Claygate History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The ancient roots of the Claygate family name are in the Anglo-Saxon culture. The name Claygate comes from when the family lived 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 Claygate family

The surname Claygate 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 Claygate family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Claygate 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 Claygate History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Claygate Spelling Variations

One relatively recent invention that did much to standardize English spelling was the printing press. However, before its invention even the most literate people recorded their names according to sound rather than spelling. The spelling variations under which the name Claygate has appeared include Clagett, Claggitt, Clegget, Cleggett, Cleygate, Claygate, Clackett, Claigate, Cleget, Claggett, Claggot and many more.

Early Notables of the Claygate 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. "Afterwards he migrated to Magdalen Hall, and commenced M.A. in June 1634, being then generally esteemed a very able moderator in philosophy. About 1636 he became vicar of Melbourne, Derbyshire, and about 1644 he was chosen lecturer or preacher at St. Mary's Church, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk." 6His son, Nicholas Clagett the Younger (1654-1727), was an English controversialist. "He was baptised 20 May...
Another 264 words (19 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Claygate Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Claygate family

At this time, the shores of the New World beckoned many English families that felt that the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. Thousands left England at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. A great portion of these settlers never survived the journey and even a greater number arrived sick, starving, and without a penny. The survivors, however, were often greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. These English settlers made significant contributions to those colonies that would eventually become the United States and Canada. An examination of early immigration records and passenger ship lists revealed that people bearing the name Claygate arrived in North America very early: Thomas Clagett who arrived in Maryland in 1670 and Thomas John Clagett in Maryland in 1767.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print