Contents [hide]

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

Ireland United States Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Suggested Reading Citations

Butcher History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The name Butcher came to England with the ancestors of the Butcher family in the Norman Conquest in 1066. The surname Butcher is for a person who worked as a "butcher." The name is derived from the Old English root "boucher," or the Old French root, "bouchier." Another possible derivation suggests that the name was given to families who dwelt in the French area of Boursieres. The two names have become confused over time, and the derivation of individual cases is subsequently extremely difficult to determine.

Early Origins of the Butcher family

The surname Butcher was first found in Salop (Shropshire) where they held a family seat after the Norman Conquest in 1066. Anciently the family held lands in Burgundy, to which they gave the name Boursieres. 1

Early History of the Butcher family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Butcher research. Another 241 words (17 lines of text) covering the years 1273, 1450, 1548, 1549, 1550, 1583 and 1665 are included under the topic Early Butcher History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Butcher Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Butcher, Butchere, Butchers, Boucher, Bucher, Buchere, Boutcher and many more.

Early Notables of the Butcher family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

Joan Bocher or Joan Boucher or Butcher (died 1550), an English Anabaptist burned at the stake for heresy. She was arrested as a heretic in 1548 and convicted in April 1549. 2
Richard Butcher (1583-1665?), was an English antiquary, a native of Stamford, and became town clerk of that borough. 2

Butcher World Ranking

In the United States, the name Butcher is the 1,546^th most popular surname with an estimated 19,896 people with that name. 3 However, in Australia, the name Butcher is ranked the 478^th most popular surname with an estimated 7,899 people with that name. 4 And in New Zealand, the name Butcher is the 532^nd popular surname with an estimated 1,306 people with that name. 5 The United Kingdom ranks Butcher as 393^rd with 16,419 people. 6

Migration of the Butcher family to Ireland

Some of the Butcher family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 83 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Butcher migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Butcher or a variant listed above were:

Butcher Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Francis Butcher who settled in Virginia in 1623
Frances Butcher, who landed in Virginia in 1623 7
Mary Butcher, who settled in Virginia in 1643
Thomas Butcher in Virginia in 1643
Edward Butcher, who arrived in Virginia in 1643 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Butcher Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

John Butcher, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1786 7

Butcher Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Samuel Butcher, who landed in New York, NY in 1826 7
Sophia Butcher, aged 31, who arrived in New York, NY in 1847 7
W Butcher, aged 31, who landed in New York, NY in 1847 7
Weymouth Butcher, who arrived in New York, NY in 1847 7
Lavinor Butcher, aged 3, who arrived in New York, NY in 1847 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Butcher migration to Australia +

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

Butcher Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Thomas Butcher, (b. 1802), aged 17, English convict who was convicted in London, England for life, transported aboard the "Dromedary" on 11th September 1819, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land), he died in 1822 8
William Butcher, English convict from Lancaster, who was transported aboard the "Agamemnon" on April 22, 1820, settling in New South Wales, Australia 9
Thomas Butcher, English convict from Southampton, who was transported aboard the "Arab" on July 3, 1822, settling in Van Diemen's Land, Australia 10
Mr. William Butcher, British Convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for life , transported aboard the "Commodore Hayes" in April 1823, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 11
Mrs. Caroline Butcher, (b. 1801), aged 25, Scottish house servant born in Glasgow, Scotland who was convicted in Antrim, Ireland for 14 years for bad notes, transported aboard the "Brothers" on 3rd October 1826, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 12
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Butcher 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:

Butcher Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. William Butcher, British settler arriving as Detachment of the Royal New Zealand Fencibles travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Sir George Symour" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 26th November 1847 13
Mrs. Charlotte Butcher, British settler travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Sir George Symour" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 26th November 1847 13
Mrs. Mary Butcher, (b. 1822), aged 33, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Grasmere" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 4th May 1855 14
Mr. Samuel Butcher, (b. 1823), aged 32, British labourer travelling from London aboard the ship "Grasmere" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 4th May 1855 14
Mr. James Butcher, (b. 1825), aged 30, British labourer travelling from London aboard the ship "Grasmere" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 4th May 1855 14
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Butcher 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. 15

Butcher Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

John Butcher, who settled in Barbados in 1678
Thomas Butcher, who settled in Jamaica in 1690

Contemporary Notables of the name Butcher (post 1700) +

Jacob Franklin Butcher (1936-2017), American banker and politician, financier of the 1982 World's Fair
Brigadier-General Edwin Butcher (1879-1950), American Chief of Staff, 3rd Corps Area (1942-1944) 16
Mike Butcher (b. 1965), American Major League Baseball player
Fred E. Butcher, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Illinois 18th District, 1942 17
Frank Butcher, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Missouri, 1964 17
Dick Butcher, American politician, Mayor of Payette, Idaho, 1978-89 17
David F. Butcher, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from New York, 1900 17
D. J. Butcher, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Oregon, 1936 17
Clarence A. Butcher, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Texas, 1940 17
Bernard L. Butcher, American Democratic Party politician, Presidential Elector for West Virginia, 1892 17
... (Another 30 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Butcher family +

HMS Royal Oak

Norman Butcher, British Stoker with the Royal Navy aboard the HMS Royal Oak (1939) when she was torpedoed by U-47 and sunk; he survived the sinking 18

Mount Mulligan Mine

Frank Norman Butcher, Australian coal miner who was killed in the Mount Mulligan Mine explosion in 1921

USS Arizona

Mr. David Adrian Butcher, American Fireman Second Class from Washington, USA working aboard the ship "USS Arizona" when she sunk during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7th December 1941, he died in the sinking 19

Citations +

The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
"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 Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
"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 16th July 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/dromedary
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Agamemnon voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1820 with 179 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/agamemnon/1820
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Arab voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1822 with 155 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/arab/1822
Convict Records of Australia. Retrieved 4th March 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/commodore-hayes
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 3rd November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/brothers
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
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
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, November 3) Edwin Butcher. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Butcher/Edwin/USA.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 12) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Ships hit by U-boats crew list HMS Royal Oak (08) - (Retrieved 2018 February, 9th) - retrieved from https://uboat.net/allies/merchants/crews/ship68.html
Pearl Harbour: USS Arizona Casualties List Pearl Harbour December 7, 1941. (Retrieved 2018, July 31st). Retrieved from http://pearl-harbor.com/arizona/casualtylist.html