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Ship History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables

United States Australia New Zealand West Indies

Ship History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Ship is a name whose history on English soil dates back to the wave of migration that followed the Norman Conquest of England of 1066. The Ship family lived in Oxfordshire. The name Shipton derives from the Old English words scip, meaning sheep, and tun, meaning enclosure or settlement, and indicates that the original bearer of the name lived near such a place.

Early Origins of the Ship family

The surname Ship was first found in Oxfordshire where they held a family seat from ancient times, and were Lords of the manor of Shipton-on-Cherwell, and Shipton-under Wychwood in that shire. Conjecturally the Shiptons are descended from Alfsi of Faringdon who held the King's land, or from Ilbert who held his lands from the Bishop of Bayeux, as these nobles were shown as holders in the Domesday Book in 1086, a census initiated by Duke William of Normandy after the Battle of Hastings in 1066 A.D.

Early History of the Ship family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ship research. Another 90 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1488, 1561, 1630, 1659, 1666, 1680 and 1748 are included under the topic Early Ship History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ship Spelling Variations

A multitude of spelling variations characterize Norman surnames. Many variations occurred because Old and Middle English lacked any definite spelling rules. The introduction of Norman French to England also had a pronounced effect, as did the court languages of Latin and French. Therefore, one person was often referred to by several different spellings in a single lifetime. The various spellings include Shiptone, Shipton, Shippton, Shipptone and others.

Early Notables of the Ship family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

Ursula Southeil (c. 1488-1561) (also variously spelt as Ursula Southill, Ursula Soothtell or Ursula Sontheil), better known as Mother Shipton, an English soothsayer and prophetess who foresaw the Grea...
John Shipton (1680-1748), was an English surgeon, son of James Shipton, a druggist, living in Hatton Garden and William Shipton (fl. 1659), was an English poet, perhaps identical with William Shipton...

Ship migration to the United States +

Many English families left England, to avoid the chaos of their homeland and migrated to the many British colonies abroad. Although the conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and some travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute, once in the colonies, many of the families prospered and made valuable contributions to the cultures of what would become the United States and Canada. Research into the origins of individual families in North America has revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Ship or a variant listed above:

Ship Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Ship, who arrived in Maryland in 1637 1
Thomas Ship, who landed in Virginia in 1663 1

Ship Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Mary Ship, who arrived in Virginia in 1703 1
Lancaster Ship, who arrived in Virginia in 1711 1
Adam Ship, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1752 1

Ship migration to Australia +

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

Ship Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Thomas Ship, English convict who was convicted in Essex, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Eliza" on 2nd February 1831, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 2
Mr. George Ship, British Convict who was convicted in Bristol, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Asia" on 20th July 1837, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 3

Ship 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:

Ship Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. George Ship, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Matoaka" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 26th September 1859 4

Ship 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. 5

Ship Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Mr. Jefferie Ship, (b. 1611), aged 24, British settler travelling aboard the ship "Expedition" arriving in Barbados in 1636 6

Citations +

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 28th February 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eliza
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 7th February 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1837
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
Pilgrim Ship Lists Early 1600's retrieved 29th September 2021. Retrieved from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm