Illtown History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The history of the Illtown family goes back to the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. It is derived from the family living in the parish of Hilton found in several locations including Derby, Dorset, Durham, Staffordshire and the North Riding of Yorkshire. The surname Illtown is a topographic surname, which was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill. In this case the original bearers of the surname Illtown lived in the hill-town.

Early Origins of the Illtown family

The surname Illtown was first found in Durham, now in the area of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England where one of the first records of the name was Robert Hylton, 1st Baron Hylton (d. 1322.) His son, Alexander, was called to Parliament in 1332 and 1335. This first line of Barons Hylton continued for 424 years ending with John Hylton, the 18th Baron Hylton (1699-1746.)

Walter Hilton (d. 1396), was a religious writer and Canon of the house of Augustinian canons at Thurgarton in Nottinghamshire. 1

Hylton Castle is now a ruined stone castle in the North Hylton and is owned by English Heritage. "It was the residence of the Hyltons from the time of King Athelstan to the year 1746, and the building has the arms of that ancient family and its alliances engraven on it in numerous places; its battlements are ornamented with statues, and its corners with circular turrets." 2

Early History of the Illtown family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Illtown research. Another 129 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1100, 1295, 1296, 1322, 1340, 1356, 1360, 1377, 1385, 1396, 1400, 1435, 1447, 1451, 1457, 1500, 1532, 1535, 1560, 1599, 1609 and 1657 are included under the topic Early Illtown History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Illtown Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Illtown include Hilton, Hylton and others.

Early Notables of the Illtown family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Robert Hylton, 1st Baron Hylton (d. 1322); Alexander Hylton, 2nd Baron Hylton (d. 1360); Robert Hylton, de jure 3rd Baron Hylton (1340-1377); Sir William Hylton, de jure 4th Baron Hylton (1356-1435); Sir Robert Hylton, de jure 5th Baron Hylton (1385-1447); William Hylton, de jure 6th Baron Hylton...
Another 54 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Illtown Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Illtown family to Ireland

Some of the Illtown family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Illtown family

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Illtown or a variant listed above: Hugh Hilton, who settled in Virginia in 1619, a year before the " Mayflower"; Mary Hilton settled in Plymouth Massachusetts in 1623; William Hilton settled in Plymouth with his wife and two children in 1623..

Citations +

Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.