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McAdams History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

McAdams History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland
Ireland

The history of the name McAdams begins with the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. It is derived from the given name Adam, which is itself derived from the Latin name Adamus which means earth.

Early Origins of the McAdams family

The surname McAdams was first found in many counties throughout England and Scotland.

"Six centuries ago Adam probably ranked as second or third favourite among boys' names throughout England. In the north it attained a most remarkable pre-eminence." 1

Another source notes the name is "rare in the eastern and northern counties. In the north, however, its place is sometimes taken by Adamson and Addison, as in the county of Durham. It is at present best represented in Buckinghamshire, Devon, Hampshire, and Staffordshire, and in the counties on the Welsh border, Shropshire and Monmouthshire. " 2

Shortly after the Conquest, forenames were still rare, but for popular names such as this an appellation was typically added denoting "from where they hailed" or in some cases, an occupation. By example, Adam of Barking (fl. 1217?), was a Benedictine monk belonging to the abbey of Sherborne in Dorset; Adam of Buckfield (fl. 1300?), was an English commentator on Aristotle; Adam the Carthusian (fl. 1340) was described as a Carthusian monk and a doctor of theology; Adam of Domerham (d. after 1291), was a monk of Glastonbury, a native of Domerham, a village in Wiltshire belonging to Glastonbury Abbey; Adam de Marisco (d. 1257?), was a learned Franciscan, is said to have been a native of Somerset; and Adam of Orlton (d. 1345), successively bishop of Hereford, Worcester, and Winchester. 3

As far as early rolls are concerned, England and Scotland had the lion's share of early entries.

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 had the following entries: John filius Adam, Oxfordshire; Hugh filius Adam, Oxfordshire; German Adam, Cambridgeshire; and Juliana Adams, Huntingdonshire. Further to the north and over one hundred years later, the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed: Johannes Adamson; Johannes Adam; and Thomas Adamson. 1

In Scotland, "Adam sub-prior of Melrose became abbot of Cupar, 1189. Adam son of Adam was one of the witnesses to the charter by William Bruce to Adam of Carlyle of the lands of Kynemund, c. 1194-1214, and he also witnessed the resignation by Dunegal, son of Udard of a carucate of land in Warmanbie within the same period. Adam became abbot of Newbattle in 1201, and another Adam, a native of Lennox (Levenax), was a monk of great sanctity. " 4

Early History of the McAdams family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our McAdams research. Another 186 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1189, 1281, 1327, 1329, 1460, 1585, 1586, 1626, 1651, 1654, 1655, 1656, 1658, 1661, 1662, 1667, 1685, 1689, 1695, 1697, 1698, 1712, 1719, 1720, 1748, 1760, 1789, 1808, 1829, 1890 and 1891 are included under the topic Early McAdams History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McAdams Spelling Variations

The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore, spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. McAdams has been recorded under many different variations, including Adam, Adams, MacAdam, MacAdams, MacCaw and others.

Early Notables of the McAdams family

Notable amongst bearers of this family name during their early history was William Adams (1585-1661), London Haberdasher born in Newport, Shropshire, who founded Adams' Grammar School in 1656; Sir Thomas Adams, 1st Baronet (1586-1667), Lord Mayor of the City of London and a Member of Parliament for the City of London from 1654-1655 and...
Another 54 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early McAdams Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McAdams Ranking

In the United States, the name McAdams is the 2,769^th most popular surname with an estimated 9,948 people with that name. 5

Migration of the McAdams family to Ireland

Some of the McAdams family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 107 words (8 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McAdams migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name McAdams or a variant listed above:

McAdams Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

George McAdams, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1803-1827 6
Robert McAdams, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1838 6
William McAdams, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1841 6
Samuel McAdams, who landed in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania in 1843 6
John McAdams, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1853 6
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

McAdams Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Alex McAdams, aged 14, who immigrated to the United States from Glasgow, in 1901
George McAdams, aged 39, who landed in America from Aberdeen, in 1906
George McAdams, aged 26, who settled in America from Sligo, in 1906
Bridget McAdams, aged 40, who settled in America from Leitrim, Ireland, in 1907
Edward McAdams, aged 33, who landed in America, in 1908
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

McAdams migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

McAdams Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century

Catherine McAdams, aged 77, who immigrated to Sarnia, Canada, in 1921
James McAdams, aged 21, who settled in Halifax, Canada, in 1921

McAdams migration to Australia +

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

McAdams Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Francis Mcadams, (b. 1808), aged 19, Irish groom who was convicted in Meath, Ireland for life for house robbery, transported aboard the "Cambridge" on 2nd June 1827, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 7

Contemporary Notables of the name McAdams (post 1700) +

Rachel McAdams (b. 1978), Canadian Gemini Award winning and BAFTA Award nominated actress
John Charles McAdams (1945-2021), American associate professor of political science at Marquette University
Scott McAdams (b. 1970), American politician, Mayor of Sitka, Alaska and Democratic nominee for United States Senator from Alaska in 2010
Carl McAdams (b. 1944), American professional football player who played for the New York Jets (1967-1969)
Janet McAdams, American author of partial Native American descent, recipient of the American Book Award in 2001
Francis H. McAdams (1915-1985), American member of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)
Dona Ann McAdams (b. 1954), American photographer
James McAdams, American politician, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, 1992 8
James McAdams, American politician, Candidate for New York State Assembly from Albany County 3rd District, 1915 8
J. L. C. McAdams, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Indiana, 1904 8
... (Another 8 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

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)
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. 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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 2nd December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/cambridge
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, February 10) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html