Contents [hide]

Cocks History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables

United States Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Motto Citations

Cocks History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Netherlands
England
Ireland

In Ireland, the name Cocks is generally derived from the Gaelic "Mac an Choiligh," which means "son of the cock or rooster;" the name was often Anglicized as Cox.

Early Origins of the Cocks family

The surname Cocks was first found in County Roscommon (Irish: Ros Comáin) located in central Ireland in the province of Connacht, where they held a family seat from ancient times.

Early History of the Cocks family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cocks research. Another 87 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1558, 1650, 1675, 1733, 1770 and 1837 are included under the topic Early Cocks History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cocks Spelling Variations

Because early scribes and church officials often spelled names as they sounded, a person could have many various spellings of his name.Many different spelling variations of the surname Cocks were found in the archives researched. These included MacQuilly, McQuilly, MacQuilley, McQuilly, MacQuillie, McQuillie, Quilley, Quilly, Quillie, Cox, Coxe and many more.

Early Notables of the Cocks family

Another 38 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Cocks Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cocks migration to the United States +

In the 18th and 19th centuries, thousands of Irish families fled an Ireland that was forcibly held through by England through its imperialistic policies. A large portion of these families crossed the Atlantic to the shores of North America. The fate of these families depended on when they immigrated and the political allegiances they showed after they arrived. Settlers that arrived before the American War of Independence may have moved north to Canada at the war's conclusion as United Empire Loyalists. Such Loyalists were granted land along the St. Lawrence River and the Niagara Peninsula. Those that fought for the revolution occasionally gained the land that the fleeing Loyalist vacated. After this period, free land and an agrarian lifestyle were not so easy to come by in the East. So when seemingly innumerable Irish immigrants arrived during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s, free land for all was out of the question. These settlers were instead put to work building railroads, coal mines, bridges, and canals. Whenever they came, Irish settlers made an inestimable contribution to the building of the New World. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the Irish name Cocks or a variant listed above, including:

Cocks Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Edward Cocks, who arrived in Virginia in 1651 1
George Cocks, who landed in Maryland in 1662 1
John Cocks, who arrived in Maryland in 1662 1
Abraham Cocks, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1683 1

Cocks Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Hen Cocks, who arrived in Virginia in 1701 1
Philip Cocks, who landed in New England in 1722 1
James Cocks, who landed in America in 1772 1

Cocks Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Mr. Albert Cocks, (b. 1872), aged 26, Cornish labourer travelling aboard the ship "Servia" arriving at Ellis Island, New York on 5th May 1898 en route to New York, USA 2
Mr. Clifford Cocks , (b. 1877), aged 22, Cornish labourer travelling aboard the ship "Umbria" arriving at Ellis Island, New York on 18th June 1899 en route to Russell, Colorado, USA 2

Cocks Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Miss Nellie Cocks, (b. 1877), aged 26, Cornish settler travelling aboard the ship "Oceanic" arriving at Ellis Island, New York on 29th April 1903 en route to New York, USA 2
Mr. Thomas Cocks, (b. 1901), aged 3, Cornish settler travelling aboard the ship "St Paul" arriving at Ellis Island, New York on 24th September 1904 en route to De Lamar, Idaho, USA 2
Mr. William Cocks, (b. 1868), aged 36, Cornish miner travelling aboard the ship "St Louis" arriving at Ellis Island, New York on 24th April 1904 en route to Salt Lake City, Utah, USA 2
Mrs. Katie Cocks, (b. 1874), aged 30, Cornish labourer travelling aboard the ship "St Paul" arriving at Ellis Island, New York on 24th September 1904 en route to De Lamar, Idaho, USA 2
Miss Minnie Cocks, (b. 1903), aged 9 months, Cornish settler travelling aboard the ship "St Paul" arriving at Ellis Island, New York on 24th September 1904 en route to De Lamar, Idaho, USA 2

Cocks migration to Australia +

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

Cocks Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. William Cocks, British Convict who was convicted in Bedford, England for life, transported aboard the "Asia" on 5th November 1835, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land)1836 3
Japhia Cocks, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Buckinghamshire" in 1839 4
Japhia Cocks, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "D'Auvergne" in 1839 5
Ann Cocks, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "D'Auvergne" in 1839 5
William Cocks, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Waterloo" in 1840 6
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Cocks 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:

Cocks Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Edward Cocks, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Claramont" in 1863
Louisa Cocks, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Claramont" in 1863
Mr. Henry Cocks, (b. 1858), aged 18, Cornish farm labourer departing on 2nd February 1876 aboard the ship "Countess of Kintore" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 29th April 1876 7

Cocks 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. 8

Cocks Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

William Cocks, aged 20, who arrived in St Christopher in 1635 1
Win Cocks, aged 20, who landed in St Christopher in 1635 1
Mr. William Cocks, (b. 1615), aged 20, British settler traveling aboard the ship "William and John" arriving in St Christopher (Saint Kitts) in 1635 9

Contemporary Notables of the name Cocks (post 1700) +

John C. "Jay" Cocks (b. 1944), American is a film critic and motion picture screenwriter
William Willets Cocks (1861-1932), American Republican politician, Member of New York State Senate 2nd District, 1901-02; Member of New York State Assembly from Queens County 3rd District, 1904 10
T. R. Cocks, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Virginia, 1956 10
John S. Cocks, American politician, Member of New York State Assembly from New York County 16th District, 1855 10
Cora Cocks, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for Presidential Elector for California, 1968 10
Sir TG Barnett Cocks, Vice-Chairman of the Westminster Pastoral Foundation Adv. Council and Author
Leonard Robert Morrison Cocks OBE, TD (1938-2023), known as Robin Cocks, a British geologist, formerly Keeper of Palaeontology, Natural History Museum
Ronald "Ronnie" Cocks (1943-2017), Maltese footballer, captain of his nation's national football team
Charles Cocks (1725-1806), 1st Baron Somers, British politician
Frederick Seymour Cocks (1882-1953), British Labour Party Member of Parliament, Member of Parliament for Broxtowe (1929 – 1953)
... (Another 4 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Cocks Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Fide et fortitudine
Motto Translation: By fidelity and fortitude.

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)
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 3rd May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_ellis_island_1892_on.pdf
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 28th January 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1835
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) BUCKINGHAMSHIRE 1839. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1839Buckinghamshire.htm
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) D'AUVERGNE 1839. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1839D'Auvergne.htm
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) WATERLOO 1840. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1840Waterloo.htm
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 2018, April 30). Emigrants to Lyttelton 1858-84 [PDF]. Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/new_zealand_assisted.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's (Retrieved October 4th 2021 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 4) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html