Contents [hide]

Waterson History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables

Ireland United States Canada Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Waterson History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland
Scotland

Early Origins of the Waterson family

The surname Waterson was first found in Yorkshire where the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 include John Waulerson, 1 Johannes Wauterson and Alicia Wartson. 2

In Scotland, the family claim Ross-shire, specifically the lands of Waterson in the parish of Fern (Fearn) as their ancient homestead. "These lands probably obtained their name from Walter, uncle and tutor of Dempster, one of the heirs portioners of the lordsnip of Menmuir. A payment of twenty-five shillings by William de Walteristoun to David Scot, custos of the burgh of Montrose, is recorded in 1329 and David de Walterstoun had eight marks out of the farms in the thanage of Tannadyce, 1359." 3 Wether Hill is located in Dumfries and Galloway, near New Galloway, Scotland; near Perth and near Penrith, England.

Early History of the Waterson family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Waterson research. Another 279 words (20 lines of text) covering the years 1317, 1359, 1384, 1450, 1495, 1514, 1540, 1585, 1594, 1634, 1656, 1676, 1890 and 1929 are included under the topic Early Waterson History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Waterson Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Waterson, Watersone, Waterston, Watherston and many more.

Early Notables of the Waterson family

Notable amongst the family name during their early history was

Edward Waterson (died 1594), English Catholic priest and martyr, beatified in 1929
Simon Waterson (1585-1634) a London prominent publisher of Edmund Spenser and Sir Philip Sidney

Migration of the Waterson family to Ireland

Some of the Waterson family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 57 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Waterson migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Waterson Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Ann Waterson, who landed in Virginia in 1664 4
Robert Waterson, who landed in Maryland or Virginia in 1669 4
William Waterson, who landed in New Jersey in 1685 4
Tho Waterson, who arrived in Virginia in 1696 4

Waterson Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Peter Waterson, who arrived in Virginia in 1703 4

Waterson Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Pat Waterson, aged 55, who landed in New York, NY in 1803 4
Pat Waterson, who settled in New York in 1803
John Waterson, who arrived in New York, NY in 1815 4
George Waterson, who settled in Philadelphia in 1855
Waterson, aged 40, who landed in America from London, in 1892

Waterson Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Annie Waterson, aged 21, who settled in America from Jarrow, England, in 1909
Andrew Waterson, aged 45, who landed in America from Rosewell, Scotland, in 1910
Annie Waterson, aged 18, who immigrated to the United States from Clydebank, Scotland, in 1912
Agnes Allan Fulton Waterson, aged 25, who settled in America from Clydebank, Scotland, in 1919
David Waterson, aged 25, who landed in America, in 1919
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Waterson migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Waterson Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Mr. John Waterson U.E. who settled in St. Stephen, New Brunswick c. 1784 member of the Port Matoon Association 5

Waterson migration to Australia +

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

Waterson Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. John Waterson, (b. 1748), aged 55, British convict who was convicted in Somerset, England for life for house breaking, transported aboard the "Calcutta" in February 1803, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6
Mr. Charles Waterson, English convict who was convicted in Worcester, Worcestershire, England for 15 years, transported aboard the "Earl Grey" on 4th October 1842, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 7

Waterson 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:

Waterson Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

John Waterson, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1841 aboard the ship Lady Nugent
J. Waterson, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Belle Creole" in 1853

Waterson 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. 8

Waterson Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Godfrey Waterson, who settled in Jamaica in 1684

Contemporary Notables of the name Waterson (post 1700) +

Michelle Waterson (b. 1986), American mixed martial artist and model
Norma Waterson (1939-2022), English musician, best known as one of the original members of The Watersons, a celebrated English traditional folk group.
Mike Waterson (1941-2011), English singer and songwriter
Fred Waterson (1877-1918), English footballer
Elaine "Lal" Waterson (1943-1998), English folksinger and songwriter, member of the Watersons
Michael "Mike" Waterson (1941-2011), English writer, songwriter and folk singer, member of the Watersons
Tim Waterson, Canadian drummer who holds the world record for the fastest number of double strokes on a bass drum using a double pedal
James Waterson (1993-1996), Scottish footballer (1893-1896)
Colin Waterson (b. 1980), Scottish electronic musician from Glasgow
Colin Waterson (b. 1959), Australian footballer for Richmond and East Fremantle (1978-1981)
... (Another 6 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Waterson family +

HMS Hood

Mr. Thomas J B Waterson (b. 1917), English Leading Stoker serving for the Royal Navy from Wootton Bassett, Wiltshire, England, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking 9

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-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)
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
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)
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 25th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/calcutta
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th August 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/earl-gray
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
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