Contents [hide]

Wishart History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Canada Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Wishart History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland
Ireland
England

Among the all the peoples of ancient Scotland, the first to use the name Wishart were the Strathclyde-Britons. It was a name for someone who lived in Stirling.

Early Origins of the Wishart family

The surname Wishart was first found in Stirlingshire, where they held a family seat from very ancient times. William Wishart had a grant of the mill from the Abbey of Cambus Kenneth in the year 1200, and was associated with lands at Conon and Tulloch in 1254. Another William Wishart was a monk at St. Andrews in 1250. The family also held the lands of Kenny Murchardyn in 1279. Sir John Wishart rendered homage in 1296 to King Edward I of England on his brief conquest of Scotland. 1

"Andrew Wycchard (Wyschard or Wychard) of Scotland, a prisoner of war in Hereford Castle, 1305-07. George Wischart was burned for heresy at St. Andrews, 1545/6, and a later George Wischart was first bishop of Edinburgh after the Restoration and private chaplain and biographer of the marquess of Montrose." 1

"The family are of ancient date in Forfarshire, and are descended from Robert, a natural son of David, Earl of Huntingdon, who having gone on a crusade to the Holy Land, was called Guishart, on account of the slaughter he made of the Saracens. Adam Wishart of Logie, was living in 1272." 2

"Some ancient writers say, that Robert, son of David, Earl of Huntingdon, took on him the cross, and distinguished himself in the Holy Land, where, from his gallant exploits against the Saracens, he received the name of Guis-hart, that is, Wise-heart, now Wishart." 3

Robert Wishart (d. 1316), was Bishop of Glasgow and belonged to the family of Wishart or Wiseheart of Pittarrow, Forfarshire, and was either nephew or cousin of William Wishart, bishop of St. Andrews and chancellor of Scotland. 4

Much further to the south in England, and much earlier Wigheard, Wighard, or Vighard (d. 664), was Archbishop-elect of Canterbury, a Kentish priest and one of Deusdedit's clergy. "He was nominated to the archbishopric with the assent of the English church by the kings Oswy and Egbert, and was sent, bearing gold and silver vessels, to Rome for consecration. He died of the plague in Rome in 664, before his consecration. " 4

In Bedfordshire, Wishardus Leidt was listed in the Pipe Rolls for Bedfordshire in 1176 and about the same time, Walter Wiscard, Wishard was found in the Pipe Rolls for Surrey in 1162 and 1169. Rannulf Wichard was listed in the Curia Regis Rolls for Essex in 1212. 5

Early History of the Wishart family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Wishart research. Another 66 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1513, 1538, 1546, 1576, 1592, 1593, 1596, 1597, 1599, 1629, 1649 and 1671 are included under the topic Early Wishart History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Wishart Spelling Variations

The variation in the spelling of Medieval names is a result of the lack of spelling rules in the English language prior to the last few hundred years. Before that time, scribes spelled according to sound, often varying the spelling of name within a single document. Wishart has appeared as Wishart, Wishard, Wychart, Wisehart, Wisheart, Wiseheart and many more.

Early Notables of the Wishart family

Notable amongst the family at this time was

George Wishart (c.1513-1546) famous reformer and martyr. In 1538, while a schoolmaster at a grammar school in Montrose, he incurred a charge of heresy for teaching the Greek New Testament. After spend...
Sir John Wishart (d. 1576), was a Scottish judge, the eldest son of James Wishart of Cairnbeg in the parish of Fordoun, Kincardineshire, and grandson of James Wishart of Pittarrow in the same parish...
George Wishart (1599-1671), was Bishop of Edinburgh, the younger son of John Wishart of Logie-Wishart, Forfarshire, and grandson of Sir John Wishart of that Ilk. His father did not succeed to the prop...

Wishart Ranking

In the United States, the name Wishart is the 17,918^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 6

Migration of the Wishart family to Ireland

Some of the Wishart 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.

Wishart migration to the United States +

As the persecution of Clan families continued, they sailed for North America in increasing numbers. In most cases, they found the freedom and opportunity they sought. Land was often available and the American War of Independence allowed Scots an opportunity to solidify their independence from the English crown. These settlers and their ancestors went on to play essential roles in the forging of the nations of the United States and Canada. Among them:

Wishart Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Patrick Wishart, who landed in Virginia in 1638 7
Patrick Wishart, who settled in Virginia in 1656

Wishart Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

James, Margaret, Mary, Robert, and Ruth Wishart all, who arrived in Philadelphia between 1750 and 1811
John Wishart, who landed in Virginia in 1776 7

Wishart Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Margaret Wishart, aged 21, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1804 7
James Wishart, aged 51, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1804 7
Henry Wishart, who arrived in New York in 1806 7
James Wishart, aged 31, who landed in New York in 1812 7
William W Wishart, who arrived in Mississippi in 1857 7

Wishart Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

John Wishart, aged 65, who arrived in New York in 1919 aboard the ship "Saxonia" from Liverpool, England 8
Richard Wishart, aged 19, who arrived in New York City, New York in 1919 aboard the ship "Persian Prince" from Dundee, Scotland 8

Wishart migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Wishart Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

William Wishart, who settled in New Brunswick at a place which became known as Wishart's Point

Wishart migration to Australia +

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

Wishart Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. James Wishart, British Convict who was convicted in Glasgow, Scotland for 7 years, transported aboard the "Asia" on 5th November 1835, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land)1836 9
Mr. John Wishart, English convict who was convicted in London, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Bengal Merchant" on 24th March 1838, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 10
Alexander Wishart, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Rajasthan" in 1840 11
Lilas Wishart, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Rajasthan" in 1840 11
John Wishart, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Rajasthan" in 1840 11
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Wishart 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:

Wishart Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

John Wishart, aged 26, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Jane Gifford" in 1842 12
Isabella Wishart, aged 25, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Jane Gifford" in 1842 12
Agnes Wishart, aged 4, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Jane Gifford" in 1842 12
Mr. John Wishart, Scottish settler from Bathgate travelling from Glasgow aboard the ship "Storm Cloud" arriving in Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 27th April 1860 13
Mr. George Wishart, (b. 1858), aged 19, Scottish settler travelling from Glasgow aboard the ship "Marlborough" arriving in Bluff, South Island, New Zealand on 4th November 1877 14
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Wishart 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. 15

Wishart Settlers in West Indies in the 18th Century

Alexander Wishart, who settled in Barbados in 1745

Contemporary Notables of the name Wishart (post 1700) +

Ronald K. Wishart, American Libertarian politician, Candidate for New Jersey State House of Assembly 11th District, 1975 16
Robert Wishart, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Minnesota, 1944 16
Joseph S. Wishart, American politician, Member of South Dakota State House of Representatives 46th District, 1925-26 16
Bobby Wishart (1933-2020), Scottish footballer who played 272 matches for Scotland, Aberdeen, Dundee, Airdrie and Raith Rovers (1953-1965)
John Wishart (1898-1956), Scottish agricultural statistician
Admiral Sir James Wishart (d. 1729), British Naval officer 17
Arthur Allison Wishart (1903-1986), Canadian jurist and politician from New Brunswick, former Attorney General for Ontario, Canada
Jean Boughton Wishart OBE (1920-2016), New Zealand journalist and editor of the New Zealand Woman's Weekly from 1952 to 1985
Trevor Wishart (b. 1946), English composer
Rod Wishart, former Australian rugby league footballer
... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Wishart family +

HMS Hood

Mr. Jack E Wishart (b. 1921), English Marine serving for the Royal Marine from South Moor, Stanley, County Durham, England, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking 18

Citations +

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)
Sims, Clifford Stanley The Origin and Signification of Scottish Surnames. 1862. Print.
Arthur, William , An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names. London: 1857. Print
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
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)
Ellis Island Search retrieved 15th November 2022. Retrieved from https://heritage.statueofliberty.org/passenger-result
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 28th January 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1835
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 13th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/bengal-merchant
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) RAJASTHAN 1840. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1840Rajasthan.htm
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 16) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Wikisource contributors. "Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900." Wikisource . Wikisource , 4 Jun. 2018. Web. 5 Feb. 2019
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