Collpotts History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

The origins of the Collpotts name lie with England's ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. It comes from when the family lived in Newcastle. The name means "at the coal pits," and is found in the area around the great coal mines in Newcastle and the surrounding area in Shropshire. 1 "I have observed this name about Newcastle-upon-Tyne. It was probably assumed in the first instance by a person resident near a coal-pit." 2

Early Origins of the Collpotts family

The surname Collpotts was first found in the historic county of Durham, now part of Tyne and Wear in the Newcastle upon Tyne area. Early records of the family are rare. The first record we found of the name was a marriage record in London of Nicholas Collpotts and Katherine Tatham, (1576-1577.) Braund's Newcastle lists John Colepitts as a hoastman in 1720 (epitaph, St. Nicholas, Newcastle-on-Tyne); and George Colpits, of Killingworth in 1763. 1 Black has no record of the family in Scotland, so one can presume that the family remained in this area. Today Colpitts Grange is a village in Northumberland and Colpitt Lake is a lake near Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Early History of the Collpotts family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Collpotts research. Another 24 words (2 lines of text) covering the year 1576 is included under the topic Early Collpotts History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Collpotts 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 Collpotts were recorded, including Colpitts, Coldpitts, Colquit, Colquite, Colquitt, Colquits, Collpotts and many more.

Early Notables of the Collpotts family

Distinguished members of the family include

Nicholas Collpotts, a prominent 16th century landholder in London

Migration of the Collpotts family

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 Collpotts family emigrate to North America: Robert Colpits who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1775 and Ann Colpitts in Australia in 1791.

Citations +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.