Adamson History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland/England
England
Ireland

Early Origins of the Adamson family

The surname Adamson was first found in Norfolk where it is thought that the first record of the name was Richard Adamessone who was listed there in the 13th century. 1

Early History of the Adamson family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Adamson research. Another 89 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1261, 1296, 1433, 1581, 1587, 1639 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Adamson History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Adamson Spelling Variations

The name Adamson, appeared in many references, and from time to time, the surname was spelt Adamsone, Addamson, Adamson and others.

Early Notables of the Adamson family

Notable amongst the family name during their early history was

James Adamson, Dean of the Merchant Guildry and Provost of Perth

Adamson World Ranking

In the United States, the name Adamson is the 2,384^th most popular surname with an estimated 12,435 people with that name. 2 However, in Australia, the name Adamson is ranked the 801^st most popular surname with an estimated 4,902 people with that name. 3 And in New Zealand, the name Adamson is the 559^th popular surname with an estimated 1,263 people with that name. 4 The United Kingdom ranks Adamson as 627^th with 10,520 people. 5

Migration of the Adamson family to Ireland

Some of the Adamson family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 60 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Adamson migration to the United States +

The New World beckoned as many of the settlers in Ireland, known as the Scotch/Irish, became disenchanted. They sailed aboard the armada of sailing ships known as the "White Sails" which plied the stormy Atlantic. Some called them, less romantically, the "coffin ships." Amongst the early settlers who could be considered kinsmen of the Adamson family, or who bore a variation of the surname Adamson were

Adamson Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Evan Adamson, who landed in Maryland in 1663 6
George Adamson, who arrived in Virginia in 1679 6
George Adamson, aged 18, who arrived in Maryland in 1683 6
Basil Adamson, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1691 6

Adamson Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Thomas Adamson, aged 21, who landed in Maryland in 1775 6

Adamson Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Samuel Adamson, who arrived in New Orleans, La in 1813 6
Magnus Adamson, who arrived in New York in 1849 6
Robert Adamson, who landed in America in 1855 6
Mrs. Janet Adamson, aged 22, who arrived in New York aboard the ship "Cynosure" in 1863
Mr. Thomas Adamson, aged 23, who arrived in New York aboard the ship "Cynosure" in 1863
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Adamson migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Adamson Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Mr. James Adamson, aged 24 who was a Seaman aboard the ship "Argo" taking passenger to Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec departing from the port of Liverpool, England but died at Grosse Isle on 15th June 1847 in the typhus epidemic 7

Adamson migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Adamson Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Miss Ann Adamson, English convict who was convicted in Newcastle Upon Tyne, Northumberland, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Canada" in March 1810, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
Mr. Peter Adamson, (Anderson), (b. 1806), aged 15, English stocking maker who was convicted in Kingston Upon Hull, Yorkshire, England for 7 years for larceny, transported aboard the "Claudine" on 20th May 1821, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 9
Mr. John Adamson, (Nicholson), Scottish convict who was convicted in Glasgow, Scotland for 14 years, transported aboard the "Chapman" on 12th April 1826, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 10
Mr. James Adamson, English convict who was convicted in West Riding, Yorkshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Augusta Jessie" on 27 September 1834, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 11
James Adamson, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Recovery" in 1839 12
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Adamson migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Adamson Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

William Adamson, who landed in Wanganui, New Zealand in 1840
John Adamson, aged 25, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Duchess of Argyle" in 1842
Isabella Adamson, aged 27, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Duchess of Argyle" in 1842
Thomas Adamson, aged 7, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Duchess of Argyle" in 1842
J P Adamson, who landed in Tamaki, Auckland, New Zealand in 1843
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Adamson migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 13

Adamson Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

John Adamson, who settled in Barbados in 1678

Contemporary Notables of the name Adamson (post 1700) +

Kenneth Marshall Adamson (1938-2023), American professional football player
James Adamson, American businessman, CEO of Burger King (1993–1995)
George Worsley Adamson (1913-2005), American-born, British book illustrator, author and cartoonist, Fellow of the Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers (1987)
James Craig Adamson (b. 1946), American former NASA astronaut with 14 days in space 14
Al Adamson (1929-1995), American prolific director of B-grade horror films throughout the 1960s and 1970s
Harold Adamson (1906-1980), American five-time Academy Award nominated lyricist during the 1930s and 1940s, perhaps best known for his theme song for the hit sitcom "I Love Lucy"
Harold D. Adamson, American Democratic Party politician, Member of Arizona State House of Representatives, 1937-38 15
Edmund J. Adamson (b. 1844), American Republican politician, Member of Pennsylvania State House of Representatives from Philadelphia County 10th District, 1909-10 15
Don O. Adamson, American Democratic Party politician, Mayor of Webb City, Missouri, 1942-46, 1965; Chair of Jasper County Democratic Party, 1949 15
Dennis Adamson, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Iowa, 1996 15
... (Another 35 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Adamson family +

RMS Lusitania

Mr. Thomas Adamson, English 1st Class Waiter from England, who worked aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and survived the sinking 16

Winter Quarters coal mine

Mr. Andrew Robertson Adamson (b. 1886), American mine worker from Winter Quarters, Utah who worked in the Winter Quarters coal mine on 1st May 1900, when 10 of the 25lb kegs of black powder exploded; he died in the explosion 17

The Adamson Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Crux mihi grata quies
Motto Translation: The Cross gives me welcome rest.

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
"Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
"UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 62)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 9th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/canada
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th February 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/claudine
Convict Records of Australia. Retreived 28th January 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/chapman
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 14th August 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/augusta-jessie
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) RECOVERY from London 1839. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1839Recovery.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
NASA Astronauts Homepage. (Retrieved 2010, September 27) James Adamson. Retrieved from http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/adamson-jc.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 15) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 6) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/
Miners killed in Winter Quarters (retrieved 28th July 2021). Retrieved from http://www.carbon-utgenweb.com/miners.html