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Appleton History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Appleton History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

The name Appleton has a long Anglo-Saxon heritage. The name comes from when a family lived near an orchard or a homestead where apples were grown. The Old English word for orchard is æppeltun, which is a compound word formed from æppel, which means apple, and tun, which means enclosure. The surname may also be derived from residency near the various settlements called Appleton in Cheshire, Kent, and Yorkshire, among other places.

Early Origins of the Appleton family

The surname Appleton was first found in Lancashire at Widness with Appleton, a township, in the parish and union of Prescot, hundred of West Derby. The estate of Widness with Appleton was once held by the family but was lost under tragic circumstances. "Appleton gave name to an ancient family, the last of whom left two children under the guardianship of one Hawarden, who was reported to have murdered them. The estate afterwards belonged to the Gellibrands, who succeeded the Hawardens." 1

Some of the first records of the name include John de Appelton who represented York in the parliament in the reign of Edward II and William Appleton who was sheriff of that city in the reign of James II. 2

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 include: Thomas de Appelton in Oxfordshire; and Wydo de Appelton in Yorkshire. The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 list Willelmus de Appilton. 3

Further north in Scotland, one of the first records there was Robert de Aplinden or Aplintoune in Annandale who forfeited his lands in the reign of Robert Bruce. Later Robert de Aplinton or Appylton had a charter of land in the burgh of Invemys from Robert II in 1378. 4

Early History of the Appleton family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Appleton research. Another 80 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1650 and 1654 are included under the topic Early Appleton History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Appleton Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate spelled their names differently as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Appleton have been found, including Appleton, Apelton, Apleton, Appletown, Apylton and others.

Early Notables of the Appleton family

Distinguished members of the family include

Henry Appleton (fl. 1650-1654), English captain in the navy and commodore. He was a townsman and presumably a native of Hull

Appleton Ranking

In the United States, the name Appleton is the 4,704^th most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 5

Appleton migration to the United States +

Families began migrating abroad in enormous numbers because of the political and religious discontent in England. Often faced with persecution and starvation in England, the possibilities of the New World attracted many English people. Although the ocean trips took many lives, those who did get to North America were instrumental in building the necessary groundwork for what would become for new powerful nations. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America bore the name Appleton, or a variant listed above:

Appleton Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Richard Appleton, aged 22, who arrived in Virginia in 1622 aboard the ship "James" 6
Samuel Appleton, who landed in Massachusetts in 1635 6
Richard Appleton, who settled in that same estate in 1635
John Appleton, who landed in Ipswich, Massachusetts in 1656 6
Josiah Appleton, who arrived in New Jersey in 1690 6
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Appleton Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Mary Appleton, who settled in Maryland in 1734
Francis Appleton, who settled in Maryland in 1774

Appleton Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Appleton, who settled in South Carolina in 1822
E Appleton, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 6

Appleton migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Appleton Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Samuel Appleton, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1750
Robert Appleton, who settled in Fort Cumberland, Nova Scotia, in 1774
Robert Appleton, aged 24, who landed in Fort Cumberland, Nova Scotia in 1774

Appleton migration to Australia +

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

Appleton Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. William Appleton, British convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Calcutta" in February 1803, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, the settlement was listed as abandoned and most of the convicts transported to Tasmania on the "Queen" in 1804 7
Joseph Appleton, English convict from Middlesex, who was transported aboard the "Almorah" on April 1817, settling in New South Wales, Australia 8
William Appleton, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Bardaster" in 1839 9
Henry Appleton, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Lady Lilford" in 1839 10
Margaret Ann Appleton, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Lady Lilford" in 1839 10
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Appleton 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:

Appleton Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Miss Mary J. Appleton, (b. 1844), aged 19, British domestic servant travelling from London aboard the ship 'Mermaid' arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 16th February 1864 11
John Appleton, aged 44, a foreman porter, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Hindostan" in 1875
Amelia Appleton, aged 40, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Hindostan" in 1875
Edwin Appleton, aged 20, a porter, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Hindostan" in 1875

Contemporary Notables of the name Appleton (post 1700) +

Jon Howard Appleton (1939-2022), American composer, an educator and a pioneer in electro-acoustic music, winner of Guggenheim, Fulbright and American-Scandinavian Foundation fellowships in 1970, co-inventor of the first commercial digital synthesizer called the Synclavier
Otis Ray "Killer" Appleton (1941-2015), American jazz drummer
George Swett Appleton (1821-1878), American publisher, the third son of Daniel Appleton
Daniel Appleton (1785-1849), American publisher, founder of D. Appleton & Co. in 1831
William Henry Appleton (1814-1899), American publisher, son of Daniel Appleton
Brigadier-General John Adams Appleton (1892-1966), American Director-General of Military Railways, European Theater of Operation (1944) 12
Nathan Appleton (1779-1861), American merchant and politician, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts (1831-1833) and in 1842
James Appleton (1785-1862), American politician, Member of Massachusetts State House of Representatives, 1813-14; Member of Maine State House of Representatives, 1836-37 13
Calvin Appleton, American politician, U.S. Consular Agent in Liverpool, 1863-77 13
Arthur Taggard Appleton (1884-1961), American Republican politician, Member of New Hampshire Governor's Council 4th District; Elected 1938 13
... (Another 17 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Appleton family +

Empress of Ireland

Mr. Charles Appleton (1872-1914), Canadian Third Class Passenger from Toronto, Ontario, Canada who was traveling aboard the Empress of Ireland and died in the sinking 14

Halifax Explosion

Mrs. Emma Appleton (1865-1917), Canadian resident from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada who died in the Halifax Explosion (1917) 15
Mrs. Georgina E. Appleton (1892-1917), Canadian resident from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada who died in the Halifax Explosion (1917) 15

RMS Titanic

Mrs. Charlotte Lane Appleton, (née Lamson), aged 53, American First Class passenger from New York City, New York who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and survived the sinking escaping in life boat 2 16

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
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)
"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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 25th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/calcutta
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Almorah voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1817 with 180 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/almorah/1817
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) BARDASTER 1839. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1839Bardcaster.htm
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) LADY LILFORD 1839. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1839LadyLilford.htm
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, October 6) John Appleton. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Appleton/John_Adams/USA.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 20) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Commemoration Empress of Ireland 2014. (Retrieved 2014, June 16) . Retrieved from http://www.empress2014.ca/seclangen/listepsc1.html
Halifax Explosion Book of Remembrance | Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. (Retrieved 2014, June 23) . Retrieved from https://maritimemuseum.novascotia.ca/what-see-do/halifax-explosion/halifax-explosion-book-remembrance
Titanic Passenger List - Titanic Facts. (Retrieved 2016, July 13) . Retrieved from http://www.titanicfacts.net/titanic-passenger-list.html