Contents [hide]

Stark History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Motto Suggested Reading Citations

Stark History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Finland
Germany

Stark is an ancient Anglo-Saxon name. It was a name given to a person who was a person who is firm, or resolute. Stark is a nickname surname, which belongs to the category of hereditary surnames. Nicknames form a broad and miscellaneous class of surnames, and can refer directly or indirectly to one's personality, physical attributes, mannerisms, or even their habits of dress. The surname Stark comes from the Old English word stark, which means firm, and was given to someone who was powerful or resolute. This family was established in Suffolk since the early Middle Ages.

Early Origins of the Stark family

The surname Stark was first found in Suffolk, where the Stark family held a family seat from ancient times.

Early History of the Stark family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Stark research. Another 159 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1222, 1273, 1314, 1376, 1540, 1544, 1677, 1728, 1745, 1757, 1794 and 1822 are included under the topic Early Stark History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Stark Spelling Variations

One relatively recent invention that did much to standardize English spelling was the printing press. However, before its invention even the most literate people recorded their names according to sound rather than spelling. The spelling variations under which the name Stark has appeared include Stark, Starck, Starke, Starckman, Sterke, Sterk, Starkey, Starkie and many more.

Early Notables of the Stark family

Distinguished members of the family include

James Stark, a prominent 19th century painter whose work is displayed in the National Gallery of British Art

Stark Ranking

In the United States, the name Stark is the 858^th most popular surname with an estimated 34,818 people with that name. 1 However, in New Zealand, the name Stark is ranked the 999^th most popular surname with an estimated 757 people with that name. 2

Stark migration to the United States +

At this time, the shores of the New World beckoned many English families that felt that the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. Thousands left England at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. A great portion of these settlers never survived the journey and even a greater number arrived sick, starving, and without a penny. The survivors, however, were often greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. These English settlers made significant contributions to those colonies that would eventually become the United States and Canada. An examination of early immigration records and passenger ship lists revealed that people bearing the name Stark arrived in North America very early:

Stark Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Stark, who arrived in Lynn, Massachusetts in 1641 3
Matts Stark, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1693 3
Israel Stark, who landed in Delaware in 1693 3

Stark Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Kath Stark, who arrived in Virginia in 1705 3
Mary Stark, who arrived in Virginia in 1715 3
Archibald Stark, who landed in New England in 1720 3
Jacob Stark, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1750 3
George Stark, who sailed to Philadelphia in 1753
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Stark Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Robert Stark, who arrived in Charleston, South Carolina in 1803 3
Michael Stark, aged 19, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1805 3
Jacob Friederick Stark, aged 15, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1805 3
Jung Michael Stark, aged 52, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1805 3
Margretha Stark, aged 12, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1805 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Stark Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

August William Stark, who landed in Wisconsin in 1917 3
Ernst Max Stark, who arrived in Chile in 1920 3

Stark migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Stark Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

John Stark, who sailed to Quebec in 1825

Stark migration to Australia +

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

Stark Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Richard Stark, a baker, who arrived in New South Wales, Australia sometime between 1825 and 1832
Alexander Stark, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Lady Bute" in 1839 4
Jane Grace Stark, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Hooghly" in 1848 5
E. Stark, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Caroline" in 1849 6
James Stark, aged 17, who arrived in South Australia in 1849 aboard the ship "Marion" 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Stark 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:

Stark Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. John Stark (Starkes, Slarke), (b. 1814), aged 27, British agricultural labourer travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Lord William Bentinck" arriving in Wellington, New Zealand on 24th May 1841 8
Mrs. Lucy Stark Starkes, Slarke), (b. 1817), aged 24, British settler travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Lord William Bentinck" arriving in Wellington, New Zealand on 24th May 1841 8
Mr. John Stark Starkes, Slarke), (b. 1839), aged 2, British settler travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Lord William Bentinck" arriving in Wellington, New Zealand on 24th May 1841 8
Miss Stark(Starkes, Slarke), (b. 1835), aged 6, British settler travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Lord William Bentinck" arriving in Wellington, New Zealand on 24th May 1841 8
Mr. Stark(Starkes, Slarke), (b. 1841), aged Infant, British settler travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Lord William Bentinck" arriving in Wellington, New Zealand on 24th May 1841 8
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Stark (post 1700) +

Peter G. "Pat" Stark (1930-2020), American college football player and coach
Fortney Hillman "Pete" Stark Jr. (1931-2020), American businessman and politician, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California (1973-2013)
Ray Stark (1915-2004), American film producer
Lloyd C. Stark (1886-1972), American former governor of Missouri
Harold Stark (b. 1939), American mathematician elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1983 and to the United States National Academy of Sciences in 2007
Etilmon J. Stark (1868-1962), prolific American ragtime composer and arranger
Charles Stark, American politician, Member of New Hampshire State Senate 3rd District, 1853-54 9
Carroll J. Stark, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from New Jersey, 1956, 1964 9
Caleb Stark, American politician, Member of New Hampshire State Senate 4th District, 1818-19 9
Benjamin Stark (1820-1898), American Democratic Party politician, Member of Oregon territorial House of Representatives, 1852; Member of Oregon State House of Representatives, 1860; U.S. Senator from Oregon, 1861-62 9
... (Another 69 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Stark family +

RMS Lusitania

Mr. Robert Lucas Stark, English 2nd Class Cabin Bed Steward from Seaforth, Liverpool, who worked aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and died in the sinking 10

SS Alcoa Puritan

W.W. Stark, American from Norfolk, New York, 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 11

SS Caribou

Mr. Ivan Stark, Newfoundland passenger from Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador was travelling aboard the railway ferry "SS Caribou" when it was struck by a German submarine torpedo on 14th October 1942, the most significant sinking in Canadian waters at that time, he survived the sinking

The Stark Motto +

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: Fortiorum fortia facta
Motto Translation: The brave deeds of brave men.

Citations +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
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)
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) LADY BUTE 1839. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1839LadyBute.gif
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) HOOGHLY 1848. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1848Hooghly.htm
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) The CAROLINE 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Caroline.htm
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) The MARION 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Marion.htm
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, December 1) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 7) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Alcoa_Puritan_(1941) - (Retrieved 2018, February 8th)