Show ContentsTouse History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Touse family

The surname Touse was first found in Devon, where the name was a trade or occupational name for "a comber or carder of wool." 1 2

Early Sussex records show John le Tosere as holding lands in 1249. A few years later, William le Thosers was listed in the Assize Rolls for Somerset in 1280 and later, John Tosere was recorded in Devon in 1333. William le Tesere was found in the Assize Rolls for Somerset in 1275. "The Tozers have been established in Ashburton, [Devon] for more than two centuries. Moses Tozer was an Ashburton tradesman 200 years ago: a family of the name lived there last century, and the name is still to be found there. Henry Tozar, native of North Tawton, was an eminent 17th century divine." 3

Up in Yorkshire, Johannes Tesur was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 and John Toser was listed in the Norfolk Valor Ecclesiasticus, but no date was given. 4

Early History of the Touse family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Touse research. Another 111 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1141, 1385, 1445, 1510, 1559, 1600, 1602, 1605, 1650, 1748, 1788, 1801, 1805, 1807, 1808, 1809, 1810, 1812 and 1854 are included under the topic Early Touse History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Touse Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Tose, Towse, Toase, Tows, Towze, Towz, Toaze, Touse and many more.

Early Notables of the Touse family

Distinguished members of the family include Henry Tozer (1602-1650), an English Puritan clergyman and academic from North Tawton, Devon. He was elected to the Westminster Assembly but never sat there. Aaron Tozer (1788-1854), English captain in the navy, born in 1788, entered the navy in June 1801 on board the Phœbe, with Captain Thomas Baker, on the Irish station. He afterwards served in the East Indies and on the home station, and, again with Baker, in the Phœnix, in which on 10 Aug. 1805 he was present at the capture of the French frigate Didon (James, Naval History, iv. 66-74; Troude, Batailles...
Another 128 words (9 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Touse Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Touse migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Touse Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • James Touse, who landed in New York in 1836 5

HMS Royal Oak
  • John William Touse (1904-1939), British Able Seaman with the Royal Navy aboard the HMS Royal Oak (1939) when she was torpedoed by U-47 and sunk; he died in the sinking 6


  1. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  2. Hanks, Patricia and Flavia Hodges, A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988. Print. (ISBN 0-19-211592-8)
  3. Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
  4. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  5. 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)
  6. Ships hit by U-boats crew list HMS Royal Oak (08) - (Retrieved 2018 February, 9th) - retrieved from https://uboat.net/allies/merchants/crews/ship68.html


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