Contents [hide]

Loftus History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Suggested Reading Citations

Loftus History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The name Loftus is an old Anglo-Saxon name. It comes from when a family lived in the village of Lofthouse during the reign of King Alfred in 900 AD. This place-name was originally derived from the Old Norse words lopt meaning loft and hus meaning house. Therefore the original bearers of the Loftus surname were dwellers of the loft house. [1]

Early Origins of the Loftus family

The surname Loftus was first found in North Yorkshire at Lofthouse, a small village in Nidderdale in the Harrogate district or at Lofthouse, a village in West Yorkshire. "This place, in the Domesday Survey Lochtushum, was granted by the Conqueror to Hugh Lupus, Earl of Chester, who soon afterwards transferred it to the Percy family, of whom William de Percy, the third Baron, in 1133 founded at Handall, in the parish, a priory for Benedictine nuns, which he dedicated to the Virgin Mary." [2]

Early History of the Loftus family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Loftus research. Another 68 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1273, 1573, 1605, 1619, 1620, 1639, 1647, 1691, 1695 and 1797 are included under the topic Early Loftus History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Loftus Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years, the English language had no fast system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations are commonly found in early Anglo-Saxon surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Loftus were recorded, including Loftus, Lofthouse, Loftis, Loftiss, Loftos and others.

Early Notables of the Loftus family

Distinguished members of the family include

Adam Loftus, 1st Viscount Loftus (1619-1639), Lord Chancellor of Ireland

Loftus Ranking

In the United States, the name Loftus is the 4,850^th most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. [3]

Migration of the Loftus family to Ireland

Some of the Loftus family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 81 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Loftus migration to the United States +

To escape oppression and starvation at that time, many English families left for the "open frontiers" of the New World with all its perceived opportunities. In droves people migrated to the many British colonies, those in North America in particular, paying high rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Although many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, those who did see the shores of North America perceived great opportunities before them. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Research into various historical records revealed some of first members of the Loftus family emigrate to North America:

Loftus Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Fabia Loftus, who landed in Maryland in 1679 [4]
John Loftus, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1682
John Loftus, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1683 [4]

Loftus Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Biddy Loftus, aged 40, who landed in New York, NY in 1848 [4]
Peter Loftus, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1853 [4]
James Loftus, who landed in St Clair County, Illinois in 1854 [4]
John, Michael, Patrick and Thomas Loftus, all, who arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860
J H Loftus, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1875 [4]
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Loftus migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Loftus Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Miss. Catherine Loftus, aged 14 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Wolfville" departing from the port of Sligo, Ireland but died on Grosse Isle in July 1847 [5]
Mr. John Loftus, aged 6 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Royal Adelaide" departing from the port of Killala, Ireland but died on Grosse Isle in August 1847 [5]
Mr. Martin Loftus, aged 38 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Abbeylands" departing from the port of Liverpool, England but died on Grosse Isle in August 1847 [5]
Mrs. Loftus, aged 40 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Independence" departing from the port of Belfast, Ireland but died on Grosse Isle in July 1847 [5]
Mr. Thomas Loftus, aged 26 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Syria" departing from the port of Liverpool, England but died on Grosse Isle in May 1847 [5]
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Loftus migration to Australia +

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

Loftus Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Miss Catherine Loftus, (b. 1768), aged 45, Irish convict who was convicted in Dublin, Ireland for 7 years, transported aboard the "Catherine" on 8th December 1813, arriving in New South Wales, Australia [6]
Mr. Thomas Loftus, British convict who was convicted in Gibraltar for life, transported aboard the "Exmouth" on 3rd March 1831, arriving in New South Wales, Australia [7]
Miss Catherine Loftus who was convicted in Preston, Lancashire, England for 7 years , transported aboard the "Aurora" on 22nd April 1851, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) [8]
Mr. John Loftus, English convict who was convicted in Newcastle Upon Tyne, Northumberland, England for 12 years, transported aboard the "Fairlie" on 9th Mary 1852, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Island) [9]
James Loftus, aged 21, who arrived in South Australia in 1854 aboard the ship "James Fernie" [10]

Loftus 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:

Loftus Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Annie Loftus, aged 17, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Jessie Osborne" in 1867

Contemporary Notables of the name Loftus (post 1700) +

Johnny Loftus (1895-1976), American horse racing jockey
John Loftus (b. 1950), American author, former US government prosecutor, former Army intelligence officer
Elizabeth Loftus (b. 1944), American psychologist and author
Mathew W. Loftus (1839-1902), American Democratic Party politician, Mayor of Scranton, Pennsylvania, 1872-75 [11]
Lawrence Loftus, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for Connecticut State House of Representatives from East Windsor, 1934 [11]
John T. Loftus, American politician, Mayor of Carbondale, Pennsylvania, 1920 [11]
John J. Loftus, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Pennsylvania, 1912, 1916, 1924, 1928 [11]
James J. Loftus, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from New York 33rd District, 1930 [11]
Hubert J. Loftus, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Illinois, 1972, 1980 [11]
Edgar J. Loftus, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Pennsylvania, 1940 [11]
... (Another 14 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
"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)
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. 40)
Convict Records of Australia (Retreived 2nd January 2021, retreived from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/catherine
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 25th May 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/exmouth
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 20th August 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/aurora
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 26th September 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/fairlie
South Australian Register Friday 17th November 1854. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) James Fernie 1854. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/jamesfernie1854.shtml
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 19) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html