Contents [hide]

Plant History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Plant History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
France
Ireland

The ancestors of the Plant family brought their name to England in the wave of migration after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The name Plant is for a gardener as the name was originally derived from the Old English word plant meaning plant, or young tree. 1 2

Early Origins of the Plant family

The surname Plant was first found in London where they held a family seat being descended from Fulk, the Count of Anjou, whose descendants were exemplified by the Emperor, Henry V of Germany, and Henry who ascended the English throne and planted the Plantagenet dynasty. He bore the three royal lines which continued until the time of Edward III who added a crest of another lion. The eventual heiress of this house was the Princess Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV, and Queen of Henry VII. Many junior lines abounded. 3

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 included: Robert Plante, Cambridgeshire; and Roger Plante, Cambridgeshire. 4

"A family in humble circumstances at Kettering [Northamptonshire], bear the ancient royal name of Plantagenet, though now it is commonly changed to Plant." 5

"The Plants are very numerous in the Eccleshall district [of Staffordshire]. The name of Plente occurred in the 13th century in Huntinghamshire and Oxfordshire. There are also now a few representatives of the name of Plant in Suffolk and Shropshire." 6

Early History of the Plant family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Plant research. Another 128 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1533 and 1605 are included under the topic Early Plant History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Plant Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Plantaggenett, Plantagenet, Plant, Plante and others.

Early Notables of the Plant family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

Simon Plante and Catherine Weaver who were married at St...

Plant Ranking

In the United States, the name Plant is the 5,729^th most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 7 However, in the United Kingdom, the name Plant is ranked the 665^th most popular surname with an estimated 9,885 people with that name. 8

Migration of the Plant family to Ireland

Some of the Plant family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Plant migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Plant Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Mathew Plant, aged 23, who landed in Virginia in 1635 aboard the ship "Assurance" 9
Rich Plant, who landed in Virginia in 1638 9
Thomas Plant who settled in Virginia in 1670
William Plant, who landed in Virginia in 1698 9

Plant Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

John Plant, who landed in Virginia in 1715 9
Elizabeth Plant, who landed in Virginia in 1715 9
Mathias Plant, who arrived in New England in 1721 9
Elizabeth Plant, who settled in Maryland in 1723

Plant Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

James Plant, aged 17, who arrived in Alexandria, Va in 1818 9
H. Plant, who settled in New York State in 1823
James Plant, who settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1841
Minna Plant, aged 21, who arrived in New York, NY in 1860 9
Mr. William Plant, aged 59, British settler who arrived in New York aboard the ship "Cynosure" in 1863
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Plant migration to Australia +

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

Plant Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Benjamin Plant who was convicted in Derby, Derbyshire, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Bengal Merchant" on 4th August 1836, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 10
Mr. Walter Plant, (b. 1815), aged 21, Enlgish ribbon weaver who was convicted in Warwick, Warwickshire, England for life for house robbery, transported aboard the "Bengal Merchant" on 4th August 1836, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, he died in 1895 10
Elizabeth Plant, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Baboo" in 1840 11
Mr. George Plant, English convict who was convicted in Staffordshire, England for 10 years, transported aboard the "Barossa" on 27th August 1841, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 12
Mr. William Plant, (b. 1826), aged 17, British labourer who was convicted in Knutsford, Cheshire, England for 7 years for larceny, transported aboard the "Asiatic" on 26th May 1843, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 13
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Plant 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:

Plant Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. William Plant, (b. 1850), aged 28, Irish farm labourer from Westmeath departing on 10th August 1878 aboard the ship "Hydaspes" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 9th November 1878
Mrs. Ann Plant, (b. 1848), aged 30, Irish settler from Westmeath departing on 10th August 1878 aboard the ship "Hydaspes" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 9th November 1878
Mr. Thomas Plant, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "May Queen" arriving in Tauranga, Bay of Plenty, North Island, New Zealand on 16th December 1881 14
Florence Plant, aged 22, a dressmaker, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Ionic" in 1884

Contemporary Notables of the name Plant (post 1700) +

Richard Plant (1910-1998), German-born American writer
Henry Bradley Plant (1819-1899), American railroad manager
Mary Terstegge Meagher Plant (b. 1964), former American competitive swimmer
Claude W. Plant, American fighter pilot and flying ace in the U.S. Navy, during World War II, credited with 8½ aerial victories
Theodore H. Plant, American Democratic Party politician, Presidential Elector for California, 2000 15
Morgan Plant, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Pennsylvania, 1996 15
Mary Plant, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Ohio, 1964 15
Edward Plant, American politician, Prohibition Candidate for Presidential Elector for Michigan, 1960 15
David Plant (1783-1851), American politician, Representative from Connecticut at-large, 1827-29 15
Amzi P. Plant, American politician, Member of Connecticut State Senate 1st District, 1864 15
... (Another 8 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Plant family +

HMS Hood

Mr. Edwin Plant (b. 1915), English Marine serving for the Royal Marine from Cheadle, Staffordshire, England, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking 16

Citations +

Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
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 7th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/bengal-merchant
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) BABOO 1840. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1840Baboo.htm
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 24th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/barossa
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 14th July 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/asiatic
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 13) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.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