Cox families were present in Barton Turf throughout the 19th century and into the 20th. Almost all are descended from James Cock who is reputed to have been an Irish smuggler who landed on Horsey Beach with barrels of whiskey.
James Cock married Alice Rudd, daughter of Bartholomew and Alice Rudd, on 20 February 1787 at Stalham. They baptized eight children at Stalham. These were Samuel Cox in 1787, James in 1789, Alice in 1792, Ann in 1795, John in 1798, Hannah in 1801, William in 1805 and Robert in 1808. The family moved to Barton Turf about this time, as Samuel married there in 1811 followed by James in 1813.
All eight children survived childhood and produced children, only Hannah did not marry and her two sons died without issue. James, senior, Samuel and James, junior, were all eligible to vote in the 1835 Election. However, James Cock died in the workhouse at Smallburgh in 1839, his wife, Alice had died in 1837. The family of James and Alice Cock became a major influence in the village and area of Barton Turf. In the 1861 Census 58 of 378 (15%) people had the surname Cox in the village. Only Ann Cox who married Daniel Cole left the village, the couple moved to Great Yarmouth.
With help from Cox descendants who have carried out extensive research into their family history we have identified over 650 descendants of James and Alice Cock, of whom about 260 have the Cox name. There are now Cox descendants in many other parts of this country as well as in Canada, the United States and New Zealand. The Cox families are linked to many other local families through marriage, including the Haylett, Salmon-Cox, Salmon(s), Watts and Yaxley families.
The family of James Arthur Cox around 1916
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