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![Show Contents]() O'Tool History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
 Ireland
Throughout history, very few Irish surnames have exclusively maintained their original forms. Before being translated into English, O'Tool appeared as Ó Tuathail, which is derived from "tuathal," which means "people mighty." Early Origins of the O'Tool familyThe surname O'Tool was first found in County Kildare (Irish:Cill Dara), ancient homeland of the Kildare based Uí Dúnlainge (Kings of Leinster), located in the Province of Leinster, seated at O'Toole's Castle, where they were descended from Tuathal, King of Leinster who died in 950 A.D. Early History of the O'Tool familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our O'Tool research. Another 102 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1128, 1180, 1225, 1327, 1590, 1670 and 1722 are included under the topic Early O'Tool History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. O'Tool Spelling VariationsNames from the Middle Ages demonstrate many spelling variations. This is because the recording scribe or church official often decided as to how a person's name was spelt and in what language. Research into the name O'Tool revealed many variations, including Toole, Tool, O'Toole, O'Tool, Tooley, Toile and many more. Early Notables of the O'Tool familyProminent amongst the family at this time was - St. Laurence O'Toole
- Lorcán Ua Tuathail, also known as St Laurence O'Toole, (1128-1180), Archbishop of Dublin, canonized in 1225 by Pope Honorius III
Migration of the O'Tool familyTo escape the religious and political discrimination they experienced primarily at the hands of the English, thousands of Irish left their homeland in the 19th century. These migrants typically settled in communities throughout the East Coast of North America, but also joined the wagon trains moving out to the Midwest. Ironically, when the American War of Independence began, many Irish settlers took the side of England, and at the war's conclusion moved north to Canada. These United Empire Loyalists, were granted land along the St. Lawrence River and the Niagara Peninsula. Other Irish immigrants settled in Newfoundland, the Ottawa Valley, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. The greatest influx of Irish immigrants, however, came to North America during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. Thousands left Ireland at this time for North America and Australia. Many of those numbers, however, did not live through the long sea passage. These Irish settlers to North America were immediately put to work building railroads, coal mines, bridges, and canals. Irish settlers made an inestimable contribution to the building of the New World. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the Irish name O'Tool or a variant listed above, including: Ann Tool arrived in America in 1702; Christian Tool settled in Virginia in 1726; John Tool settled in Maryland in 1775; followed by Robert in 1776; James Tool settled in Boston Mass in 1766.
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