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Inch History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Inch History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

Inch is a name of ancient Anglo-Saxon origin and comes from the family once having lived in the region of Ince in Cheshire West. Inch is a topographic surname, which was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree.

Early Origins of the Inch family

The surname Inch was first found in Cheshire at Ince, a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and historically in the union of Great Boughton, Second division of the hundred of Eddisbury. The first record of this local was found in the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was listed as Inise. 1 Ince-in-Makerfield or Ince is a regenerated township in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, in Greater Manchester, but historically in Lancashire. The earliest mention of the Manor of Ince and the Ince family dates from about 1202 in this area. At that time, it was part of the barony of Newton in Makerfield (Newton le Willows.) "The family of Ince were anciently lords of this manor, which, in the reign of Henry IV., was conveyed by their heiress to the Gerards." 2

Early History of the Inch family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Inch research. Another 74 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1635, 1660 and 1679 are included under the topic Early Inch History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Inch Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Inch family name include Ince, Ince, Ins, Ines, de Inces, Inch and others.

Early Notables of the Inch family

Another 35 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Inch Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Inch migration to the United States +

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Inch surname or a spelling variation of the name include:

Inch Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

John Inch, who arrived in Maryland in 1666 3

Inch Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Mr. Bertram Inch, (b. 1883), aged 22, Cornish miner from Liskeard, Cornwall, UK travelling aboard the ship "Philadelphia" arriving at Ellis Island, New York in 1905 en route to Ishpeming, Michigan, USA 4
Mr. Bertram Inch, (b. 1905), aged 4 months, Cornish settler from Truro, Cornwall, UK travelling aboard the ship "St Louis" arriving at Ellis Island, New York on 12th August 1905 en route to Ishpeming, Michigan, USA 4
Mrs. Louisa Inch, (b. 1885), aged 20, Cornish settler from Truro, Cornwall, UK travelling aboard the ship "St Louis" arriving at Ellis Island, New York on 12th August 1905 en route to Ishpeming, Michigan, USA 4

Inch migration to Australia +

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

Inch Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

James Inch, English convict from Essex, who was transported aboard the "Anna Maria" on March 6, 1848, settling in Van Diemen's Land, Australia 5
Margaret Inch, Scottish convict from Aberdeen, who was transported aboard the "Anna Maria" on October 4, 1851, settling in Van Diemen's Land, Australia 6
Mr. Josiah Inch, (b. 1831), aged 21, Cornish agricultural labourer departing from Liverpool on 4th August 1852 aboard the ship "Triconderoga" arriving in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia on 22nd December 1852 7
Mrs. Elizabeth Inch, (b. 1831), aged 21, Cornish settler departing from Liverpool on 4th August 1852 aboard the ship "Triconderoga" arriving in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia on 22nd December 1852 7
Miss Tamsen Inch, (b. 1830), aged 22, Cornish domestic servant departing from Liverpool on 4th August 1852 aboard the ship "Triconderoga" arriving in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia on 22nd December 1852 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Inch 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:

Inch Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Miss Annie Inch, (b. 1857), aged 16, Cornish general servant departing on 16th July 1873 aboard the ship "Adamant" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 17th October 1873 8
Mr. David Inch, (b. 1853), aged 20, Cornish groom departing on 16th July 1873 aboard the ship "Adamant" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 17th October 1873 8
Miss Ellen Inch, (b. 1860), aged 14, Cornish settler departing on 25th September 1874 aboard the ship "Crusader" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 31st December 1874 8
Mr. George Inch, (b. 1855), aged 19, Cornish carpenter departing on 25th September 1874 aboard the ship "Crusader" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 31st December 1874 8
Mr. Henry Inch, (b. 1832), aged 42, Cornish general labourer departing on 25th September 1874 aboard the ship "Crusader" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 31st December 1874 8
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Inch (post 1700) +

Robert Alexander Inch (1873-1961), American jurist, United States District Judge in Brooklyn, New York
Richard Inch (1843-1911), American rear admiral of the United States Navy, active in the American Civil War, Spanish-American War and the Philippine-American War
Thomas Inch (1881-1963), Britain's Strongest Youth and Britain's Strongest Man, eponym of the Thomas Inch dumbbell
Adam Inch (1857-1933), Scottish-born, Canadian dairy farmer and politician, eponym of Inch Park in Hamilton, Ontario

Historic Events for the Inch family +

RMS Lusitania

Mr. William Ernest Inch, English 2nd Class passenger residing in New York, New York, USA, who sailed aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and survived the sinking by escaping in life boat 15 9

Citations +

Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
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)
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 3rd May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_ellis_island_1892_on.pdf
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2015, January 8) Anna Maria voyage to Van Diemen's Land or Port Phillip, Australia in 1848 with 190 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/anna-maria/1848
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2015, January 8) Anna Maria voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1851 with 200 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/anna-maria/1851
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 3rd May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_australia_victoria.pdf
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 2018, April 30). Emigrants to Lyttelton 1858-84 [PDF]. Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/new_zealand_assisted.pdf
Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 6) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/