Show ContentsBowton Surname History

The ancestors of the distinguished surname Bowton date back to the time when England was ruled by the Anglo-Saxons. The name is derived from the Old English "bufan tune," literally meaning "above the village," and probably first referred to one living at the head of or above a village. Bufton is a small hamlet between the Leicestershire with about 10-20 people living there.

Early Origins of the Bowton family

The surname Bowton was first found in Bedfordshire, where the Bowton family first emerged during the Middle Ages. The earliest recorded bearer of the name was Robert Buveton, who was listed in the Curia Regis Rolls of 1222.

Early History of the Bowton family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bowton research. Another 81 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1222, 1240, 1636 and 1707 are included under the topic Early Bowton History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bowton Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Bufton, Bowton, Boveton, Buftown, Bowten, Buften and others.

Early Notables of the Bowton family

Distinguished members of the family include

  • John Bowton (also Bouton, Boughton) (1636-1707), a founding settler of Norwalk, Connecticut


United States Bowton migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Bowton Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Jo Bowton, aged 20, who arrived in Virginia in 1635 1
  • Thomas Bowton, who landed in Maryland in 1649 1
  • William Bowton, who arrived in Maryland in 1671 1
Bowton Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Hugh Bowton, aged 21, who landed in New York, NY in 1833 1

West Indies Bowton 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. 2
Bowton Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • Hannah Bowton, aged 30, who landed in Barbados in 1684 1


  1. 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)
  2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies


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