Contents [hide]

Mattson History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Motto Suggested Reading Citations

Mattson History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland
Sweden
Ireland

The western coast of Scotland and the desolate Hebrides islands are the ancient home of the Mattson family. Their name is derived from the son of Matthew. 1 In Gaelic, the name was spelled M'Mhathain or Mathanach. The latter names in Gaelic were probably derived from Mac Mhathghamhuin which means son of the bear. Indeed, early references of the name have reference to the Scottish bear. 2 3

Today, early legal records provide a plethora of information about the family with various early spellings. Some of the first records include, "Robertus filius Mathei [who] witnessed a charter by Walter filius Alani, a. 1177. John Mathyson and Michael Mathowson were outlawed as part guilty of the slaughter of Walter de Ogilvy, Sheriff of Angus, in 1392." 3

Early Origins of the Mattson family

The surname Mattson was first found in the Scottish Highlands were they could be found in Lochalsh, Lochcarron and Kintail. They are said to descend from Gilleoin of the ancient and royal house of Lorne. They gave their allegiance to the Clan MacDonald, the Lord of the Isles. Kenneth MacMathan (Cormac Mac Mathian) was the constable of Eilean Donan castle and is recorded in most accounts of the invasion of King Haakon IV of Norway against Scotland in the 13th century. One accounts suggests that McMathan and his clansmen fought under the Earl of Ross, defeating Haaken at Largs in 1263.

There is a record of Kermac Macmaghan in Inverness, receiving 20 cows from the Earl of Ross in 1264. "In the Norse Saga he is called Kjarmak son of Makamal = Corniac Macmathan. The Siol Mhathain, a sept of Matheson, in an old Gaelic song appears as Siol Mhothan. Matheson has been adopted as the English form of the name simply on account of the similarity of sound." 3

Early History of the Mattson family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Mattson research. Another 418 words (30 lines of text) covering the years 1263, 1400, 1411, 1427, 1498, 1514, 1539, 1570, 1600, 1631, 1683, 1688, 1715, 1719, 1796, 1820, 1851, 1878 and 1963 are included under the topic Early Mattson History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Mattson Spelling Variations

Spelling variations were extremely common in medieval names, since scribes from that era recorded names according to sound rather than a standard set of rules. Mattson has appeared in various documents spelled Mathieson, MacMaghan, MacMathan MacMaken, Mathie, Mann and many more.

Early Notables of the Mattson family

Notable amongst the Clan from early times was Margaret Matson, one of two women tried in Philadelphia for witchcraft in 1683; Sir James Nicolas Sutherland Matheson (1796-1878), born in Shiness, Lairg, who made a great fortune in the opium trade, and was created the 1st Baronet of Lewis in 1851. His family proceeded to buy the former Clan territories: James Matheson...
Another 60 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Mattson Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Mattson Ranking

In the United States, the name Mattson is the 2,101^st most popular surname with an estimated 14,922 people with that name. 4

Migration of the Mattson family to Ireland

Some of the Mattson family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 30 words (2 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Mattson migration to the United States +

The descendants of the Dalriadan families who made the great crossing of the Atlantic still dot communities along the east coast of the United States and Canada. In the American War of Independence, many of the settlers traveled north to Canada as United Empire Loyalists. Clan societies and highland games have allowed Canadian and American families of Scottish descent to recover much of their lost heritage. Investigation of the origins of family names on the North American continent has revealed that early immigrants bearing the name Mattson or a variant listed above include:

Mattson Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Nils Mattson, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1627 5
Brita Mattson, who arrived in Delaware in 1641 5
Hendrick Mattson, who landed in Delaware in 1641 5
Andrew Mattson, who landed in Maryland in 1673 5
Johan Mattson, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1693 5

Mattson Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Amid Mattson, who landed in Texas in 1850-1906 5
Robert Mattson, who landed in Texas in 1850-1906 5
Orlof O Mattson, who arrived in California in 1875 5

Mattson 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:

Mattson Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

M. Mattson, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Hermione" in 1883

Mattson 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. 6

Mattson Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Anderous Mattson, aged 18, who arrived in Barbados in 1683 5

Contemporary Notables of the name Mattson (post 1700) +

Jacqueline "Jackie" Mattson (1928-2016), American All-American Girls Professional Baseball League player who played from 1950 to 1951
Robert E. Mattson, American politician, Representative from Delaware at-large, 1996; Natural Law Candidate for U.S. Senator from Delaware, 2000, 2002 7
Leroy Mattson, American Republican politician, Candidate in primary for Michigan State House of Representatives from Gogebic County, 1942 7
Ivan Mattson, American politician, Mayor of Kearney, Nebraska, 1940 7
Hans Mattson, American politician, Secretary of State of Minnesota, 1870-72, 1887-91 7
H. M. Mattson, American politician, Member of Minnesota State House of Representatives 18th District, 1872 7
G. H. Mattson, American politician, Member of Minnesota State House of Representatives 63rd District, 1909-10 7
Edna O'Neill Mattson, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Rhode Island, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008; Member of Democratic National Committee from Rhode Island, 2004-08 7
Charles Mattson, American Democratic Party politician, Member of Connecticut State House of Representatives from Colebrook; Elected 1926 7
Carvel Mattson, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Utah, 1952 7
... (Another 4 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Mattson family +

Empress of Ireland

Mrs. Ida Mattson (2014-1914), Finnish Third Class Passenger from Helsingfors,, Finland who was traveling aboard the Empress of Ireland and died in the sinking 8
Master Sulo Mattson (2014-1914), Finnish Third Class Passenger from Helsingfors,, Finland who was traveling aboard the Empress of Ireland and died in the sinking 8

The Mattson Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Fac et Spera
Motto Translation: Do and hope.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. 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)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 7) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Commemoration Empress of Ireland 2014. (Retrieved 2014, June 17) . Retrieved from http://www.empress2014.ca/seclangen/listepsc1.html