| ![Show Contents]() Wedgworth History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
 England The ancient roots of the Wedgworth family name are in the Anglo-Saxon culture. The name Wedgworth comes from when the family lived in Wedgwood, a township in Staffordshire. The place-name Wedgwood is derived from the Old English elements wæthe, whcih means marsh or fen, and wuda, which means wood. The place-name taken as a whole means "place at the marshy wood." The township no longer exists. Early Origins of the Wedgworth familyThe surname Wedgworth was first found in Staffordshire at Wedgwood, a township, in the parish of Wolstanton, union of Wolstanton and Burslem, N. division of the hundred of Pirehill. "This township, which comprises 431 acres of arable land, is supposed to have been originally the residence of the Wedgwood family, several of whom have been eminent for their improvements in the earthenware and porcelain manufacture." 1 Josiah Wedgwood founded the village of Eturia, again in Staffordshire. "The classical name of this place was given to it by its late celebrated founder, Josiah Wedgwood, who established here the well-known Wedgwood-ware potteries, in 1769, and called the village after the seat of the ancient fictile art in Italy, Etruria, where a colony of Phœnician potters settled about 1000 years before the birth of Christ." 1 Wedgwood "erected an entire village for his workmen and dependants, and a mansion on a neighbouring eminence for his own residence." 1 Early History of the Wedgworth familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Wedgworth research. Another 248 words (18 lines of text) covering the years 1470, 1576, 1588, 1612, 1637, 1730 and 1795 are included under the topic Early Wedgworth History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Wedgworth Spelling VariationsOne 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 Wedgworth has appeared include Wedgewoode, Wedgewood, Wedgewode, Wegewode, Wegewood and many more. Early Notables of the Wedgworth familyMore information is included under the topic Early Wedgworth Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Wedgworth familyAt 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 Wedgworth arrived in North America very early: John Wedgewood who settled in Annapolis Maryland in 1723.
| Contemporary Notables of the name Wedgworth (post 1700) | + |
- Ruth S. Wedgworth, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Florida, 1944, 1948 2
- Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
- The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 19) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
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