Penington History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

The ancient roots of the Penington family name are in the Anglo-Saxon culture. The name Penington comes from when the family lived in Lancashire at Pennington. Interestingly, two sources claim the name literally means "farmstead paying a penny rent." 1 2

Early Origins of the Penington family

The surname Penington was first found in Lancashire at Pennington, a parish, in the union of Ulverston, hundred of Lonsdale north of the Sands. "This place, which in Domesday Book is styled 'Pennigetun,' belonged to a local family, one of whom, Gamel de Pennington, was a very considerable person at the time of the Conquest. 3 From him descended Sir John Pennington, who commanded the left wing of the army in an expedition into Scotland under the Earl of Northumberland," 4

By the time of Henry II, some of the family had branched to Muncaster in Cumberland (now part of Cumbria) and it was here that King Henry VI was concealed by Sir John Pennington in his flight from his enemies. 5

"The ancient and influential knightly family of the Penningtons were lords of Pennington from the 11th century to the reign of Henry VI., a monarch who numbered Sir John de Pennington amongst his most trusted adherents. In the first quarter of the 17th century there was a gentle family of the name at Mitton Magna. The name is also established in Cheshire." 6

Early History of the Penington family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Penington research. Another 89 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1552, 1558, 1565, 1584, 1599, 1616, 1623, 1640, 1642, 1646, 1653, 1655, 1661, 1676, 1679, 1682, 1730 and 1783 are included under the topic Early Penington History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Penington Spelling Variations

One relatively recent invention that did much to standardize English spelling was the printing press. However, before its invention even the most literate people recorded their names according to sound rather than spelling. The spelling variations under which the name Penington has appeared include Pennington, Penington and others.

Early Notables of the Penington family

Notables of the family at this time include

William Penington, High Sheriff of Cumberland in 1552, 1558 and 1565; Joseph Pennington of Muncaster Castle, High Sheriff of Cumberland in 1599; and Sir William Pennington (1655-1730), 1st Baronet
Sir Isaac Penington (1584-1661), was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640 to 1653, Lord Mayor of London in 1642 and a prominent member of Oliver Cromwell's government. His s...
Mary Penington (1623-1682) was one of the early members of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). Her autobiography "On Quakers, Medicine, and Property," was discovered and published 40 years aft...

Penington migration to the United States +

At this time, the shores of the New World beckoned many English families that felt that the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. Thousands left England at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. A great portion of these settlers never survived the journey and even a greater number arrived sick, starving, and without a penny. The survivors, however, were often greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. These English settlers made significant contributions to those colonies that would eventually become the United States and Canada. An examination of early immigration records and passenger ship lists revealed that people bearing the name Penington arrived in North America very early:

Penington Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Penington, who arrived in Virginia in 1652
Isabella Penington, who arrived in Maryland in 1659 7
Henry Penington, who landed in Maryland in 1670 7
Mary Penington, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1682 7
William Penington, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1682 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Penington Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Abraham Penington, who landed in Mississippi in 1799 7

Penington 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. 8

Penington Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

John Penington, who settled at St. Christopher (Saint Kitts) in 1633
John Penington, aged 40, who landed in St Christopher in 1633 7

Contemporary Notables of the name Penington (post 1700) +

John Brown Penington (1825-1902), American lawyer and politician, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Delaware (1887-1891)
Brigadier-General Carlos A. Penington (1878-1942), American Commanding Officer 66th Field Artillery Brigade (1940-1941) 9
David Geoffrey Penington AC (1930-2023), Australian physician, academic, Vice-Chancellor and director
Jon Penington (1922-1997), British screenwriter and film producer

The Penington 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: Vincit amore patria
Motto Translation: My beloved country will conquer.

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Shirley, Evelyn Philip, The Noble and Gentle Men of England; The Arms and Descents. Westminster: John Bower Nichols and Sons, 1866, Print.
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. 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)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2014, March 26) Carlos Penington. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Penington/Carlos_A./USA.html