Contents [hide]

Whitham History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Motto Citations

Whitham History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Early Origins of the Whitham family

The surname Whitham was first found in Lincolnshire at North Witham, a small village in South Kesteven. However, Witham is also a town in the county of Essex. The parish of Witham appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 and the manor of Witham was given to the Knights Templar in 1148. John de Wytham, was 'the king's chaplain' in 1286. 1 Witham Friary is a small village and civil parish located in Somerset. "Ledstone Hall [in Ledstone, in the West Riding of Yorkshire] is a handsome mansion, anciently the seat of the Witham family." 2

Early History of the Whitham family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Whitham research. Another 255 words (18 lines of text) covering the years 1300, 1420, 1454, 1458, 1460, 1467, 1473, 1489, 1538, 1604, 1624, 1625, 1634, 1654, 1655, 1659, 1668, 1704, 1707, 1725, 1728, 1738, 1752, 1777, 1799 and 1884 are included under the topic Early Whitham History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Whitham Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Witham, Withem, Wittam, Witam, Withum, Wittum, Whittam, Whitham, Whittum, Whittem, Wytham, Wyttam, Wyttum, Wythum, Withams, Wittams and many more.

Early Notables of the Whitham family

Notables of the family at this time include William Witham (or Wytham) (died before 1473), English cleric who was incumbent at St Marylebone until 12 November 1454, when he exchanged the office for that of Archdeacon of Stow. He was then Archdeacon of Leicester (from 1458), Dean of Arches (from c.?1460) and Dean of Wells (from 1467) until his death before 1473.Thomas Witham (c.1420-1489), was an English Chancellor of the Exchequer under Kings Henry VI and Edward IV; and Thomas Whetham, was an English lawyer and politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1624.Nathaniel Whetham (1604-1668), was an English...
Another 121 words (9 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Whitham Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Whitham Ranking

In the United States, the name Whitham is the 16,672^nd most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 3

Whitham migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Whitham Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Whitham, who landed in New York in 1822 4
Joseph Whitham, who arrived in New York in 1822 4
Thomas and Joseph Whitham, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1823 and 1851
Miss M Whitham, aged 7, who arrived in America, in 1892
Mrs L. Whitham, aged 45, who arrived in America, in 1892
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Whitham Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

John James Whitham, aged 25, who arrived in America from Sheffield, England, in 1902
Rebecca Whitham, aged 50, who arrived in America, in 1912
Frank Whitham, aged 20, who arrived in America from Blackpool, England, in 1913
Elizabeth Whitham, aged 23, who arrived in America from Oldham, England, in 1915
Martha Ann Whitham, aged 57, who arrived in America from Oldham, England, in 1915
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Whitham migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Whitham Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Thomas Whitham, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Sir Edward Parry" in 1849 5
Mr. John Whitham, English convict who was convicted in Leeds, Yorkshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Belgravia" on 4th April 1866, arriving in Western Australia 6
George Whitham, aged 21, British settler who arrived in Adelaide, South Australia aboard the "Hesperus" in 1883

Whitham migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Whitham Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. Joseph Whitham, (b. 1840), aged 30, English farm labourer, from Yorkshire travelling from London aboard the ship "Ramsey" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 17th June 1870 7
Mrs. Grace Whitham, (b. 1843), aged 27, English settler, from Yorkshire travelling from London aboard the ship "Ramsey" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 17th June 1870 7
Mr. Robert Whitham, (b. 1863), aged 7, English settler, from Yorkshire travelling from London aboard the ship "Ramsey" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 17th June 1870 7
Mr. Joseph Whitham, Jr., (b. 1865), aged 5, English settler, from Yorkshire travelling from London aboard the ship "Ramsey" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 17th June 1870 7
Mr. Samuel Whitham, (b. 1867), aged 3, English settler, from Yorkshire travelling from London aboard the ship "Ramsey" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 17th June 1870 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Whitham (post 1700) +

Jeff Whitham, American politician, Republican member of the Kansas House of Representatives (2007-)
Gerald Beresford Whitham (1927-2014), English-born, American applied mathematician and the Charles Lee Powell Professor of Applied Mathematics (Emeritus) of Applied & Computational Mathematics at the California Institute of Technology
Richard W. Whitham, American politician, Mayor of Dover, New Jersey, 1916-20 8
Antonio Michael Pedroza Whitham (b. 1991), English professional footballer
Thomas Whitham VC (1888-1924), English recipient of the Victoria Cross
Michael James "Jamie" Whitham (b. 1966), English former professional motorcycle road racer, voted "Man of the Year" in both 1991 and 1996
Michael Whitham (1867-1924), English international footballer who played from 1887 to 1897 and for the 1892 England National Team; he later managed Gainsborough Trinity (1911-1912)
Jack Whitham (b. 1946), English professional footballer who played from 1964 to 1976 and played for the 1968 England U23 National Team
Charles Whitham (b. 1917), Australian author of Western Tasmania: A land of Riches and Beauty
Lieutenant-General John Lawrence Whitham (1881-1952), Officer Commanding 4th Australian Infantry Division from 1937 to 1939 9

Historic Events for the Whitham family +

HMS Repulse

Mr. William Whitham, British Ordinary Seaman, who sailed into battle on the HMS Repulse (1941) and died in the sinking 10

The Whitham Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Optime merenti
Motto Translation: To the best deserving.

Citations +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) The SIR EDWARD PARRY 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849SirEdwardParry.htm
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/belgravia
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 8) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, September 8) John Whitham. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Whitham/John_Lawrence/Australia.html
HMS Repulse Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listrepulsecrew.html