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Foulds History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Foulds History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Foulds is an old Anglo-Saxon name. It comes from when a family lived in the region beside an enclosed pen for animals. The surname Foulds or Faulds is derived from the hamlet of Folds in the parish of Bolton in the northern county of Lancashire. That town's name, in turn, is derived from the ancient term "fold" meaning a sheep enclosure. 1

Alternatively, the name could have been denoted for a ‘Worker at the fold(s) or cattle-pen(s)’, from the Old English ƒalod, later f?ld, Middle English fold. 2

"Foulds is a Lancashire surname, so that we need not be surprised by the pronunciation. " 1

Early Origins of the Foulds family

The surname Foulds was first found in Yorkshire where Hugh del Foldis was listed at Wakefield in 1275. Later, Adam in le Fold was found in the Subsidy Rolls for Derbyshire in 1327 and John atte Fold was found in the Subsidy Rolls for Somerset in 1327. The Subsidy Rolls for Staffordshire include a listing for Adam de Falde in 1332 and in the same year, John del ffald was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Cumberland (Cumbria). 2

Early History of the Foulds family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Foulds research. Another 74 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1273, 1530 and 1597 are included under the topic Early Foulds History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Foulds Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years, the English language had no fast system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations are commonly found in early Anglo-Saxon surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Foulds were recorded, including Foulds, Faulds, Fowlds, Foulls, Faulls, Fowldes and many more.

Early Notables of the Foulds family

Another 32 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Foulds Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Foulds Ranking

In the United States, the name Foulds is the 18,708^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 3

Foulds migration to the United States +

To escape oppression and starvation at that time, many English families left for the "open frontiers" of the New World with all its perceived opportunities. In droves people migrated to the many British colonies, those in North America in particular, paying high rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Although many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, those who did see the shores of North America perceived great opportunities before them. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Research into various historical records revealed some of first members of the Foulds family emigrate to North America:

Foulds Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Joseph Foulds purchased land in Georgia in 1735
John Foulds, who arrived in Georgia in 1741 4

Foulds Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Miss Eliza Foulds, aged 23, British settler who arrived in New York aboard the ship "Cynosure" in 1863
Albion, Alexander, Henry, James, and William Foulds, who settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania between 1834 and 1866

Foulds migration to Australia +

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

Foulds Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. John Foulds, British convict who was convicted in York, Yorkshire, England for life, transported aboard the "Bussorah Merchant" on 1st October 1829, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 5
Mr. James Foulds, English convict who was convicted in Leeds, Yorkshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Exmouth" on 3rd March 1831, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6
William Foulds, aged 40, a farmer, who arrived in South Australia in 1849 aboard the ship "Florentia" 7
William Foulds, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Florentia" in 1849 7

Foulds 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:

Foulds Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

William Foulds, aged 21, who arrived in Port Nicholson aboard the ship "Oriental" in 1840
Mr. William Foulds, (b. 1814), aged 25, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Oriental" arriving in Port Nicholson, Wellington, New Zealand on 31st January 1840 8
Joseph Foulds, aged 28, a coal miner, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Golden Sea" in 1874

Contemporary Notables of the name Foulds (post 1700) +

Raymond Thomas Foulds, American forestry scientist
Thomas H. Foulds, American Republican politician, Postmaster at Cincinnati, Ohio, 1869-74 9
Frederick George Foulds (b. 1935), former English cricketer
Neal Foulds (b. 1963), retired English professional snooker player
June Florence Foulds (1934-2020), British two-time gold, silver and two-time bronze medalist track and field sprint runner
Garry Foulds (b. 1956), former Australian rules footballer
Adam Foulds (b. 1974), British novelist and poet
James Francis "Jim" Foulds (b. 1937), Canadian politician in Ontario the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1971 to 1987
John Foulds (1880-1939), British classical musician
Mr. Robert Foulds, British sheriff, held the joint position of Sheriff of Nottingham, England from 1757 to 1758
... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

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 10th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/bussorah-merchant
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 25th May 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/exmouth
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) FLORENTIA 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Florentia.htm
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 4) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html