| ![Show Contents]() Cottom History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
Cottom is a name of ancient Anglo-Saxon origin and comes from a family once having lived in one of a number of similarly named settlements throughout England. Coton is found in Cambridgeshire, while Cotton was in Cheshire. There are places called Coatham in Durham and the North Riding of Yorkshire. Cotham is in Nottinghamshire. Settlements named Cottam exist in both Nottinghamshire and the East Riding of Yorkshire. All of these names stem from the Old English phrase æt cotum, which means at the cottages. Thus, the surname Cottom belongs to the class of topographic surnames, which were given to people who resided near physical features such as hills, streams, churches, or types of trees. Early Origins of the Cottom familyThe surname Cottom was first found in Huntingdonshire where the Cotton spelling is listed in the Domesday Book as resident of the Toseland hundred, in the land of the Bishop of Lincoln. 1 They were traditional Lords of the manor of Connington. The Coton spelling boasts no fewer than seven listing in the Domesday Book in various counties. The first record of the name was found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 where Robert de Cottone was listed in Cambridgeshire. The same rolls also listed Richard de Cottoune in the same shire, Ralph de Cotun in Northumberland and Richard de Cotton in Norfolk. 2 John Cotton (12th cent.?), "is the author of a valuable treatise on music, first printed by Gerbert in 1784. Of this work there are two manuscripts at Vienna, and one each at Leipzig, Paris, Rome, and Antwerp. A sixth, from which Gerbert printed his edition, was destroyed in the fire at St. Blasien in 1768. " 3 Bartholomew de Cotton (d. 1298?), was an English "historian, a monk of Norwich, and probably a native of Cotton in Suffolk, but nothing is known of his life. " 3 The parish of Denton in Huntingdonshire was the family seat of the family in later years. "The church [of Denton] was partly rebuilt about 1665, by Sir John Cotton. Sir Robert Bruce Cotton, whose manuscripts are now in the British Museum, was born here in 1570." 4 Over in Steeple Gidding another record of the family was found. "Here was a large mansion, the residence of the Cotton family; the avenue to it still remains, and some of the existing cottages are built of the materials which formed the stables." 4 Early History of the Cottom familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cottom research. Another 219 words (16 lines of text) covering the years 1549, 1570, 1582, 1585, 1594, 1598, 1621, 1630, 1631, 1633, 1635, 1644, 1652, 1661, 1662, 1679, 1681, 1687, 1689, 1695, 1701, 1702, 1712, 1717, 1748 and 1752 are included under the topic Early Cottom History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Cottom Spelling VariationsThe 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. Cottom has been recorded under many different variations, including Cotton, Coton, Cotten, Coten, Cottan, Kotton, Kotten, Koten, Kottan, Cottun, Cotun, Kotun, Kottun, Cottune, Cotune, Cottane, Cottain, Kottain, Kottaun, Cottaun, Kuttune, Cottone, Cottaune and many more. Early Notables of the Cottom familyDistinguished members of the family include Blessed Thomas Cottam (1549-1582), English Catholic priest and martyr; William Cotton (d. 1621), Bishop of Exeter, 1598 to 1621; John Cotton (1585-1652), English clergyman, American settler in 1633 and became one of the most important New England Puritan ministers; Sir Robert Bruce Cotton of Connington, 1st Baronet (1570-1631), English politician, founder of the Cotton or Cottonian library, an antiquarian and bibliophile, and was the basis of the British Library; Sir Thomas Cotton, 2nd Baronet...
Another 79 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Cottom Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.  Migration of the Cottom family to Ireland
Some of the Cottom family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 36 words (3 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
| Cottom migration to the United States | + |
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 Cottom or a variant listed above:
Cottom Settlers in United States in the 19th Century- Samuel Cottom, who landed in New York, NY in 1817 5
| Cottom 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: Cottom Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century- William Cottom, aged 42, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Inchinnan" in 1852 6
- Mary Cottom, aged 30, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Inchinnan" in 1852 6
- A.L. Cottom, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Douglas" in 1873
| Contemporary Notables of the name Cottom (post 1700) | + |
- Tressie McMillan Cottom, American writer, sociologist and associate professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Information and Library Science (SILS)
- Norman Cottom (1912-1972), American basketball player for the Indianapolis Kautskys in the National Basketball League for two seasons (1935-1937)
- Brandon Cottom (b. 1992), American former football fullback for the Seattle Seahawks (2015–2017), Salt Lake Stallions (2019), and the Philadelphia Soul (2019)
- Serge Van Cottom (b. 1953), Belgian weightlifter who competed in the men's light heavyweight event at the 1980 Summer Olympics
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: In utraque fortuna paratus
Motto Translation: Prepared for either good or bad fortune.
- Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
- Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
- Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
- Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
- 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)
- New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
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Cottom migration to the United States 
Cottom migration to New Zealand 
England
Ireland
