Contents [hide]

Deforest History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Motto Citations

Deforest History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
France
England

The surname Deforest is a topographic surname, which was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree. Habitation names form the other broad category of surnames that were derived from place-names. They were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. Other local names are derived from the names of houses, manors, estates, regions, and entire counties. As a general rule, the greater the distance between an individual and their homeland, the larger the territory they were named after. For example, a person who only moved to another parish would be known by the name of their original village, while people who migrated to a different country were often known by the name of a region or country from which they came. The name Foret is derived from the Old French word "foret," meaning "forest," and distinguished a person who lived in or near such a place. In some cases it may have been used as an occupational surname for a forester.

Early Origins of the Deforest family

The surname Deforest was first found in Savoy (French: Savoie) in the Rhône-Alpes region of the French Alps, where this renowned family held a family seat from ancient times.

In England, the Forey spelling was preferred as the "ey" provided the long "a" sound instead of the typical "êt" spelling used in France which provided the same sound.

Early History of the Deforest family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Deforest research. Another 345 words (25 lines of text) covering the years 1310, 1442, 1534, 1537, 1539, 1580, 1620, 1636, 1638, 1659, 1712, 1726, 1729, 1753, 1767, 1789, 1790, 1793, 1796, 1804, 1835 and 1872 are included under the topic Early Deforest History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Deforest Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Foret, Forest, Forez, Forait, Foraie, Forais, Foraies, Foré, Forêt, Forêst, Forer, Forey, La Foret, La Forest, La Forez, La Forait, La Foraie, La Forais, La Foraies, La Foré, La Forêt, La Forêst, Laforest, La Forer and many more.

Early Notables of the Deforest family

Notable in the family name at this time was Guillaume de La Forest, Magistrate of Faucigny; Laurenz Forer (1580-1659), a Swiss Jesuit theologian and controversialist; and Jean-Baptiste Forest, (1636-1712) a French landscape painter.Admiral Sir John LaForey (1729-1796) was second son of John Laforey (d. 1753), one of the French Huguenot family La Foret which settled in England at the time of William III. 1Jean de La Forêt, (Foret) also Jean de La Forest or Jehan de...
Another 76 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Deforest Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Deforest Ranking

In the United States, the name Deforest is the 9,144^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2

Deforest migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Deforest Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Henry DeForest, who arrived in New York, NY in 1636 3
Isaac DeForest, who arrived in New York, NY in 1636 3

Deforest Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Marie DeForest, aged 21, who arrived in New Orleans, La in 1785 3

Deforest Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

William DeForest, who landed in Arkansas in 1898 3

Deforest migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Deforest Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Ephraim Deforest, who landed in New Brunswick in 1783
Private Abraham DeForest U.E. who settled in Canada c. 1783 he enlisted in 1781 was part of the Kings Royal Rangers of New York 2nd Battalion he died in 1842 in Halton County, Ontario, married to Elizabeth Bowman in 1791 in Niagara Falls, Ontario 4
Mr. Ephraim Deforest U.E. born in Reading, Connecticut, USA from Reading, Connecticut, USA who settled in Saint John, New Brunswick c. 1783 he was a member of the Loyal Association in Reading, listed as a passenger on Union Transport 4

Deforest Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Luther DeForest, who landed in Canada in 1841

Contemporary Notables of the name Deforest (post 1700) +

Kenny DeForest (1986-2023), American comedian, included in the 50 Funniest People in Brooklyn by Brooklyn Magazine
Henry Wheeler DeForest (1855-1938), American railroad executive
Calvert Grant DeForest (1921-2007), American actor and comedian, best known by his character Larry "Bud" Melman, cousin of actor DeForest Kelley of Star Trek
Lee De Forest (1873-1961), American Engineer, Inventor of the triode light
John H. DeForest, American politician, Member of Connecticut State House of Representatives from Derby, 1827 5
Mrs. John DeForest, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Kansas, 1948 5
John DeForest, American politician, Member of Connecticut State House of Representatives from Watertown, 1838 5
Henry Schermerhorn DeForest (1847-1917), American Republican politician, Mayor of Schenectady, New York, 1885-87, 1889-91; U.S. Representative from New York 23rd District, 1911-13 5
Mrs. Cleo DeForest, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Kansas, 1960 5
Benjamin Deforest, American politician, Member of Connecticut State House of Representatives from Watertown, 1831 5
... (Another 9 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Deforest 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: Tout travers
Motto Translation: All through

Citations +

Lee, Sir Stanley, Dictionary of National Biography. London: The MacMillan Company 1909. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 11) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html