| ![Show Contents]() Doolitle History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The spelling and overall form of Irish names tend to vary widely over time. The original Gaelic form of the name Doolitle is Ó Dubhlachta. Dubh, the first portion of this name, means black, while the second portion is likely derived from some obsolete Irish forename. 1 Early Origins of the Doolitle familyThe surname Doolitle was first found in County Clare (Irish: An Clár) located on the west coast of Ireland in the province of Munster, where they held a family seat from very ancient times. In England, the first record of the family was found in Rutland, where Hugo Dolitel was listed in the Pipe Rolls of 1204. Later, Walter Dolitle was found in the Assize Rolls for Yorkshire in 1219 and John Do Littel was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Worcestershire in 1275. 2 The fictional Eliza Doolittle appears in the play Pygmalion, by George Bernard Shaw in 1912. This famous play was adapted into the film My Fair Lady. Early History of the Doolitle familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Doolitle research. Another 123 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1631, 1632, 1707 and 1719 are included under the topic Early Doolitle History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Doolitle Spelling VariationsThe general population of Ireland, like those of Europe and Britain during the Middle Ages, scribes recorded people's names as they saw fit. As a result, surnames often had many spelling variations. For Doolitle some of these variations included: Doolittle, Dolittle, Dulittle, Doelittle and others. Early Notables of the Doolitle familyAnother 33 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Doolitle Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Doolitle familyThe 18th and 19th centuries saw many Irish families immigrate to North America in search of land and opportunities. The largest influx of Irish immigrants to the United States and British North America came during the 1840s when the Great Potato Famine laid waste to their homeland. Hundreds of thousands left the island in an attempt to escape the starvation and disease it brought. Although the arrival of such a large number of destitute Irish was not welcomed by the established population in the United States and what would become known as Canada at the time, these Irish were an essential element to the rapid development of these growing industrial nations. They filled the demand for the cheap labor needed for the work in factories and in the construction of bridges, roads, canals, and railways. An examination of passenger and immigration lists has revealed many immigrants bearing the name of Doolitle or one of its variants: John Doolittle of Lynn Massachusetts who settled there in 1643 and became Constable of Boston; Abraham Doolittle who settled in Wallingford and had many children, descendants settled in the town of Northfield Massachusetts and Belchertown New Britain, Connecticut, Winchester Conn. Torrington Conn..
- MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)
- Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
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Ireland
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