Show ContentsClagett History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Clagett

What does the name Clagett mean?

The roots of the Anglo-Saxon name Clagett come from when the family resided in the village of Clegett or Clegett Hall, in the parish of Rochdale, Kent. The surname is derived from the Old Norse word which means a haystack-shaped hill. The surname also has an occupational origin, which means that it is derived form the trade or profession of the original bearer. The name was also given to those who worked as bellringers.

Cleygate, a manor, in the parish of Thames Ditton, Second division of the hundred of Kingston, union of Kingston, in the East division of Surrey may be a point of origin for the family. 1 "It was given to the convent of Westminster by Tosti, probably the son of Earl Godwin, and the grant was confirmed by Edward the Confessor. The Domesday Survey records that "Claigate" was then still held by the monks, and the lands continued in their possession until the Dissolution. " 2

Early Origins of the Clagett family

The surname Clagett was first found in Kent, at Claygate Cross, a hamlet in the Sevenoaks District. The first record was that ot Roger de la Caligate was was listed here in the Feet of Fines for 1198. Robert Cleygate was listed in 1215 and Glibert ate Claygate was listed in the Assize Rolls for 1317. 3

Alternatively, the name could have been derived from Claygate, a village in Surrey 1 4 that dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 where it was first listed as Claigate, a manor of the village Thames Ditton. 5 The main manor of the village was held by Westminster Abbey. This is indeed a rare name as most of the records are quite late in the 17th and 18th centuries - little was found earlier.

Early History of the Clagett family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Clagett research. Another 103 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1198, 1215, 1317, 1610, 1628, 1634, 1636, 1644, 1646, 1654, 1660, 1663, 1671, 1681, 1688, 1716, 1721, 1727, 1746, 1756, 1766, 1776, 1788 and 1791 are included under the topic Early Clagett History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Clagett Spelling Variations

The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore,spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Clagett has been recorded under many different variations, including Clagett, Claggitt, Clegget, Cleggett, Cleygate, Claygate, Clackett, Claigate, Cleget, Claggett, Claggot and many more.

Early Notables of the Clagett family

Distinguished members of the family include

  • Nicholas Clagett the Elder (1610?-1663), English Puritan divine, born at Canterbury about 1610 and in 1628 was entered as a student of Merton College, Oxford, where he proceeded B.A. in October 1681...
  • William Clagett D.D. (1646-1688), was an English clergyman, known as a controversialist and was the eldest son of Nicholas Clagett the Elder. 6
  • William Claggott, was Rector of Mundesley, Norfolk in the 18th century; and Nicholas Clagett, an 18th century bishop of Exeter


Clagett migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Clagett or a variant listed above:

Clagett Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Thomas Clagett who arrived in Maryland in 1670
  • Thomas Clagett, who landed in Maryland in 1670 7
Clagett Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Thomas John Clagett, who arrived in Maryland in 1767 7
  • Thomas John Clagett in Maryland in 1767
Clagett Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • H Clagett, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1850 7

Contemporary Notables of the name Clagett (post 1700) +

  • Brigadier-General Henry Black Clagett (1884-1952), American Commanding Officer Basic Traning Center Air Corps No. 4 (1943) 8
  • Clifton Clagett (1762-1829), United States Representative from New Hampshire
  • Charles Clagett Marbury (d. 1991), American politician, Member of the Maryland House of Delegates in 1931 and State Senator in 1941


  1. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  2. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  3. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  4. Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
  5. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  6. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
  7. 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)
  8. Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, November 3) Henry Clagett. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Clagett/Henry_Black/USA.html


Houseofnames.com on Facebook