s Court, Mincing Lane, London)
m.
Mary
1.5.9.1.1 James Bowles
bp. July 20, 1681 St Leonards Deal (member of the Council of Maryland from 1720 to 1727)
m.(1) Jane
(d. of Col. Henry Lowe) ~1718
1.5.9.1.1.1 Jane Bowles b.
~1720 (Portrait at Virginia Historical Society)
m.(1) Rev. Thomas Price
m.(2) Ralph Wormeley of Virginia
m.(2) Rebecca, d. of Col. Thomas Addison ~1721
1.5.9.1.1.2 Eleanor Bowles b ~ 1722
m.(1) William Gooch, Jr.
m.(2) Warner Lewis of Virginia ~1746
1.5.9.1.1.3 Mary Bowles b.
~1725
m. William Armistead of Virginia ~1740
James d. 1727 Sotterley (see below right), St. Mary’s County, Maryland
(will dated 13 June
1727, proved 3 Jan 1728)
1.5.9.1.2 Elizabeth Bowles bp. Oct. 23, 1682 St
Leonards Deal
1.5.9.1.3 Valentine Bowles bp. Feb. 14, 1683/84 bur. Sept. 5, 1684
both St Leonards Deal
1.5.9.1.4
Mary Bowles bp. July 17, 1685 and bur. Nov. 30, 1686 St Leonards Deal
1.5.9.1.5 Tobias Bowles bp.
Aug. 22, 1686 and bur. Sept. 5, 1686 St Leonards Deal
1.5.9.1.6
Jane Bowles bp. Sept.
19, 1687 St Leonards Deal
m. John Carr
1.5.9.1.7 Elizabeth Bowles bp. Nov. 1, 1688
St Leonards Deal
1.5.9.1.8
Margaret Bowles bp. Apr.
23, 1690 St Leonards Deal
1.5.9.1.9
Valentine
Bowles bp. July 17, 1691 bur. July 4, 1692
both St Leonards Deal
1.5.9.1.10 Tobias Bowles bp. Aug. 19, 1692 St
Leonards Deal
1.5.9.1.11 Mary Bowles m. Capt. John Underdown
1.5.9.1.11.1 John Underdown
1.5.9.1.12 Thomasin Bowles bp. June 21, 1695
bur. Apr. 7, 1700 both St Leonards Deal
1.5.9.1.13 Margaret Bowles bp. July 26, 1697
St Leonards Deal
m.
Henry Alexander Primrose May 5, 1717
Deal
Tobias d. June
14, 1727 at Deal, Kent
bur. St. George's church, London (per his Will) (Will dated Feb. 19,
1724; proved July 3, 1727)
1.5.9.2
Valentine III Bowles b.
June 15,
1660 Deal bp. Aug. 16, 1660
St Leonards Deal
Captain RN, dismissed by court-martial 27th October, 1698
(cut off in his father's Will except for a small
annuity)
m. Elizabeth
1.5.9.2.1 Elizabeth Bowles bp. Sept. 19, 1687
St Leonards Deal
1.5.9.3
Phineas Bowles b.
Dec. 17,
1661
Deal bp. Mar. 4,
1661/1662
St Leonards Deal
(Captain RN)
m. Sarah Scot Apr.
24, 1692, Barbados
1.5.9.3.1 Thomazine Bowles (servant in York River, Virginia;
released from her service by uncle Tobias' Will in 1727)
bp. Aug.
6,
1695 St. Dunstan, Stepney, London
1.5.9.3.2 Valentine V Bowles bp. 3 June 1698 St. Dunstan, Stepney, London
Phineas d.
Nov. 4,
1698 (Admiralty Records)
1.5.9.4
Thomazin Bowles b.
Nov. 12,
1663 Deal
m.
(1)
George
Nicholls Mar. 13, 1678/79
St Leonards Deal
(Licence in IGI to George Nichols 8th March
1678)
(she's Mrs Nicholls in her father's
Will in 1710)
m.
(2) Renton
(per
Memorial in St Leonard’s Church, Deal)
1.5.9.5 Jane
Bowles b.
Sept. 29,
1665 Deal bp. Dec. 6, 1665
St Leonards Deal
m. (1) Gabriel Millison 1690
1.5.9.5.1 Valentine Millison
1.5.9.5.2 James Millison
1.5.9.5.3 Mary Millison
m.
(2) Robert Hammond
1.5.9.5.4 Abigail
Hammond
1.5.9.5.5 Thomazin
Hammond
1.5.9.5.6 Robert
Hammond
Jane and Robert living in 1710
1.5.9.6
Anthony Bowles b.
Oct. 20,
1666 Deal, Mariner of Deal
m.(1)
Elizabeth Macham Dec. 29?, 1687 St Nicholas,
Ringwould (or possibly this was a different Anthony Bowles)
m.(2)
Elizabeth Scarlet
June 2,
1689
Sts Peter and Paul, Eythorn, Kent (definitely him as it states 'Mariner
of Deal, age 23')
1.5.9.6.1 John Bowles
bp. Oct. 1, 1691 St Leonards Deal
1.5.9.6.2 Valentine IV Bowles
bp. June 24, 1694
St Leonards Deal (living 1710)
(a Valentine Bowles bur. Mar -8, 1718
St Leonards Deal)
1.5.9.6.3 Thomazin Bowles bp. Dec. 3, 1695
bur. Jan. 30, 1695/96 both
St Leonards Deal
1.5.9.6.4 Thomazin Bowls bp. Dec. 23, 1696
and bur. Dec. 28, 1697 both
St Leonards Deal
1.5.9.6.4 Elizabeth Bowles
m.
Cornelius Smith (d 1772)
Anthony d.
before 1710;
children
John, Valentine & Elizabeth living 1710
per Valentine's Will
(another Anthony Bowles bur. Sept. 29, 1713 Ringwould)
(another Anthony Bowles bur. Sept. 6, 1722 Ringwould)
1.5.9.7 Edward
Bowles b Nov. 6, 1668
Deal
apprenticed to Charles Smith, Distiller, 19 Nov 1684
assume d.
childless
before 1710
1.5.9.8
Elizabeth Bowles b.
Sept. 7,
1670 Deal
assume d. childless
before 1710
An Elizabeth Bold bur. Feb. 11, 1686/87 Ringwould
(could be her)
Another Elizabeth Bold bur. Jan. 19, 1697/98
Ringwould (could also be her)
1.5.9.9
William Bowles b.
Feb. 18,
1672
Deal
(Surgeon
in the
Royal
Navy on the 4th Class Man-of-War
James Gally in 1691)
(apprenticed to Ed. Parsons, Tallow & Chandlers, 14 May 1689
(doesn't seem likely, this must be for another William Bowles of Deal))
d.
1693
at sea
(Will
written Jan. 23, 1691/92 and
proved
August
16, 1693)
1.5.9.10 John Bowles b.
June 12, 1674
Deal
bp. July 19, 1697 ("aged about 24 years") St
Leonards Deal
d. ~ 1752 St. Mary’s
Co., MD;
(Will dated Mar.
27,
1750; proved June
4,
1752)
(Note: all John’s Land
was in Kent, England).
1.5.9.11 Thomas Bowles b.
June 23,
1676 and d. Jan. 7, 1676/77
Deal, bur. Dover
Note: the next 3 children are not listed in the The
General Register-Booke of the Births of Friends Children in the East Kent
Division
1.5.9.12 George Bowles b.
after 1676? Ship’s Chandler of Deal, Kent
m. Lillias Watson (settled in St. Mary’s County, Maryland)
(No evidence that the following are the children of George and Lillias)
1.5.9.12.1 John Bowles m. and had children, d. before his parents
1.5.9.12.2 William Bowles m. and had children, d. before his parents
1.5.9.12.3 Elizabeth Bowles d. before her parents
George d. ~ 1760-61 St. Mary’s Co., MD (will dated 29 Feb 1760, proved 6 May
1761)
Lillias d. 1772 St. Mary’s Co., MD (will dated 15 July 1772, proved
11 Jan, 1773)
1.5.9.13 Ann Bowles b.
after 1676? (mentioned in
Valentine's Will)
m.
Jeremiah Kelley May 17,
1699, Rochester Cathedral
1.5.9.13.1 Elizabeth Kelley
1.5.9.13.2 Thomazin Kelley b.
1 Mar 1703
m.
Stribblehill Norwood (1693-1753) Feb.
5,
1729 (see John Bowles’ Will)
d.
Dec. 14,
1775
1.5.9.14 Clearanna Bowles
b.
~ 1675
(no evidence of birth or
parents, not mentioned in V II’s Will)
m. William Billingsley Calvert Co, MD ~1690
Valentine
d.
May
10,
1711,
bur.
July 15, 1711
Quaker burial ground,
Wingham, Kent
(Will
dated May 12, 1710;
proved Consistory Court
Canterbury August
16,
1711)
(note: while the date in the Quaker register is
written as 5th month 10th day of 1711 which would usually have meant
July 10, 1711 as the calendar they used started in March, this register
was made using the modern format as shown by another entry dated 1st
month 4th day 1711/12)
Thomasine (as Bold) bur. June 16, 1657 St Nicholas,
Ringwould
Anthony (as Bold) bur. Dec. 29, 1666 St Nicholas,
Ringwould
1.6 Margaret Bowle bp. Nov. 19, 1587 and bur. Jan. 26, 1587/88 St
Nicholas, Ringwould
1.7 John Bowle bp. Aug. 10, 1589 and bur. Jan. 23, 1619/20
St Nicholas, Ringwould
(John Bowles of Ringwould's Will of 1620 left bequests to his brother
Anthony, Anthony's daughter Mary and Anthony's wife Thomasine Bowle
ref.)
Richard bur. June 25, 1596 St Nicholas, Ringwould
Annis bur. Apr. 26, 1610 St Nicholas, Ringwould
However that does not take into account:
Simon Bold Sen. bur. July 17, 1645 Ringwould
which implies that there was both a Simon Sr. and a Simon Jr. in the
same family living in that area prior to 1645. Note that the the
Bowles of Ringwould were recorded in the Ringwould register as Bowle or
Bowles from 1575 to 1622, from 1625 to 1687 as Bold, Bolde or Bolds
except as Bowles once in 1683 (in an entry which is in a very different
script) before returning to Bowles from 1686 until modern times.
Nevertheless they are all clearly the same family.
Anthony Bowle had a son Simon in 1619 who could have been Simon Jr in
1645. If Sr. and Jr. were not a father and son, then Simon
Sr. would have had to have been Simon Jr.'s uncle or grandfather.
The term Jr would not likely have been used for a more distant
relationship. Anthony's son Simon settled in Walmer where we also
have:
Simon Bowle b. bef. ca. 1595
m. Elizabeth Pantery Nov. 29, 1615 St Mary Walmer
children unknown (if they had a Simon he would be an appropriate Simon
Jr. but that's not known)
Elizabeth Bowle wife of Simon Bowle bur. Sept. 1, 1639 St Mary Walmer
That could be the Simon Sr. buried at Ringwould in 1645. Under
this theory he would have been another son of Richard Bowle and Annis
Heringe.
The following could be 1.5.3.3 Symon Bowle bp. Dec. 21, 1648
St Mary Walmer
from the above tree but since there could have been multiple Simon
Bowles around that isn't certain:
Simon Bold m. Margaret
1. Elizabeth Bowlls bp. Apr. 6, 1669 and bur. Aug. 5, 1669
both St Leonards Deal
2. Mary Bowlls bp. May 22, 1672 and bur. May 6, 1674 both St
Leonards Deal
3. Balthazar Bowles bp. June 21, 1674 St Leonards Deal
4. Mary Bowls bp. Sept. 16, 1682 St Leonards Deal
(a Mary Bold m. James Wills June 19, 1701 Ringwould)
5. Sarah Bowlls bp. Feb. 23, 1683/84 St Leonards Deal
There were also some very early Bowles at Eastry just a couple of miles
west of Deal including a Richard Bowls, gent in 1582:
Jonathan Bowles son of Richard Bowls (?) gent bp. Aug. 21, 1582 St Mary
the Virgin Eastry
Luke Bowle m. Margaret Goldstone Nov. 27, 1609 St Mary the Virgin
Eastry
John Bowle son of Luke Bowle bp. Oct. 20, 1611 St Mary the Virgin Eastry
Dover is slightly further away but the earliest known Bowles in this
region (in the area between the two major trade ports of Deal and Dover) was a John Bowles who was the Mayor of Dover in 1539.
ref.
See The Bowles at Dover for
another possible source for the Bowles of Deal.