| ![Show Contents]() Clowser History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
Clowser is a name of ancient Anglo-Saxon origin and comes from the family once having lived as inhabitants by the enclosed place. Another origin may be derived from the Old English word close, that referred to worker in the farm-yard. Early Origins of the Clowser familyThe surname Clowser was first found in Yorkshire where the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 make the first mention of the family. There we found Johannes del Clos and Willelmus del Clos both listed as holding lands at that time. 1 However one notes source states: "some families of this name are of Yorkshire origin and some are Gaelic-Ó Cluasaigh; both are found in Antrim and adjacent counties." 2 Early History of the Clowser familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Clowser research. Another 117 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1443, 1447, 1448, 1450, 1452, 1453, 1579, 1581, 1585, 1640, 1659, 1660, 1854, 1857 and 1878 are included under the topic Early Clowser History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Clowser Spelling VariationsSound 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 Clowser family name include Close, Cloase, Cloise, Clowse, Clovse, Cloace, Cloce, Cloose and many more. Early Notables of the Clowser familyNotables of the family at this time include Nicholas Close (died 1452), English priest, Bishop of Carlisle (1450 to 1452) and Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield (1452 to 1453). He was "one of the six original fellows of King's College, Cambridge, appointed by the founder, Henry VI, in 1443. Of his previous life nothing has as yet been discovered. The accounts of King's College show that he was frequently employed on important business, and in 1447 he became overseer of the building works ('magister operum')...
Another 84 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Clowser Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.  Migration of the Clowser family to Ireland
Some of the Clowser family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 180 words (13 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
| Clowser migration to the United States | + |
For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Clowser surname or a spelling variation of the name include:
Clowser Settlers in United States in the 18th Century- Jacob Clowser, aged 25, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1743 3
- Peter Clowser, aged 18, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1743 3
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: Fortis et fidelis
Motto Translation: Brave and faithful.
- Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
- MacLysaght, Edward, Supplement to Irish Families. Baltimore: Genealogical Book Company, 1964. Print.
- 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)
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Clowser migration to the United States 
England
Ireland
