Contents [hide]

Duckworth History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Suggested Reading Citations

Duckworth History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The lineage of the name Duckworth begins with the Anglo-Saxon tribes in Britain. It is a result of when they lived in the settlement of Duckworth in the county of Lancashire. 1 The surname Duckworth belongs to the large category of Anglo-Saxon habitation names, which are derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads.

Early Origins of the Duckworth family

The surname Duckworth was first found in Cambridgeshire where one of the earliest records is of Hugo de Duckworth in 1216 who was listed in the Rotuli de Oblatis et Finibus (p. 587) and his descendant Sire John Duckworth was summoned to a great council of Westminster in 1324. 2

The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 list Henricus de Dukeworth and Johannes Dukeworth as holding lands there at that time. 1

Early History of the Duckworth family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Duckworth research. Another 191 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1310, 1379, 1647, 1648 and 1695 are included under the topic Early Duckworth History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Duckworth Spelling Variations

Only recently has spelling become standardized in the English language. As the English language evolved in the Middle Ages, the spelling of names changed also. The name Duckworth has undergone many spelling variations, including Duckworth, Dykeward, Duckword, Duckward, Duckwort, Duckwart, Dickworth, Dickward, Dickword and many more.

Early Notables of the Duckworth family

Notables of the family at this time include

Richard Duckworth (fl. 1695), English campanologist, a native of Leicestershire, probably identical with the Richard Duckworth mentioned, under date 4 May 1648, in the ‘Register of Visitors of Oxford...

Duckworth Ranking

In the United States, the name Duckworth is the 2,354^th most popular surname with an estimated 12,435 people with that name. 3

Duckworth migration to the United States +

To escape the unstable social climate in England of this time, many families boarded ships for the New World with the hope of finding land, opportunity, and greater religious and political freedom. Although the voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, those families that arrived often found greater opportunities and freedoms than they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Duckworth were among those contributors:

Duckworth Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Elizabeth Duckworth, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1712-1713 4

Duckworth Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

J. Duckworth who settled in New Orleans in 1823
J. Duckworth, who settled in New York in 1823
William Duckworth, aged 29, who arrived in Missouri in 1848 4
H. Duckworth settled in San Francisco, California in 1852
Fergus B Duckworth, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1864 4

Duckworth migration to Australia +

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

Duckworth Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Miss Sarah Duckworth, English convict who was convicted in Lancaster, Lancashire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Canada" in March 1810, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 5
Mr. Robert Duckworth, English convict who was convicted in Lancaster, Lancashire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Claudine" on 20th May 1821, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 6
Mr. Thomas Duckworth, (b. 1791), aged 37, English convict who was convicted in Lancaster, Lancashire, England for life for uttering forged notes, transported aboard the "Eliza" on 25th June 1828, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 7
Miss Mary Duckworth, English Convict who was convicted in Lancaster, Lancashire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Atwick" on 28 September 1837, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 8
Mr. Thomas Duckworth, (b. 1819), aged 21, English weaver who was convicted in Lancaster, Lancashire, England for 10 years for house breaking, transported aboard the "Duncan" on 10th December 1840, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land), he died in 1845 9
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Duckworth 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:

Duckworth Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

James H. Duckworth, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Gertrude" in 1863 10
Mr. James H. Duckworth, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Gertrude" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 9th February 1863 11
Mr. Edward Duckworth, British labourer travelling from London aboard the ship "Victory " arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 17th October 1863 12
H. Duckworth, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Asterope" in 1865

Duckworth 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. 13

Duckworth Settlers in West Indies in the 18th Century

Mr. Duckworth, who arrived in St Christopher in 1773 4

Contemporary Notables of the name Duckworth (post 1700) +

Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (b. 1987), American rapper, songwriter and record producer from Compton, California
Carl William Duckworth (1955-2018), American politican, Member of the Utah House of Representatives (1999-2008)
Brandon J. Duckworth (b. 1976), American Major League Baseball pitcher with the Boston Red Sox
William Duckworth (b. 1943), U.S. composer
Colonel Joseph Duckworth (1903-1964), American aviator, first person to fly through the eye of a hurricane
Tammy Duckworth, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Illinois, 2008 14
Robert P. Duckworth, American Republican politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Maryland, 1990, 2004 14
Patricia Tinley Duckworth, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Iowa, 1944, 1952 14
Milton Duckworth, American politician, Member of Rhode Island State Senate from Charlestown, 1911 14
Lawson L. Duckworth, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for Maryland State House of Delegates District 1-A, 1998 14
... (Another 18 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Duckworth family +

Arrow Air Flight 1285

Mr. James Frederick Duckworth (1957-1985), American Staff Sergeant from Westernport, Maryland, USA who died in the Arrow Air Flight 1285 crash 15

Empress of Ireland

Mr. William Barrett Duckworth, British Electrician from United Kingdom who worked aboard the Empress of Ireland (1914) and survived the sinking 16

HMS Hood

Mr. Kenneth R R Duckworth (b. 1921), English Able Seaman serving for the Royal Navy from Newark on Trent, Nottinghamshire, England, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking 17

RMS Lusitania

Mr. Thomas Duckworth, English Fireman from Liverpool, England, who worked aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and died in the sinking 18
Mrs. Elizabeth Ann Duckworth, American 3rd Class passenger from Taftville, Connecticut, USA, who sailed aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and survived the sinking by escaping in life boat 21 18

SS Alcoa Puritan

J.A. Duckworth Jr., American from Waycross, Georgia, who was working aboard the SS Alcoa Puritan (1942) traveling from Port of Spain, Trinidad to Mobile, Alabama when it was torpedoed by U-boat U-507; he survived the sinking 19

Citations +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 9th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/canada
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th February 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/claudine
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th February 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eliza
Convict Records of Australia. Retreived 23rd August 2020 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/atwick
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 11th August 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/duncan
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 12th December 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 13) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
American War Memorials - Flight 1285. (Retrieved 2016, August 24) . Retrieved from http://www.uswarmemorials.org/html/monument_details.php?SiteID=317&MemID=550
Commemoration Empress of Ireland 2014. (Retrieved 2014, June 17) . Retrieved from http://www.empress2014.ca/seclangen/listepsc1.html
H.M.S. Hood Association-Battle Cruiser Hood: Crew Information - H.M.S. Hood Rolls of Honour, Men Lost in the Sinking of H.M.S. Hood, 24th May 1941. (Retrieved 2016, July 15) . Retrieved from http://www.hmshood.com/crew/memorial/roh_24may41.htm
Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 6) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Alcoa_Puritan_(1941) - (Retrieved 2018, February 8th)