Show ContentsScruton History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Scruton family

The surname Scruton was first found in Yorkshire where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor of Scruton in the North Riding. After the Battle of Hastings in 1066, William, Duke of Normandy, having prevailed over King Harold, granted most of Britain to his many victorious Barons. It was not uncommon to find a Baron, or a Bishop, with 60 or more Lordships scattered throughout the country. These he gave to his sons, nephews and other junior lines of his family and they became known as under-tenants. They adopted the Norman system of surnames which identified the under-tenant with his holdings so as to distinguish him from the senior stem of the family. After many rebellious wars between his Barons, Duke William, commissioned a census of all England to determine in 1086, settling once and for all, who held which land. He called the census the Domesday Book, 1 indicating that those holders registered would hold the land until the end of time. Hence, conjecturally, the family name is descended from Picot, Lord of Aumay, of Exemes, the Count Alan of Brettagne's man, who held the estates in 1086.

Early History of the Scruton family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Scruton research. Another 101 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1364, 1379 and 1568 are included under the topic Early Scruton History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Scruton Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Scruton, Scrutton, Screwton, Screwtone, Scrutone and many more.

Early Notables of the Scruton family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

  • Picot of Scruton in 1086


United States Scruton migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Scruton Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • William Scruton, who landed in New York in 1819 2
  • Willm. Scruton, aged 65, who immigrated to the United States, in 1892
  • John A. Scruton, aged 35, who landed in America, in 1894
Scruton Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Jesse Scruton, aged 30, who immigrated to the United States from Leeds, England, in 1910
  • Eliza Scruton, aged 29, who landed in America from Pudsey, England, in 1913
  • George Scruton, aged 31, who immigrated to the United States, in 1920
  • Susannah Scruton, aged 35, who landed in America from Harrogate, England, in 1921
  • Arthur R. K. Scruton, aged 9, who settled in America from Warwick, England, in 1922

Canada Scruton migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Scruton Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century
  • Ralph Powland Scruton, aged 26, who settled in Creston, British Columbia, Canada, in 1910
  • George Smith Scruton, aged 45, who immigrated to Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, in 1914

Contemporary Notables of the name Scruton (post 1700) +

  • Stephen W. Scruton, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from New Hampshire, 1940 3
  • Sir Roger Vernon Scruton FBA FRSL (1944-2020), English philosopher from Buslingthorpe, Lincolnshire
  • Nick Scruton (b. 1984), English rugby league player
  • Howard Scruton (b. 1962), Canadian former professional NHL hockey player
  • Roger Scruton (b. 1944), British philosopher


  1. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  2. 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)
  3. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 14) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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