Show ContentsLancaster History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Lancaster Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Etymology of Lancaster

What does the name Lancaster mean?

Lancaster is one of the names that was brought to England in the wave of migration following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Lancaster family lived in the city of Lancaster, in Lancashire, England. One of the earliest records of the family was William de Lancaster I (d. circa 1170), or William Fitz Gilbert, a nobleman of the 12th century in Northwest England during the Anarchy.

Early Origins of the Lancaster family

The surname Lancaster was first found in Lancashire where they held a family seat as Constables of Lancaster Castle from very ancient times. One of the first records of the family was found in Litherland, one of the ancient manors of Aughton. "About the middle of the twelfth century it was granted to Warin de Lancaster, chief forester, by the serjeanty of keeping the lord's falcons." 1

The chapelry of Milburn, Westmorland is also of significance to the family in early times. "The chapel, dedicated to St. Cuthbert, was founded by William de Lancaster, about 1355. Many vestiges of encampments are visible. Howgill Castle, formerly the seat of the knightly families of Lancaster and Sandford, and which, with Grange Hall and Lownthwaite, belongs to the Earl of Thanet, lord of the manor, occupies a commanding situation, half a mile east of the village; some of its walls are 10½ feet thick." 2

Early History of the Lancaster family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Lancaster research. Another 218 words (16 lines of text) covering the years 1066, 1068, 1070, 1114, 1150, 1334, 1618, 1650 and 1717 are included under the topic Early Lancaster History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lancaster Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, Norman French and other languages became incorporated into English throughout the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Lancaster include Lancaster, Lancashire, Lancester, Lancoster, Lancastell and many more.

Early Notables of the Lancaster family

  • Sir James Lancaster (died 1618), a prominent Elizabethan trader and privateer
  • William Lancaster D.D. (1650-1717), an English churchman and academic, Provost of The Queen's College, Oxford

Lancaster World Ranking

the United States, the name Lancaster is the 931st most popular surname with an estimated 32,331 people with that name. 3 However, in Australia, the name Lancaster is ranked the 691st most popular surname with an estimated 5,679 people with that name. 4 And in New Zealand, the name Lancaster is the 907th popular surname with an estimated 812 people with that name. 5 The United Kingdom ranks Lancaster as 690th with 9,648 people. 6

Migration of the Lancaster family to Ireland

Some of the Lancaster 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.

Lancaster migration to the United States +

In England at this time, the uncertainty of the political and religious environment of the time caused many families to board ships for distant British colonies in the hopes of finding land and opportunity, and escaping persecution. The voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, though, and many arrived in North America sick, starved, and destitute. Those who did make it, however, were greeted with greater opportunities and freedoms that they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Early immigration records have shown some of the first Lancasters to arrive on North American shores:

Lancaster Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Gowen Lancaster, aged 28, who arrived in Virginia in 1635 aboard the ship "Transport" 8
  • Owen Lancaster, who arrived in Virginia in 1639 8
  • William Lancaster, who landed in Virginia in 1658 8
  • Antho Lancaster, who landed in Virginia in 1665 8
  • Robert Lancaster, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1682 8
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Lancaster Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Marmaduke Lancaster, who landed in Virginia in 1714 8
Lancaster Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • William Walter Lancaster, who arrived in New York in 1834 8
  • Mr. Samuel Lancaster, aged 18, British weaver who arrived in New Orleans aboard the ship "Hope" on 1st April 1842
  • Edward, Frederick, John, Joseph, Mary, Richard, Thomas and William Lancaster all, who arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860

Lancaster migration to Canada +

Lancaster Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • Mr. Christopher Lancaster U.E. who settled in Parr Town, Saint John, New Brunswick c. 1784 9
Lancaster Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Mr. John Lancaster, aged 28 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Ajax" departing from the port of Liverpool, England but died on Grosse Isle in July 1847 10

Lancaster migration to Australia +

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

First Fleet
  • Mr. Robert Lancaster, (1742 - 1821), aged 47, British settler convicted at Nottinghamshire, England in 1788, sentenced to 14 years for stealing clothes, transported aboard the ship "Neptune, Scarborough or Surprize" leaving in 1789 arriving in New South Wales, Australia in 1790 7
Following the First Fleet, other convicts and early settlers arriving in Australia include:

Lancaster Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. Isaac Lancaster, English blacksmith who was convicted in Cumberland, England for 7 years for stealing, transported aboard the "Baring" in April 1815, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 11
  • Thomas Lancaster, English convict from Chester, who was transported aboard the "Albion" on May 29, 1828, settling in New South Wales, Australia 12
  • Mr. John Lancaster, English convict who was convicted in Surrey, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "David Lyon" on 29th April 1830, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 13
  • Mr. Thomas Lancaster, English convict who was convicted in Warwick, Warwickshire, England for life, transported aboard the "Elphinstone" on 20th January 1836, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 14
  • Mr. Abel Lancaster, (b. 1820), aged 21, English farm labourer who was convicted in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England for 10 years for house breaking, transported aboard the "Barossa" on 27th August 1841, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 15
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Lancaster 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:

Lancaster Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • John Lancaster, aged 25, a cabinet maker, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Bolton" in 1840
  • J Lancaster, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1840
  • Dr. Robert Lancaster, British settler arriving as Detachment of the Royal New Zealand Fencibles travelling aboard the ship "Sir Robert Sale" from Gravesend via Cork arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 11th October 1847 16
  • William Lancaster, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Andrew Jackson" in 1865
  • Miss Elizabeth Lancaster, (b. 1854), aged 21, English nurse from Surrey travelling from London aboard the ship "Waimate" arriving in Port Chalmers, Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 4th December 1875 16
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Lancaster 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. 17
Lancaster Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • William Lancaster, who settled in Barbados in 1668
  • Phillip Lancaster, who arrived in Barbados in 1680 with his servants

Contemporary Notables of the name Lancaster (post 1700) +

  • Burton Stephen "Burt" Lancaster (1913-1994), American Academy Award winning, two-time BAFTA Award winning film actor who came to be regarded as one of the best actors of his generation
  • Anthony "Tony" Lancaster (1938-2022), British-American Bayesian econometrician, Herbert H. Goldberger Professor Emeritus at Brown University and a fellow of the Econometric Society from 1991 until his death
  • Gary L. Lancaster (1949-2013), United States federal judge, Assistant District Attorney and lawyer
  • Alan Charles Lancaster (1949-2021), English musician, best known as founding member and bassist of the rock band Status Quo
  • Penny Lancaster -Stewart (b. 1971), English model and photographer, wife of rock singer Rod Stewart
  • Sir Osbert Lancaster CBE (1908-1986), English cartoonist, author, art critic, and stage designer
  • William Newton "Bill" Lancaster (1898-1933), pioneering British aviator
  • Marshall Lancaster (b. 1974), British television, film, and stage actor
  • Geoffrey Lancaster (b. 1954), Australian classical pianist and conductor
Halifax Explosion
  • Miss Theresa  Lancaster (1908-1917), Canadian resident from Protestant Orphanage, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada who died in the Halifax Explosion (1917) 18
  • Mr. Gordon  Lancaster, Canadian resident from Protestant Orphanage, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada who died in the Halifax Explosion (1917) 19
  • Mr. Thomas  Lancaster, Canadian resident from Protestant Orphanage, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada who died in the Halifax Explosion (1917) 19
  • Percy  George Lancaster (d. 1942), British Able Seaman aboard the HMS Cornwall when she was struck by air bombers and sunk; he died in the sinking 19
  • Mr. Howard Lancaster (b. 1912), English Able Seaman serving for the Royal Navy from Walsall, Staffordshire, England, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking 20
  • ... (Another 7 entries are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Suggested Readings for the name Lancaster +

  • Lancaster, the John Harrison Lancaster Families by Cora Belle Lancaster Kirk.
  1. 'Townships: Scarisbrick', in A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 3, ed. William Farrer and J Brownbill (London, 1907), pp. 265-276. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol3/pp265-276 [accessed 21 January 2017].
  2. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  3. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  4. "Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
  5. "Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
  6. "UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
  7. Convict Records of Australia. Retrieved 4th February 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships
  8. 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)
  9. 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
  10. Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 38)
  11. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/baring
  12. State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2014, November 24) Albion voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1828 with 192 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/albion/1828
  13. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 3rd June 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/david-lyon
  14. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th March 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/elphinstone
  15. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 24th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/barossa
  16. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  17. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
  18. 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
  19. Force Z Survivors Crew List HMS Cornwall (Retrieved 2018, February 13th) - Retrieved from https://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listcornwallcrew.html#A
  20. 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

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