This is the latest version of the Rawkerayne Mitchell family tree which dates from around 1410.  The most recent research has disproved the link to the Ottery Mitchells via Robert Mitchell born 1585, son of John Mitchell the Younger.  It has now been conclusively shown that Robert Mitchell son of John the Elder of Rawkerhayne born 1547 married Ales Cullye of Ottery in 1581 at Kilmington and moved to Ottery.  This Robert Mitchell born 1547 died in Ottery prior to 1601 and had a son called Robert who died in 1641.  

Disentangling the early 16th century Mitchell family tree based in Rawkerhayne is still ongoing but it appears that the peculiar naming patterns; i.e. sons were invariably called "John" including brothers, probably as a result of the high child mortality in an era when fathers wanted a son named after them; as well as similiar wifes' names has meant that the IGI has got two brothers called John mixed up in the 15th century family tree.   Basically, it has now been established that a John Mychell  born c1465 inhabited Rawkerhayne in Devon, he had a son also called John born around 1490 who marries an Agnes (surname unknown).  We know that this couple had 4 sons of whom the third son was known as John Mychell the elder and the fourth son as John Mychell the younger.

We know this because according to the subsidy roll of 1524 there were two adult John Mychells living in Colyton at that time who were father and son.  In 1525 a lease of land in the Manor of Shute names a John Mychell, Agnes his wife, John his 3rd son and John his 4th son who probably under 18 at that time.  Twenty six years later, in 1551, the Shute lease is now held by John Michell, senior, and his sons John and William.  This is John Mychell the elder of Colyton and his sons.  John Mychell the younger is off the lease and with his own family and premises.  Their father and grandfather, given on the 1524 subsidy roll have since died.  There is an Agnes Mychell widow appearing on the 1545 subsidy roll for Colyton who would be  the John Mitchell brothers' (elder and younger) mother.  John Mychell the elder married before 1538 and had a son William also born before 1538, he then had a son John who is believed to have died as a baby and another son John in 1544.  He had two more children, Marye or Marryan, born in 1545  and Robert born in 1547, who is my direct ancestor.  In his will of 1587, John the elder mentions, William, John and Robert, but not his wife or daughter Marye.  Both wife and daughter died before 1587.

One curious feature is that William, son of John Mychell the elder had not married or re-married when the will of 1587 was made.  There are many baptisms of children of William Mychell in Colyton in earlier years, but these are possibly the progeny of William, born in 155, son of John Mychell the younger.  He then could be in his late 40's.  His father wanted him to be paid £60.00 on his wedding day, a lot of money then.  Was this by way of encouragement?  Contrastly, he was not kind to his other son, my direct ancestor, Robert.  He was cut off with 2 shillings.  It was a classic snub of leaving a derisory sum to someone named , to show that he or she was being deliberately punished and not forgotten by oversight.  It is a distinct possibility that John the elder disapproved of his son's marriage in Ales Culley in 1581.  This could explain them marrying in Kilmington away from their home  parishes.  In fact, Robert lost out all round.  His brothers and other relatives in Colyton were holding all the properties but he had nothing.  It would have been an incentive for him to cut his ties with Colyton and make a new life for himself and his descendants in Ottery St Mary.  Robert is believed to have died in Ottery before 1601, which is the date the surviving registers begin and had a son called Robert, also born in Ottery before 1601.  This Robert had the son Thomas, my direct ancestor, in 1615.  Robert, father of Thomas, died in Ottery St Mary in 1640/41.

The Mitchell family and their branches lived in different manors adjacent to Rawkerhayne, including Shute, Barrethayes, Northleigh, Dalman, Cadhayne, Farway, Watchcombe and Sidbury.  The family had also strong links with Colyton and Gittisham.  My ancestor split from this family and moved to Ottery St Mary some 15 miles to the west. 
Within a few generations contact between the two family branches had been lost and has never been re-established since in the last 400 years.  To date the only distant relative I have found via the internet is also descended from the Ottery Mitchells.  Enquiries in Devon have drawn a blank.  It is known that the Mitchells owned Rawkerhayne and nearby Barrithayes but they sold them on some two hundred years ago.

As to the pedigrees, obviously a lot of revision has to be done as we now find ourselves descended from John Mychell the elder and not John Mychell the younger, the Gedcom above has been updated but the read only pedigrees need re-drafting, they have therefore been removed from this page for the latter part of the ancestry prior to 1747 but click on the link above or here: -  Ottery Mitchell Family descendancy from Rawkerhayne Mitchell Family
Obviously it has not affected the ancestry for John Mills Mitchell born 1815, so I've left that in as well.