Contents [hide]

Matchett History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Matchett History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The surname Matchett is a nickname of Madge and baptismal name as in 'the son of Margaret.' 1

Early Origins of the Matchett family

The surname Matchett was first found in Surrey where William Maggard was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of 1327. 2

From this earliest entry we must move to Yorkshire to find the next two entries. It is here that Willelmus Machet was found in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 1 and later, Samuel Maggett was listed in 1647. 2

Early History of the Matchett family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Matchett research. Another 55 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1379, 1526, 1670, 1736, 1737, 1793, 1794, 1795, 1796, 1798, 1799 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Matchett History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Matchett Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years, the English language had no fast system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations are commonly found in early Anglo-Saxon surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Matchett were recorded, including Machet, Machett, Madgett, Madget, Machitt, Machtit, Matchet and many more.

Early Notables of the Matchett family

Distinguished members of the family include John Machet, Rector of Lambeth, county Surrey, in 1526.Nicholas Madgett of Madget (fl. 1799), was an Irish adventurer, born at Kinsale, co. Kerry, and was according to a secret correspondent of Lord Castlereagh-probably Samuel Turner in 1799, at the time of Humbert's expedition to Ireland, near sixty years of age, and had lived for forty years in France. He was employed in the French foreign office in 1794 and the succeeding years in negotiating measures between the French government and Irish politicians for a French invasion of Ireland. In 1794 he gave William Jackson (1737?-1795)...
Another 364 words (26 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Matchett Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Matchett Ranking

In the United States, the name Matchett is the 13,225^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 3

Migration of the Matchett family to Ireland

Some of the Matchett family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 103 words (7 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Matchett migration to the United States +

To escape oppression and starvation at that time, many English families left for the "open frontiers" of the New World with all its perceived opportunities. In droves people migrated to the many British colonies, those in North America in particular, paying high rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Although many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, those who did see the shores of North America perceived great opportunities before them. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Research into various historical records revealed some of first members of the Matchett family emigrate to North America:

Matchett Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Robert Matchett, who arrived in Virginia in 1680

Matchett Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Isabel Matchett, an English convict sent to America in 1734

Matchett Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Edward Matchett Sr. who arrived in New York, NY in 1812
Richard Matchett, who settled in Baltimore in 1830
David Matchett, who was naturalized in Philadelphia in 1834
John Matchett, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1878 4

Matchett 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:

Matchett Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Charlotte Matchett, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Mermaid" in 1859 5
Miss Charlotte Matchett, British settler travelling from Liverpool aboard the ship 'Mermaid' arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 19th October 1859 6

Matchett 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. 7

Matchett Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Thomas Matchett, who settled in Barbados in 1672
John Matchett, a bonded passenger who arrived in Barbados in 1675

Contemporary Notables of the name Matchett (post 1700) +

Brigadier-General Henry Jeffrey Matchett (1891-1984), American Commander of Ground Forces Replacement System US European Theater of Operations (1944-1945) 8
Steve Matchett (b. 1962), Englsih-born, American commentator for the NBC and NBC Sports Network
Frank Matchett, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Texas, 1952 9
Charles Horatio Matchett (1843-1919), American politician, Socialist Labor Candidate for Vice President of the United States, 1892; Socialist Labor Candidate for Mayor of Brooklyn, New York, 1895; Socialist Labor Candidate for President of the United States, 1896 9
Stuart Matchett (1950-2018), Australian radio announcer and program director
Dale Matchett (b. 1975), Canadian curler from Alliston, Ontario, former provincial junior curling champion and a regular on the World Curling Tour
Thomas Matchett (1826-1900), Canadian businessman and politician in Ontario, who represented Victoria South in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1867 to 1871
Kari Matchett (b. 1970), Canadian film and television actress from Spalding, Saskatchewan

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)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
"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)
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 5th November 2010). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2013, February 12) Henry Matchett. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Matchett/Henry_Jeffrey/USA.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 19) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html