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Garret History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Garret History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Although the Garret surname came to Britain with the Normans, it derives from the Germanic personal names Gerard, or Gerald, composed of the elements "gar," or "ger," meaning "spear," "hard," meaning "brave," or "strong," and "wald," meaning "rule." 1

Not all of the family made the crossing with the Conqueror as Roger and William Garet were both listed in Normandy in 1180. A few years later, Arnulph and William Garet were also listed there in 1198. 2

Early Origins of the Garret family

The surname Garret was first found in Lincolnshire, where a Geraddus filius Simonis is on record in 1242 in Liber Feodorum. The same source also included Peter Geraud son of Robert Gerold 1250-1251 in Northumberland. 3

Later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 included the family as a forename and surname: Johannes Gerard; Thomas Gerard; and Gyrerd Tolus. 1 In Cumberland, Thomas Gerad was listed there in the Subsidy Rolls of 1332. 4

In Somerset, Adam Garet was registered there 1 Edward III (during the first year of King Edward III's reign) 5 and John Gerad was listed in the Pipe Rolls of 1230. 4

Early History of the Garret family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Garret research. Another 91 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1379, 1511, 1551, 1560, 1579, 1594, 1597, 1603, 1621, 1640, 1641, 1642, 1648, 1650 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Garret History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Garret Spelling Variations

Endless spelling variations are a prevailing characteristic of Norman surnames. Old and Middle English lacked any definite spelling rules, and the introduction of Norman French added an unfamiliar ingredient to the English linguistic stew. French and Latin, the languages of the court, also influenced spellings. Finally, Medieval scribes generally spelled words according to how they sounded, so one person was often referred to by different spellings in different documents. The name has been spelled Garrett, Garratt, Garret, Garrat, Garet, Garitt, Garatt and many more.

Early Notables of the Garret family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

George Garrett or Garrard (1579- after 1650), was an English Member of Parliament. He was a younger son of Sir William Garrard of Dorney Court, Buckinghamshire. He was educated at Merton College, Oxfo...
Sir George Garrett (died 1648), an English politician, Member of Parliament for Hindon in 1640. He was elected Alderman of the City of London for Castle Baynard ward on 15 April 1641. He was Sheriff o...
Sir William Garrett, was Lord Mayor of London in 1551

Garret Ranking

In the United States, the name Garret is the 16,157^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 6 However, in France, the name Garret is ranked the 3,843^rd most popular surname with an estimated 1,500 - 2,000 people with that name. 7

Migration of the Garret family to Ireland

Some of the Garret family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 59 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Garret migration to the United States +

To escape the political and religious persecution within England at the time, many English families left for the various British colonies abroad. The voyage was extremely difficult, though, and the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving. But for those who made it, the trip was most often worth it. Many of the families who arrived went on to make valuable contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families reveals a number of immigrants bearing the name Garret or a variant listed above:

Garret Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Mr. William Garret, (Garrett), brick layer who arrived in Jamestown, Virginia aboard the ship "Discovery" in 1607 8
Francis Garret, aged 25, who landed in Virginia in 1635 aboard the ship "Thomas & John" 9
Eliza Garret, who arrived in Virginia in 1640 9
Jon Garret, who arrived in Virginia in 1642 9
Tho Garret, who arrived in Virginia in 1647 9
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Garret Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Thomas Garret, who landed in Virginia in 1714 9
William Garret, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1751 9

Garret Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Michael Garret, aged 30, who arrived in Delaware in 1812 9
James Garret, who arrived in New York in 1824 9
P Garret, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 9
Robert Garret, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1865 9

Garret 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. 10

Garret Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Mr. Owen Garret, (b. 1615), aged 20, British settler travelling from London, England aboard the ship "Anne and Elizabeth" arriving in Barbados in 1635 11
Mr. Steeven Garret, (b. 1616), aged 19, British settler traveling aboard the ship "Paul of London" arriving in St Christopher (Saint Kitts) in 1635 12

Contemporary Notables of the name Garret (post 1700) +

Devin Garret Townsend (b. 1972), Canadian musician, songwriter and record producer
Teunis Garret Bergen (1806-1881), American Democratic Party politician, U.S. Representative from New York 2nd District, 1865-67; Delegate to New York State Constitutional Convention, 1867-68 13
Garret G. Ackerson Jr. (1904-1992), American politician, U.S. Vice Consul in Cape Town, 1928-29; U.S. Consul in Havana, 1943 14
Garret Carlson, American Republican politician, Candidate for Michigan State House of Representatives 53rd District, 1998 15
Garret Augustus Hobart (1884-1899), American politician, 24th Vice President of the United States (1897-1899) under President William McKinley
Garret Dorset Wall (1783-1850), American military officer and politician, Governor of New Jersey in 1829
Garret Crossman (b. 1982), Australian rugby league player
Garret Bembridge (b. 1981), Canadian professional NHL ice hockey forward
Garret H. Stryker, American politician, Member of New York State Assembly, 1838, 1849 16
Garret Schenck, American politician, Member of New Jersey State House of Assembly from Mercer County, 1855 17

Historic Events for the Garret family +

HMS Prince of Wales

Mr. R Garret, British Petty Officer, who sailed into battle on the HMS Prince of Wales (1941) and survived the sinking 18

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)
The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Testa de Nevill or "Liber Feodorum" or "Book of Fees," thought to have been written by Ralph de Nevill, for King John (1199–1216)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's Retrieved January 6th 2023, retrieved from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
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)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
Pilgrim Ship Lists Early 1600's. Retrieved 23rd September 2021 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
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
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, August 16) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 30) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 20) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, March 11) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
HMS Prince of Wales Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listprincecrew.html