Show ContentsColquit History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Anglo-Saxon name Colquit comes from when the family resided in Newcastle. The name means "at the coal pits," and is found in the area around the great coal mines in Newcastle and the surrounding area in Shropshire. 1 "I have observed this name about Newcastle-upon-Tyne. It was probably assumed in the first instance by a person resident near a coal-pit." 2

Early Origins of the Colquit family

The surname Colquit was first found in the historic county of Durham, now part of Tyne and Wear in the Newcastle upon Tyne area. Early records of the family are rare. The first record we found of the name was a marriage record in London of Nicholas Collpotts and Katherine Tatham, (1576-1577.) Braund's Newcastle lists John Colepitts as a hoastman in 1720 (epitaph, St. Nicholas, Newcastle-on-Tyne); and George Colpits, of Killingworth in 1763. 1 Black has no record of the family in Scotland, so one can presume that the family remained in this area. Today Colpitts Grange is a village in Northumberland and Colpitt Lake is a lake near Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Early History of the Colquit family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Colquit research. Another 24 words (2 lines of text) covering the year 1576 is included under the topic Early Colquit History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Colquit Spelling Variations

The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore,spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Colquit has been recorded under many different variations, including Colpitts, Coldpitts, Colquit, Colquite, Colquitt, Colquits, Collpotts and many more.

Early Notables of the Colquit family

More information is included under the topic Early Colquit Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Colquit family

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Colquit or a variant listed above: Robert Colpits who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1775 and Ann Colpitts in Australia in 1791.



  1. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  2. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.


Houseofnames.com on Facebook