Kellet History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Kellet is a name of ancient Anglo-Saxon origin and comes from the family once having lived in the settlement of Kellet in Lancashire, or in the place named Kelleth in Westmorland (now part of Cumbria). The surname Kellet belongs to the large category of Anglo-Saxon habitation names, which are derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads.

Early Origins of the Kellet family

The surname Kellet was first found in Lancashire where they held a family seat as Lords of the manor of Kellett, from very ancient times. Conjecturally they are descended from an Anglo Saxon noble who occupied the King's land of Chellet, later Kellet, later Nether Kellet. It is now famous for its stalactite caves called the Dunald Mill Hole. Over Kellet, Lancashire appears as "Chellet of the Domesday Survey, and was an early a possession of a family named Kellet, whose heiress married Sir Thurstan de Holland." 1

Early History of the Kellet family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kellet research. Another 70 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1550 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Kellet History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kellet Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Kellet family name include Kelett, Kellet, Kellett, Kelat, Kelatt, Kellatt and others.

Early Notables of the Kellet family

Distinguished members of the family include

Kellett of Lancashire

Migration of the Kellet family to Ireland

Some of the Kellet family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 72 words (5 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kellet migration to the United States +

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Kellet surname or a spelling variation of the name include:

Kellet Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Francis Kellet who settled in Charles Town [Charleston], South Carolina in 1768

Kellet Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Kellet, who landed in New York in 1807 2

Kellet migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Kellet Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

John Kellet, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Thomas Lowry" in 1848 3

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
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)
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) THOMAS LOWRY 1848. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1848ThomasLowry.htm