Rackstraw History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

Early Origins of the Rackstraw family

The surname Rackstraw was first found in Yorkshire where one of the first records of the family was John Rakestraw who was listed there in 1544. Thomas Raykestray was also listed in Yorkshire years later in 1605. 1 The name is "familiar to Lancashire and Yorkshire, where it has flourished for centuries. I suggested in my English Surnames that it was a nickname for a scavenger or dust-heap searcher. I have grown more careful as I have proceeded in my studies, and feel sure that it is a local surname, but I cannot find the spot." 2 We agree. If the name was indeed a nickname as Bardsley and Reaney previously noted, it would have surely been found throughout ancient Britain as nicknames often do. Further to the north in Perth, Scotland, John Rakstra rendered homage there in 1291.

Early History of the Rackstraw family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Rackstraw research. Another 105 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1455 and 1487 are included under the topic Early Rackstraw History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Rackstraw Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Rackstraw family name include Rackstraw, Rakestraw, Rexstraw, Reckstraw and others.

Early Notables of the Rackstraw family

Distinguished members of the family include

the Rackstraw family of Lancashire

Rackstraw migration to the United States +

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Rackstraw surname or a spelling variation of the name include:

Rackstraw Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Grace Rackstraw, who settled in Pennsylvania in 1688

Rackstraw Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Thomas Rackstraw, who settled in Georgia in 1888

Contemporary Notables of the name Rackstraw (post 1700) +

Charles "Charlie" Rackstraw (b. 1938), English professional footballer
Robert "Rob" Rackstraw (b. 1965), British voice actor

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)