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![Show Contents]() Forester History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
A Boernician family in ancient Scotland were the ancestors of those who first used the name Forester. They lived in areas near or inside a forest. Some research suggests that the surname is also a shortened form of Forester. The Middle English word forest referred specifically to an area of woodland reserved by law as hunting grounds for the king or his nobles. As such, the surname, Forester would have appeared independently in various parts of Britain. Early Origins of the Forester familyThe surname Forester was first found in Newlands, a parish, in the historic county of Peeblesshire. 1 The first on record was William de Forest who was a tenant of the Douglases in the barony of Newlands in 1376. In the same year, Hugh de Forest was a Douglas tenant in Drumcorke. A few years later, Morgan de Forest in Aberdeen was "cherged" with being a forestaller in 1402 and Master Thomas de Foresta, licentiate in decrees, was rector of the parish of Soudon (Southdean) in 1404. 2 Early History of the Forester familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Forester research. Another 187 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1379, 1390, 1411, 1430, 1453, 1463, 1472, 1518, 1520, 1526, 1527, 1533, 1540, 1588, 1602, 1608, 1633, 1635, 1642, 1654, 1664, 1668, 1698, 1701, 1703, 1706, 1709, 1711, 1714, 1715, 1720 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Forester History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Forester Spelling VariationsSpelling variations occur frequently in Scottish names that date from the medieval era. They result from a general lack of grammatical rules and the tendency to spell names according to sound. Forester has been spelled Forrester, Forester, Forrest, Forster, Foster, Forrestor and many more. Early Notables of the Forester familyNotable amongst the family name during their early history was Sir Thomas Forster (d. 1527) of Etherston, Northumberland; and his son, Sir John Forster (c.1520-1602), an English military commander and Warden of the Middle Marches; Sir George Forrester (d. 1654), 1st Baronet of Corstorphine, Scotland, created Lord Forrester in 1633.
Henry Forrest or Forres (d. 1533?), was a Scottish, martyr, referred to by Knox as 'of Linlithgow,' and Foxe describes him as a 'young man born in Linlithgow.' "David Laing, in his edition of Knox's 'Works,' conjectures that he may have been the son of 'Thomas Forrest of Linlithgow' mentioned in the...
Another 239 words (17 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Forester Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Forester RankingIn the United States, the name Forester is the 7,281st most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 3  Migration of the Forester family to Ireland
Some of the Forester family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 129 words (9 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
| Forester migration to the United States | + |
In the 20th century, the ancestors of many of those Boernician-Scottish people still populate North America. They distributed themselves on either side of the border at the time of the War of Independence. United Empire Loyalists went north to Canada and those who wanted a new nation stayed south. Both groups went on to found great nations. Some of the first North American settlers with Forester name or one of its variants:
Forester Settlers in United States in the 17th Century- Toby Forester, who landed in Virginia in 1655 4
Forester Settlers in United States in the 18th Century- John Forester, who arrived in Virginia in 1746 4
- William Forester, who arrived in Virginia in 1783 4
Forester Settlers in United States in the 19th Century- Hugh Forester, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1840 4
- August Forester, who arrived in America in 1873 4
- Adam Forester, aged 29, who settled in America from Glasgow, in 1893
Forester Settlers in United States in the 20th Century- Alice Forester, aged 25, who landed in America from Oldham, in 1903
- Alice Forester, aged 25, who immigrated to the United States from Brighton, England, in 1907
- Arthur Forester, aged 27, who immigrated to the United States from Brighton, England, in 1907
- Arthur W. Forester, aged 0, who landed in America from Brighton, England, in 1907
- Henry Forester, aged 43, who immigrated to America from London, England, in 1907
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
| Forester migration to Canada | + |
Some of the first settlers of this family name were: Forester Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century- Ms. Mary Forester U.E. who settled in Carleton [Saint John City], New Brunswick c. 1784 5
Forester Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century- Dorothy Graham Forester, aged 24, who settled in Victoria, Canada, in 1914
- James A. Forester, aged 48, who immigrated to Winnipeg, Canada, in 1922
| Forester migration to Australia | + |
Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include: Forester Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century- Christian Wilhelm Forester, who arrived in South Australia in 1848 aboard the ship "Victoria" 6
- Andrew Forester, aged 39, who arrived in South Australia in 1853 aboard the ship "Shackamaxon" 7
| Forester 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: Forester Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century- Mr. Francis Forester, (b. 1851), aged 23, Scottish machinist, from Lanark travelling from Glasgow aboard the ship "Oamaru" arriving in Port Chalmers, Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 17th February 1875 8
| Contemporary Notables of the name Forester (post 1700) | + |
- George William "Bill" Forester (1932-2007), American NFL football linebacker who played for the Green bay Packers (1953-1963)
- Nicole Forester (b. 1972), Emmy Award-nominated American actress
- John F. Forester, American planning theorist
- John B. Forester (d. 1845), American politician from Tennessee
- John Forester (b. 1929), American cycling activist
- Joseph M. Forester, American fighter pilot and flying ace in the U.S. Army Air Forces, during World War II, credited with 9 aerial victories
- Victoria Forester (b. 1974), Canadian author and screenwriter, best known for her best-selling novel, The Girl Who Could Fly
- Karl Spillman Forester (b. 1940), United States federal judge, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky (1988-)
- George Forester (1735-1811), English politician, Member of Parliament for Wenlock (1758-1761), (1768-1780) and (1780-1784)
- Brooke Forester (1717-1774), English politician, Member of Parliament for Wenlock (1739-1768)
- ... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
- Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of Scotland. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
- 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)
- "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
- State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) VICTORIA 1848. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1848Victoria.htm
- South Australian Register Thursday 20 January 1853. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) SHACKAMAXON 1853. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/shackamaxon1853.shtml
- New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
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Forester migration to the United States 
Forester migration to Canada 
Forester migration to Australia 
Forester migration to New Zealand 
England
Scotland
Ireland
