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Innes History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables World Ranking

United States Canada Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Motto Citations

Innes History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

The Innes surname in Scotland is said to derive from the name of the barony of Innes in Moray. As such, the surname belongs to the category of habitation names, which are derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. The place name Innes comes from the Gaelic "inis," meaning "island formed by two branches of a stream." [1]

Early Origins of the Innes family

The surname Innes was first found in Morayshire where they held a family seat from very ancient times. The Clan's progenitor is Berowaldus Flandrensis who, in 1153, obtained from King Malcolm IV a grant of lands in Innes, in the province of Elgin. [2]

The original barony was an island formed by two branches of a stream. Berowaldus was supposedly a Fleming of quite high distinction. His grandson, Walter of Innes, had these lands confirmed to him in 1226 by King Alexander II of Scotland.

Berowald continued to be a favorite first name within the Clan for some time, and this later became anglicized as Walter. Walter de Inneys was the first Chief of the Clan and held territorial control of the barony. His successor, William de Inays was forced to pledge his allegiance during King Edward I of England's brief conquest of Scotland in 1296. Scotland declared its independence at Arbroath in 1320, and it is from this point that the Innes Clan began to flourish; many branches developed with numerous Chieftains.

Sir Alexander, the 9th Chief of the Clan, built the great tower of Kincairdy Castle, and King James IV was entertained there by Sir James, the 12th Chief of the Clan in 1490. In 1579, the Privy Council of Scotland officially recognized the Innes as a Clan under Robert, the 19th Chief of Innes.

During the 1600's the Innes Clan played an important role in Scottish politics and Alexander Innes of Cockstoune, Sir Harie Innes, James Innes of Landysyde, Robert Innes, Chief of the Clan, Robert Innes of Murietown, Robert Innes of Blairtown, Robert Innes of Fortrose, were all members of Scotland's parliament. In 1554, the friction between the Innes Clan and the Dunbars reached its peak and was to continue for another thirty years. It had started with the intrusion of the Dunbars into Innes Clan territory. William Innes, the 15th Chief of the Clan, gathered eighty of his Clansmen and sacked the Priory of Pluscarden, and Alexander Dunbar narrowly escaped death on the alter steps of Elgin Cathedral. The feud finally ended with outside arbitration when it was agreed that no Dunbar should go east of the Cairn of Kilbuick and that no Innes could enter the town of Forres.

Early History of the Innes family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Innes research. Another 184 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1370, 1396, 1398, 1406, 1407, 1414, 1650, 1651, 1652, 1655, 1662, 1670, 1677, 1680, 1681, 1684, 1690, 1691, 1715, 1721, 1736, 1738, 1744, 1767, 1805 and 1823 are included under the topic Early Innes History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Innes Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Innes, Innis, Innice, Inniss and others.

Early Notables of the Innes family

Of note in the family at this time was

John de Innes (c. 1370-1414), medieval Scottish churchman, received a bachelorate in civil law from the University of Paris by 1396 and in canon law by 1407, pursuing an ecclesiastical career, being A...
Other notables include: Sir Robert Innes, 1st Baronet of Innes (died c. 1655); Sir Robert Innes, 2nd Baronet of Innes (c. 1690); Sir Harry Innes, 4th Baronet of Innes (c. 1670-1721); Sir Robert Innes...

Innes World Ranking

In the United States, the name Innes is the 10,893^rd most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. [3] However, in New Zealand, the name Innes is ranked the 768^th most popular surname with an estimated 954 people with that name. [4] And in the United Kingdom, the name Innes is the 987^th popular surname with an estimated 7,072 people with that name. [5]

Innes migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Innes Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

James Innes, who arrived in Virginia in 1635
Alexander Innes, who settled in New England in 1651
Alexander Innes, who landed in New England in 1652 [6]
Gilbert Innes, who settled in East New Jersey in 1683

Innes Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Lewis Innes, who settled in Boston in 1725
James Innes, who arrived in North Carolina in 1732 [6]
Robert Innes, who arrived in America in 1750 [6]
Katherine Innes, aged 20, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1775 [6]
Andrew Innes, who arrived in Savanna(h), Georgia in 1794 [6]

Innes Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

William Innes, aged 23, who arrived in New York in 1812 [6]
John Innes, who landed in New York in 1822 [6]
George Innes, who landed in New York in 1827 [6]
R B Innes, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1850 [6]
William W Innes, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1850 [6]

Innes migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Innes Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Robert Innes and his child Duncan, who arrived at Pictou, Nova Scotia in 1773 aboard the "Hector"
Robert Innes, who landed in Pictou, Nova Scotia in 1773

Innes migration to Australia +

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

Innes Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. William Innes, (b. 1764), aged 36, English convict who was convicted in London, England for life for burglary, transported aboard the "Earl Cornwallis" in August 1800, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, he died in 1814 [7]
William Innes, Scottish convict from Perth, who was transported aboard the "Asia" on July 29th, 1823, settling in Van Diemen's Land, Australia [8]
Alexander Innes, a gunsmith, who arrived in New South Wales, Australia sometime between 1825 and 1832
William Innes, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Planter" in 1839 [9]
Miss Margaret Innes, (Young), Scottish convict who was convicted in Perth, Scotland for 7 years, transported aboard the "Emma Eugenia" on 22nd January 1846, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) [10]
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Innes 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:

Innes Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Captain T. Innes, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Inchinnan" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 27th May 1852 [11]
Mr. Alfred Innes, (b. 1840), aged 21, Scottish carpenter, from Berkshire travelling from London aboard the ship "Royal Stuart" arriving in Lyttlelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 8th October 1861 [12]
Mr. James Innes, (b. 1841), aged 20, Scottish farm labourer, from Caithness travelling from London aboard the ship "Royal Stuart" arriving in Lyttlelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 8th October 1861 [12]
Mr. Frank Innes, (b. 1835), aged 28, Scottish ploughman, from Caithness travelling from London aboard the ship "Sebastopol" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 21st May 1863 [12]
Mrs. Innes, British settler travelling from London, UK aboard the ship "Bahia" arriving in Lyttelton, South Island, New Zealand on 7th December 1863 [11]
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Innes Settlers in New Zealand in the 20th Century

Thomas Innes, aged 61, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "S. S. Waimana" in 1926
Isabell Innes, aged 36, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "S. S. Waimana" in 1926
Helen Innes, aged 21, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "S. S. Waimana" in 1926

Innes 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. [13]

Innes Settlers in West Indies in the 18th Century

Robert and James Innes, who both arrived in Barbados in 1716

Contemporary Notables of the name Innes (post 1700) +

Judith Innes (d. 2020), American academic, professor emerita at the College of Environmental Design at the University of California, Berkeley
Scott Innes (b. 1966), American author, songwriter, voice actor, and radio personality
William Thornton Innes III (1874-1969), American aquarist, author, photographer, printer and publisher
Laura Innes (b. 1959), American three-time Primetime Emmy Award nominated actress and director, best known for her role as Dr. Kerry Weaver on ER
Frederick Maitland Innes (1816-1882), Scottish-born, Australian politician, 9th Premier of Tasmania (1872 to 1873)
Andrew Colin Innes, Scottish born, London-based musician
Cosmo Nelson Innes FRSE (1798-1874), Scottish advocate, judge, Advocate-Depute, Sheriff of Elginshire, and Principal Clerk of Session, his "Essay Concerning Some Scotch Names" gives great insight into many Scottish families
Chris Innes (b. 1976), Scottish footballer from Broxburn, Scotland
Robert Thorburn Ayton Innes (1861-1933), Scottish astronomer best known for discovering Proxima Centauri in 1915, eponym of the Innes lunar crater
Lieutenant General James John McLeod Innes VC, CB (1830-1907), Scottish recipient of the Victoria Cross in 1858
... (Another 11 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Innes family +

Halifax Explosion

Miss Ethel Jean Innes (1901-1917), Canadian resident from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada who died in the Halifax Explosion (1917) [14]

HMS Hood

Mr. Alexander Innes (b. 1916), Scottish Able Seaman serving for the Royal Navy from Portsley, Banffshire, Scotland, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking [15]

The Innes 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: Be Traist
Motto Translation: Be faithful.

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
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)
"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
"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 13th August 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/earl-cornwallis
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Asia 1 voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1823 with 151 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1823
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) PLANTER 1839. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1839Planter.htm
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 4th April 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/emma-eugenia
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
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
Halifax Explosion Book of Remembrance | Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. (Retrieved 2014, June 23) . Retrieved from https://maritimemuseum.novascotia.ca/what-see-do/halifax-explosion/halifax-explosion-book-remembrance
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