Show ContentsWainwright History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

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Wainwright Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Etymology of Wainwright

What does the name Wainwright mean?

The ancient name of Wainwright finds its origins with the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. It comes from a name for a wainwright or wagon builder. The surname Wainwright is derived from the Old English word wægnwyrhta, which means wainwright. 1 2

"Wain is an old, but nearly obsolete, word for wagon. In Sussex, a shed in which wagons stand is called a wain-house or ' wen-hus,' and in some parts of England a wagoner is called a wain-man, whence the surname Wenman. Nor must we forget the constellation, Charles's Wain. A Wainwright was therefore synonymous with Cartwright and Wheelwright, also English surnames, and signified a builder of wagons." 1

Early Origins of the Wainwright family

The surname Wainwright was first found in Worcestershire where they were Lords of the manor of Dudelei from very ancient times, and it is possible that they are interrelated with the Norman Baron William FitzAnsculf whose castle was in Dudley.

One of the earliest records of the name was Alimar Wanwrecthe who was listed in Essex in 1237. Adam the Waynwrith was listed in Yorkshire in 1285 and Alan le Waynwright was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Lancashire in 1285. 2

Early History of the Wainwright family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Wainwright research. Another 75 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1568, 1577, 1592 and 1678 are included under the topic Early Wainwright History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Wainwright Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Wainwright family name include Wainwright, Waynewright, Wainright, Wayn and others.

Early Notables of the Wainwright family

  • Wainwright, Lord of the manor of Dudelei
  • Thomas Wainwright, curator and rector of the Church of West Derby, Lancashire in 1592. 3

Wainwright Ranking

In the United Kingdom, the name Wainwright is the 744th most popular surname with an estimated 9,001 people with that name. 4 However, in the United States, the name Wainwright is ranked the 5,642nd most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 5

Wainwright migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia included the Third Fleet of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Third Fleet
  • Miss Ellen Wainwright, (b. 1769), aged 18, English settler convicted in Preston, Lancashire on 15th January 1787, sentenced for 7 years for stealing clothing, transported aboard the ship "Prince of Wales" leaving in 1787 arriving in New South Wales, Australia in 1788 6
Following the Third Fleets, other convicts and early settlers arriving in Australia include:

Wainwright Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. John Wainwright, British Convict who was convicted in Bristol, England for life, transported aboard the "Batavia" in October 1817, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 7
  • Mr. Richard Wainwright, British Convict who was convicted in Worcestershire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Batavia" in October 1817, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 7
  • Mr. William Wainwright, (b. 1803), aged 25, English convict who was convicted in Chester, Cheshire, England for life, transported aboard the "Countess of Harcourt" on 29th April 1828, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, he died in 1828 8
  • Miss Susannah Wainwright, (Macnally), (b. 1813), aged 19, Irish convict from Balbriggan who was convicted in Chester, Cheshire, England for 14 years for receiving stolen goods, transported aboard the "Diana" on 4th December 1832, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, she died in 1901 9
  • Mr. Robert Wainwright, English convict who was convicted in Lancaster, Lancashire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Captain Cook" on 2nd May 1833, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 10
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Wainwright 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:

Wainwright Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Edward Wainwright, aged 32, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Prince of Wales" in 1842
  • Hannah Wainwright, aged 25, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Prince of Wales" in 1842
  • William Wainwright, aged 8, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Prince of Wales" in 1842
  • James Wainwright, aged 5, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Prince of Wales" in 1842
  • Charles Wainwright, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Owen Glendowner" in 1864
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Wainwright (post 1700) +

  • Mark Wainwright AM, Australian academic, Vice Chancellor of UNSW (2004-2006)
  • Keith Wainwright MBE (1944-2024), English hairdresser
  • Ted Wainwright (1865-1919), English first-class cricketer who played in 352 first-class matches for Yorkshire County Cricket Club between 1888 and 1902
  • Sally A Wainwright (b. 1963), English BAFTA Award winning and five-time BAFTA Award nominated television writer and playwright
  • Richard Scurrah Wainwright (1918-2003), English politician, Liberal Member of Parliament for Colne Valley (1966–1970) and (1974-1987)
  • Harry Smith Wainwright (1864-1925), English Locomotive, Carriage and Wagon Superintendent of the South Eastern and Chatham Railway (1899-1913)
  • Alfred Wainwright (1907-1991), English writer of guide books of fells (hills) in the English Lake District; the fells he described have become known as the Wainwrights
  • Dennis Arlen Wainwright MBE (1935-2024), Bermudian cricketer who played as a right-handed batsman and a wicket-keeper
  • Louie Lee Wainwright (1923-2021), American corrections administrator, Secretary of the Florida Division of Corrections from 1962 to 1987, known for being the named respondent in two U.S. Supreme Court cases: Gideon v. Wainwright in which indigents are guaranteed an attorney, and Ford v. Wainwright, in which the Court approved the common law rule prohibiting the execution of the insane
  • ... (Another 23 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
USS Arizona
  • Mr. Silas Alonzo Wainwright, American Pharmacist's Mate First Class from New York, USA working aboard the ship "USS Arizona" when she sunk during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7th December 1941, he died in the sinking 11
  1. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  2. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  3. 'Townships: Scarisbrick', in A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 3, ed. William Farrer and J Brownbill (London, 1907), pp. 265-276. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol3/pp265-276 [accessed 21 January 2017].
  4. "UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
  5. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  6. Convict Records of Australia. Retrieved 4th February 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships
  7. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/batavia
  8. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 19th April 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/countess-of-harcourt
  9. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 5th July 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/Diana
  10. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/captain-cook
  11. Pearl Harbour: USS Arizona Casualties List Pearl Harbour December 7, 1941. (Retrieved 2018, July 31st). Retrieved from http://pearl-harbor.com/arizona/casualtylist.html

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