John BUNCH, I

1637 - 1700  (63 years)

• Name	John BUNCH  [1, 2, 3]
  Suffix	I
  Birth	1 Jul 1637	New Kent, Virginia   [1, 2, 3]
  Gender	Male
  Residence	1662	New Kent, Virginia, British Colonial America   [4]
  	450 acres. Land purchased in New Kent County, Virginia Colony near Blisland Church and Wahrani Creek
  _FSFTID	9W9N-CLK
  _FSLINK	https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/9W9N-CLK
  _UID	89DDF5D50BBF43BA97F22C94E75649C98FD6
  Death	1 Jul 1700	New kent, New Kent Virgina   [1, 2, 3]
  Person ID	I594766058	Carney Wehofer July 2025
  Last Modified	18 Nov 2024

  
  

  Father	John PUNCH,   b. 1610, Cameroon, Africa d. York, Virginia
  Family ID	F536728596	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family 1
  Children	1. Henry BUNCH, Sr.,   b. 1664, Virginia, British Colonial America d. Abt 1726, Chowan, North Carolina (Age 62 years)
  Family ID	F536728595	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	15 Dec 2022

  
  

  Family 2	Sarah Mary BARNARD,   b. 3 Dec 1648, Hartford, Hartford, Connecticut Colony, British Colonial America d. 16 Mar 1730, Hartford, Connecticut (Age 81 years)
  Family ID	F536728418	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	12 Nov 2023

  
  

  Family 3	Mary SPEAR,   b. 3 Dec 1640, New Kent, New Kent County, Virginia d. Aft 1669, New Kent, Virginia, British Colonial America (Age 29 years)
  Marriage	Between 1661 and 1667	Virginia   [5]
  Children	1. Mary BUNCH,   b. 20 Dec 1660, Maryland, British Colonial America d. 1682 (Age 21 years)   2. John BUNCH II,   b. 11 May 1666, Henrico, Virginia, British Colonial America d. 1729, Henrico, Virginia, British Colonial America (Age 62 years)
  Family ID	F536728417	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	15 Dec 2022

  
  

• Notes

  John Bunch I was a mulatto. His wife is unknown. John Bunch I was the son of John Punch an African slave brought to York County, Virginia from either Cameroon or the Ivory coast. John Bunch's mother (John Punch's wife) was an unnamed white woman. He had three sons, John II, Henry and Paul. When John Bunch was born in 1632 in Virginia, his father, John Punch was an indentured servant, later enslaved as punishment. John Bunch I had a son in 1632. He died in 1704 in his hometown at the age of 72. John Bunch I was a mulatto. His wife is unknown. His father was brought to York County, Virginia from either Cameroon or the Ivory coast. John Bunch's mother (John Punch's wife) was an unnamed white woman. He had three sons, John II, Henry and Paul. The researchers continued, then finding the father of Samuel Bunch being John Bunch III who lived about 1680 to 1742 in Virginia, to the grandfather of Samuel being John Bunch II who lived about 1655 to 1704 in Virginia, then the great grandfather to Samuel Bunch was John Bunch I who lived prior to 1637 to 1670s in Virginia. This John Bunch I was the tenth great grandfather to Obama.That alone is quite a lineage, taking the family back to Colonial Virginia in the mid-1600s. The researchers working for Ancestry.com using the vast resources in the archives of Virginia located who they believe would be the eleventh great grandfather, a man named John Punch of York County, Virginia. His surname is a bit different in spelling, but that is a common occurrence, where a family name will be spelled or changed for a number of reasons.Investigating into the story of John Punch became extremely interesting for the researchers. John Punch first came to Colonial Virginia from Africa as an indentured servant. In the beginnings of the English colonies, additional laborers were needed. However, they were not taken as slaves, but rather worked as indentured servants for a specific period of time then gaining their freedom.When you look at the African population in Virginia around 1620, the numbers were small, approximately 25. John Punch appears to have been an early indentured servant to Hugh Gwynn of York Co, Virginia. Slavery as a legal practice did not come into law until 1670. John Bunch I was considered a free man (because his mother was free) in the 1660s and owned 450 acres in New Kent County, VA. Yet, it appears that John Bunch's mother was white and his father, John Punch, an African, resulting in an interracial marriage which was more acceptable in the 1630s.It was not just the few court records, deeds, wills or other records that survived which helped prove the results, but also DNA testing showed the link, especially with origins from sub-Saharan Africa, possibly the west coast region of Cameroon, in the Bunch lineage. Added by K.van Wormer: I am a descendant of John Bunch. My DNA results show I am 1% Bantu-Cameroon as do some others of my relatives from the Bunch line. This is proof of African heritage here.

  
  

• Sources

  [S1160] The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, FamilySearch Family Tree (http://www.familysearch.org), ((http://www.familysearch.org)), accessed 13 Dec 2022), entry for Paul BUNCH, person ID L835-WT3. (Reliability: 3). [S1160] The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, FamilySearch Family Tree (http://www.familysearch.org), ((http://www.familysearch.org)), accessed 15 Dec 2022), entry for Paul Bunch, person ID L835-WT3. (Reliability: 3). [S1160] The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, FamilySearch Family Tree (http://www.familysearch.org), ((http://www.familysearch.org)), accessed 13 Dec 2022), entry for John Bunch II, person ID GJ6J-FMY. (Reliability: 3). [S1160] The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, FamilySearch Family Tree (http://www.familysearch.org), ((http://www.familysearch.org)), accessed 15 Dec 2022), entry for John Bunch, person ID GZWJ-97X. (Reliability: 3). [S1160] The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, FamilySearch Family Tree (http://www.familysearch.org), ((http://www.familysearch.org)), accessed 13 Dec 2022), entry for John Bruce Bunch, person ID GNBR-15F. (Reliability: 3).