Show ContentsChartman History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The name Chartman finds its origins with the ancient Anglo-Saxons of England. It was given to one who worked as a person who builds carts. Another alternative origin of this surname is guard which is derived from the Old English word Caretarius or Carda. 1 2

The Magni Rotuli Scaccarii Normanniae listed William Cartier, of Normandy, 1195 and Ralph Caretarius, of Winchester, 1148. 3

Early Origins of the Chartman family

The surname Chartman was first found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 where Jocius Caretarius, Oxfordshire; Juliana le Cartere, Cambridgeshire; Nicholas le Carter, Oxfordshire; John le Cartere, Norfolk; Robert le Caretter, Huntingdonshire; and Margaret le Careter, Huntingdonshire were all listed, some still in their Latin form of the name. 4

The name is "well distributed over England. It is best represented in Cheshire and Essex, and afterwards in Cambridgeshire, Devon, and Sussex." 5

By the 15th and 16th centuries, the family was also found in Scotland. "James Cartare witness in Edinburgh, 1439. Hob Carter was a tenant on lands of the Abbey of Kelso, 1567." 6

Early History of the Chartman family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Chartman research. Another 96 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1250, 1530, 1534, 1540, 1553, 1554, 1584, 1590, 1605, 1608, 1617, 1619, 1635, 1637, 1642, 1648, 1654, 1655, 1656, 1660, 1668, 1672, 1676, 1684, 1735, 1745, 1751, 1769 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Chartman History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Chartman Spelling Variations

The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore, spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Chartman has been recorded under many different variations, including Carter, Carters and others.

Early Notables of the Chartman family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Oliver Carter (1540?-1605), English divine, probably a native of that part of Richmondshire which is in the county of Lancaster.Peter Carter (1530?-1590), was a writer on logic, a native of Lancashire, and took the degree of B.A. at St. John's College, Cambridge, in 1553-1534. William Carter (d. 1584), was a printer, son of John Carter, a draper of London. John Carter the Elder (1554-1635), was an English divine, born at Wickham, Kent, in 1554, educated at Clare Hall, Cambridge.John Carter the Younger (d. 1655), was also a divine, born in his father's parish...
Another 171 words (12 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Chartman Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ireland Migration of the Chartman family to Ireland

Some of the Chartman family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 111 words (8 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Chartman family

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Chartman or a variant listed above: Ambrose Carter, who settled in Virginia in 1663; Thomas Carter and his wife Frances, who came to Philadelphia in 1685 with their children Thomas, Henry, Ann, and John, Chris Carter, who immigrated to St. John's, Newfoundland in 1705.



  1. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  2. Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
  3. 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)
  4. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  5. Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
  6. Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)


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