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Show ContentsWhitelocke History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
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Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

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Whitelocke is an ancient Anglo-Saxon name. It was a name given to a person who was a person with white hair. Looking back further, we find the name Whitelocke was derived from the Old English words whit, meaning white and lock, meaning tress or hair. 1 2

Early Origins of the Whitelocke family

The surname Whitelocke was first found in Devon, but much later "the Whitlocks were best represented in the Halstead [Essex] district." 3

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 has only two listings for the family with very early spellings: Emma filius Witlok, Huntingdonshire; and William Witlohc, Oxfordshire. 4

Kirby's Quest also had two early entries for the family in Somerset: William atte Whytelak and Walter Whytelock. Both were "1 Edward III," in other words entered in the first year of King Edward III's reign. 5

Much further to the north in Scotland, "Th Quhyteloke" was Burgess of Edinburgh in 1403 and Robert Quhytlok was a tenant under the Abbey of Kelso in 1567. 6

Early History of the Whitelocke family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Whitelocke research. Another 133 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1537, 1564, 1565, 1570, 1584, 1586, 1605, 1608, 1610, 1622, 1624, 1625, 1631, 1632, 1654, 1659, 1675, 1701 and 1709 are included under the topic Early Whitelocke History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Whitelocke 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 Whitelocke has appeared include Whitlock, Whitelock, Witlock and others.

Early Notables of the Whitelocke family

Notables of the family at this time include

  • Edmund Whitelocke (1565-1608), English courtier, born in the parish of St. Gabriel, Fenchurch Street, London, on 10 Feb. 1564, the eldest son of Richard Whitelocke, merchant. His youngest brother, Sir...

Ireland Migration of the Whitelocke family to Ireland

Some of the Whitelocke family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Whitelocke family

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 Whitelocke arrived in North America very early: Thomas and Ann Whitlock, who settled in Virginia in 1638; William Whitelock settled in Barbados in 1776.

Contemporary Notables of the name Whitelocke (post 1700) +

  • Tex Whitelocke (b. 1990), Caymanian footballer who plays as a Forward
  • John Whitelocke (1757-1833), British army officer from Hall Barn Park, Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, GOC South-West District (1799–1804) 7
  1. Arthur, William , An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names. London: 1857. Print
  2. Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
  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. Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.
  6. Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
  7. Wikisource contributors. "Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900." Wikisource . Wikisource , 4 Jun. 2018. Web. 30 Jan. 2019
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