Saltus History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Saltus is a name of ancient Norman origin. It arrived in England with the Norman Conquest of 1066. It is a name for a person who worked at a saltworks. Such structures where salt was purified were known as salthouses. 1 2

Early Origins of the Saltus family

The surname Saltus was first found in Norfolk at Salthouse, a parish, in the union of Erpingham, hundred of Holt. "The church is a handsome structure in the later English style, with a lofty square embattled tower, formerly surmounted by a spire; the foundation of a second church may still be traced in the burial-ground." 3

The Domesday Book of 1086 lists this place as Saltus 4 and literally the place name meant "building for storing salt," from the Old English "salt" + "hus." 5

Shortly after the Conquest, Salthouse was occupied by William d'Ecouis who held it from Earl William de Warren. 4

Two sources note that the first on record was Adam de Salthus who held lands here according to the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. 6 1

Later, the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed Simon del Southouse, souter. 6

"Salthouse is a name now mostly confined to Lancashire. De Salthus was a Norfolk name in the 13th century; there is a parish of Salthouse in that county, and De Salthouse was a common clerical name in that county in the 14th century (Blomefield's "Norfolk"). Salthouse is a Norfolk parish." 2

Two other sources agree: "two small places, a Salthouse in Lytham, and a Salthouse in Furness, where salt was obtained from sea-water, have originated two families of Salthouse in North Lancashire." 6 1

The Lancashire Wills at Richmond includes: Janet Saltehowse, of Pulton. 1562; Agnes Saltus, of Ulverston, 1596; John Salthouse, of Saltcoathouses, 1661; and William Saltus, of Banke, 1662.

Early History of the Saltus family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Saltus research. Another 57 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1630, 1652, 1657, 1665, 1681 and 1691 are included under the topic Early Saltus History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Saltus Spelling Variations

A multitude of spelling variations characterize Norman surnames. Many variations occurred because Old and Middle English lacked any definite spelling rules. The introduction of Norman French to England also had a pronounced effect, as did the court languages of Latin and French. Therefore, one person was often referred to by several different spellings in a single lifetime. The various spellings include Salthouse, Saltehouse, Salthose and others.

Early Notables of the Saltus family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Thomas Salthouse (1630-1691), English Quaker, born in Lancashire in 1630, probably at Dragley Beck, an outlying district in Ulverston parish, about half a mile from Swarthmoor Hall. After a scanty education, Salthouse was employed as land steward by Judge Thomas Fell at Swarthmoor Hall and was converted to Quakerism, with the other inmates of the house, on George Fox's first visit there in 1652. in 1657, he was sent to Ilchester gaol, brought...
Another 81 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Saltus Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Saltus family

Many English families left England, to avoid the chaos of their homeland and migrated to the many British colonies abroad. Although the conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and some travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute, once in the colonies, many of the families prospered and made valuable contributions to the cultures of what would become the United States and Canada. Research into the origins of individual families in North America has revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Saltus or a variant listed above: Thomas Salthouse who settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1683; another Thomas Salthouse settled in Barbados in 1685; William Salthouse settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1838..

Contemporary Notables of the name Saltus (post 1700) +

Thomas Saltus Lubbock (1817-1862), American Texas Ranger and colonel in the Confederate army during the American Civil War, eponym of Lubbock County, Texas

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)