Contents [hide]

Cater History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Cater History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The family name Cater is one of the oldest Anglo-Saxon names of Britain. It was originally a name for a person who worked as a caterer. The surname Cater was an official name, "the cater," derived from the Old French ale catour, a title meaning a buyer of groceries for the gentleman's house. They were in charge of maintaining provisions in manors and castles. The cater's job assumed a great importance during extended sieges of his lord's castle, which could last for years.

Early Origins of the Cater family

The surname Cater was first found in Berkshire, where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D. William le Catur who was documented in the year 1273 in Essex and a few years later, Bernard le Acatour was listed in 1300 in Somerset. William Katerer was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax of 1379.

Early History of the Cater family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cater research. Another 92 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1150 and 1600 are included under the topic Early Cater History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cater Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, French and other languages became incorporated into English through the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Cater include Cater, Cator, Cather, Catter, Cader and others.

Early Notables of the Cater family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

William, Henry and John Cater, who established the first estates in England

Cater Ranking

In the United States, the name Cater is the 7,851^st most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1

Cater migration to the United States +

A great wave of immigration to the New World was the result of the enormous political and religious disarray that struck England at that time. Families left for the New World in extremely large numbers. The long journey was the end of many immigrants and many more arrived sick and starving. Still, those who made it were rewarded with an opportunity far greater than they had known at home in England. These emigrant families went on to make significant contributions to these emerging colonies in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants:

Cater Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

George Cater who settled in Virginia in 1642
Georg Cater, who landed in Virginia in 1642 2
Thomas Cater, who landed in Virginia in 1651 2
James Cater, who arrived in Virginia in 1664 2

Cater Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Tho Cater, who arrived in Virginia in 1704 2
William Cater, who landed in Virginia in 1711 2
Rose Cater, who landed in Virginia in 1714 2
Sarah Cater, who settled in New England in 1760

Cater Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Philipp Robert Cater, who arrived in New York in 1871 2
Agnes Cater, aged 29, who immigrated to the United States from Colchester, in 1899

Cater Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Arthur A. Cater, aged 39, who immigrated to America from London, in 1906
Annie Eliz Cater, aged 37, who landed in America from Birmingham, England, in 1910
Alice H. Cater, aged 30, who immigrated to the United States from London, England, in 1911
Bertram Aymar Cater, aged 40, who landed in America from London, England, in 1913
Ada Mary Cater, aged 29, who landed in America from Yate, England, in 1914
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Cater migration to Australia +

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

Cater Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. James Cater, English convict who was convicted in Devon, England for life, transported aboard the "Burrell" on 22nd July 1830, arriving in New South Wales 3
Mr. Richard Cater who was convicted in London, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Camden" on 21st March 1831, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 4
Mr. James Cater, English convict who was convicted in Norfolk, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Bardaster" on 7th September 1835, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 5
George Cater, English convict from Warwick, who was transported aboard the "Anson" on September 23, 1843, settling in Van Diemen's Land, Australia 6
James Cater, aged 29, a shepherd, who arrived in South Australia in 1849 aboard the ship "Eliza" 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Cater 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:

Cater Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

S. Cater, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Andover" in 1843

Contemporary Notables of the name Cater (post 1700) +

Danny Anderson Cater (b. 1940), American Major League Baseball player who played from 1964 to 1975
William J. Cater, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from New Hampshire, 1916 (alternate), 1924 (alternate), 1928; Candidate for New Hampshire State Senate 24th District, 1916 8
Silas D. Cater, American politician, Delegate to Alabama convention to ratify 21st amendment from Montgomery County, 1933 8
Leo H. Cater, American politician, Delegate to New Hampshire State Constitutional Convention from Somersworth 4th Ward, 1956 8
Eugene R. Cater (b. 1923), American Democratic Party politician, Member of Michigan State House of Representatives 98th District, 1965-66; Defeated, 1966, 1968 8
Sir Alexander Norman Ley Cater KCIE (1880-1957), English administrator in British India, Chief Commissioner of Balochistan (1931-1932) and (1932-1936)
John Cater (1932-2009), English actor, known for his many roles in Danger Man, Z Cars, The Avengers, The Baron, Doctor Who and many more
James "Jim" Cater (1902-1947), Scottish boxer from Glasgow who competed at the 1920 Summer Olympics
Nicholas Charles "Nick" Cater (b. 1958), English-born, Australian journalist and author from Billericay, Essex who writes on culture and politics for The Australian newspaper
Mojca Cater (b. 1970), Canadian bronze medalist butterfly swimmer at the 1988 Summer Olympics
... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Cater family +

Air New Zealand Flight 901

Mr. Graham Ronald Cater (d. 1979), New Zealander Fligh Steward, from Auckland, New Zealand working aboard the Air New Zealand sightseeing Flight 901 when it flew into Mount Erebus; he died in the crash 9

Citations +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 5th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/burrell
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 2nd December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/camden
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/bardaster
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2015, January 8) Anson voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1843 with 499 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/anson/1843
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) ELIZA 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Eliza.htm
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 20) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Mount Erebus, Memorial, Roll of Remembrance (Retrieved 2018, February 21st). Retrieved from http://www.erebus.co.nz/memorialandawards/rollofremembrance.aspx