Watton History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The vast movement of people that followed the Norman Conquest of England of 1066 brought the Watton family name to the British Isles. They lived in Nottingham, at Whatton. The name of this town derives from the Old English words hvaete, meaning wheat, and tun, meaning settlement or enclosure. 1
Early Origins of the Watton family
The surname Watton was first found in Nottingham where a Norman noble, Robert de Watone, the youngest son of Gaitier de Tirell, Seigneur de Poix in Picardy, was granted the Lordship of Wattone in the Vale in that shire, and it was shown in the Domesday Survey of 1086. 2
Today, there are numerous places in Britain by the name Watton: Watton, Devon; Watton, East Riding of Yorkshire; Watton, Norfolk; and Watton-at-Stone, Hertfordshire.
Early History of the Watton family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Watton research. Another 121 words (9 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Watton History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Watton Spelling Variations
Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Wattone, Watone, Wathon, Watton, Watten, Wattan, Whattone, Whatone, Whathon and many more.
Early Notables of the Watton family
More information is included under the topic Early Watton Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Watton Ranking
In Newfoundland, Canada, the name Watton is the 761st most popular surname with an estimated 56 people with that name. 3
Watton migration to the United States +
For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Watton or a variant listed above were:
Watton Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
- John Watton, who landed in Virginia in 1622 4
- John Watton who settled in Virginia in 1623
- Thomas Watton, who settled in Virginia in 1639
- Thomas Watton, who landed in Virginia in 1639 4
- John Watton, who arrived in Virginia in 1656
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Watton Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
- Thomas Watton, who arrived in Baltimore in 1775
Watton Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
- William Watton was at Ireland's Eye in 1871
Watton migration to Canada +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Watton Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
- John Watton was a fisherman of Change Islands who settled in Newfoundland in 1846 5
- Elizabeth Watton, who settled in St. John's, Newfoundland in 1851 5
Watton migration to Australia +
Emigration to
Australia followed the
First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:
Watton Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
- John Watton, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Trafalgar" in 1847 6
Watton migration to West Indies +
The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association.
7Watton Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
- Joe Watton, who arrived in St. Christopher (Saint Kitts) in 1635 and moved to the mainland in Virginia in the same year
- Jo Watton, aged 25, who arrived in St Christopher in 1635 4
- Mr. John Watton, (b. 1610), aged 25, British settler traveling aboard the ship "William and John" arriving in St Christopher (Saint Kitts) in 1635 8
Contemporary Notables of the name Watton (post 1700) +
- Andrew Watton (b. 1960), stage name of Steven Blum, American voice actor
- Christopher Lee "Chris" Watton (b. 1977), former American football offensive lineman who played for the Scottish Claymores (2001) and the Colorado Crush (2005–2008)
- Ellie Watton (b. 1989), English gold and two-time bronze medalist international field hockey player from Chesterfield, England who played as a forward for England and Great Britain
- Ben Watton (b. 1995), English child actor and drummer for Galaxy Thief from Bournemouth, Dorset, England
- James "Jim" Watton (b. 1936), English former footballer who played from 1962 to 1968
- Most Reverend James Augustus Watton (1915-1995), Canadian Anglican bishop, Archbishop of Moosonee (1963-1979), of Metropolitan of Ontario (1974-1979)
- Ron Watton (b. 1932), Canadian football player who played for the Toronto Argonauts, BC Lions and Hamilton Tiger-Cats from 1953 to 1962
- Jonathan Watton, Canadian actor from Corner Brook, Newfoundland, best known for playing the role of Darcy Garland in Murdoch Mysteries
- Laura Watton (b. 1979), British manga artist and founding member of Sweatdrop Studios
The Watton 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: Fidei coticula crux
Motto Translation: The cross is the test of truth.
Citations +
- Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
- The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
- The order of Common Surnames in 1955 in Newfoundland retrieved on 20th October 2021 (retrieved from Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland by E.R. Seary corrected edition ISBN 0-7735-1782-0)
- 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)
- Seary E.R., Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland, Montreal: McGill's-Queen's Universtity Press 1998 ISBN 0-7735-1782-0
- State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) TRAFALGAR 1847. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1847Trafalgar.htm
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
- Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's (Retrieved October 4th 2021 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm