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Chitwood History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Motto Suggested Reading Citations

Chitwood History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The ancient history of the Chitwood name begins with the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from when the family resided in Chetwood, a parish, in the union, hundred, and county of Buckingham. "The church, made parochial in 1480, is remarkable for some beautiful specimens of stained glass, formerly belonging to a priory of Augustine monks, founded by Sir Ralph de Norwich in 1244, and which was dissolved on account of its poverty in 1460, and annexed to the abbey of Nutley. There was also a hermitage dedicated to St. Stephen and St. Lawrence, founded by a member of the Chetwode family, the representative of which claims suit and service, by prescriptive right, over this place and some neighbouring hamlets, that are said to have been included within the limits of an ancient forest of 1000 acres, called Rockwood." 1

The family was "seated at Chetwode, co. Bucks, as early as the Conquest. There soon after, Robert de Chetwode founded a priory. The family resided at Chetwode for more than twenty generations." 2

Early Origins of the Chitwood family

The surname Chitwood was first found in Buckinghamshire where they descend from Robert de Thain, who held Chetwode under the Bishop of Baieux in the time of William the Conqueror. John de Chetwode during the reign of Edward III married the heiress of Oakley, of Oakley of Staffordshire.

"This manor of Chetwode, as appears to me, has been in the possession and inheritance of the Chetwodes longer than any estate or manor in this county of Buckingham has continued the property of any other family now there existing." 3

In Cheshire, "Sir John Chetwode, Bart., is lord of the manor, and principal landed proprietor [of Lower Whitley]." 1

Early feudal rolls provided the king of the time a method of cataloguing holdings for taxation, but today they provide a glimpse into the wide surname spellings in use at that time. Robert de Chetewod was listed in the Curia Regis Rolls for 1206 in Warwickshire and Ralph de Chetwode was found in the Feet of Fines for Kent in 1262. John de Chetwode was found in the Feet of Fines for Surrey (1346-1347). 4

Early History of the Chitwood family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Chitwood research. Another 92 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1650, 1720 and 1797 are included under the topic Early Chitwood History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Chitwood Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Chitwood include Chetwode, Chetwood, Chetwoode, Chitwood, Chitwode and others.

Early Notables of the Chitwood family

Distinguished members of the family include Knightly Chetwood (1650-1720), Dean of Gloucester, the eldest son of Valentine Chetwode of Chetwood, by Mary, daughter of Francis Shute, Esq. of Upton, Leicestershire, and grandson of Richard Chetwode, Esq. of Oakley in Staffordshire...
Another 39 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Chitwood Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Chitwood Ranking

In the United States, the name Chitwood is the 4,729^th most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 5

Migration of the Chitwood family to Ireland

Some of the Chitwood family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 44 words (3 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Chitwood migration to the United States +

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Chitwood or a variant listed above:

Chitwood Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Chitwood, who landed in Virginia in 1636 6
William Chitwood, who settled in Virginia in 1636

Chitwood Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Mary Chitwood, who arrived in Virginia in 1702 6

Chitwood Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Sophia Chitwood, who arrived in New York in 1904 aboard the ship "Arabic" from Liverpool, England 7
Oliver Chitwood, aged 38, who arrived in New York in 1913 aboard the ship "Patricia" from Hamburg, Germany 7
Agnes Chitwood, aged 26, who arrived in New York in 1913 aboard the ship "Patricia" from Hamburg, Germany 7

Chitwood 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. 8

Chitwood Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

John Chitwood, who settled in Barbados in 1694

Contemporary Notables of the name Chitwood (post 1700) +

Joie Chitwood III, American President and Chief Operating Officer of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway
William Hewlitt "Bill" Chitwood (b. 1891), American fiddle player from Resaca, Georgia
Christina Chitwood (b. 1990), American ice dancer
George Rice "Joie" Chitwood (1912-1988), American racecar driver and founding daredevil in the Joie Chitwood Thrill Show
Walter Randolph "Ranny" Chitwood, American cardiothoracic surgeon
Joseph Howard Chitwood (b. 1877), American Democratic Party politician, Member of Virginia State House of Delegates, 1907-08; U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Virginia, 1920-21, 1934-40 9
H. H. Chitwood, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Tennessee, 1932 9
Elizabeth Chitwood, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Virginia, 2008 9
Chad Chitwood, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Missouri, 2004 9

The Chitwood 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: Corona mea Christus
Motto Translation: Christ is my crown.

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Shirley, Evelyn Philip, The Noble and Gentle Men of England; The Arms and Descents. Westminster: John Bower Nichols and Sons, 1866, Print.
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/
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)
Ellis Island Search retrieved 15th November 2022. Retrieved from https://heritage.statueofliberty.org/passenger-result
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 21) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html