Show ContentsCollacott History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Collacott name has descended through the generations from the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. Their name comes from having lived in Caldecot, which was the name of parishes found in Peterborough and Worcestershire. The name was originally derived from the Old English word ceald-cote and literally meant the dweller at the cold-huts. 1 2

The Colgate variant also claims descent from Colegates in Shoreham, Kent or at Colgate in Lower Bleeding, Sussex. 2 The Kent village may now be lost, but there are streets named Colegates, in Faversham, Kent. The Sussex village survives and is now in West Sussex. The earliest record for this variant is Stephen de Colegate who was listed in London in 1300. 2 William Colgate (1783-1857) the English-born, American soap industrialist hailed from Hollingbourne, Kent.

Early Origins of the Collacott family

The surname Collacott was first found in various places named Caldecote or Caldecott throughout Britain including Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire, Huntingdonshire, Northamptonshire, Leicestershire and Warwickshire.

No fewer than five of them are listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Caldecote, Cambridgeshire; Caldecota, Hertfordshire; Caldecote, Warwickshire; Caldecote, Leicestershire; and Caldecote, Northamptonshire. Williamscott or Willscott in Oxfordshire was home to the family too.

Early rolls confirmed the wide-spread use of the name in early rolls with many spelling variations: Simon de Caldecot in the Pipe Rolls for Cambridgeshire in 1165; Geoffrey de Caudecot in the Curia Regis Rolls for Kent in 1206; William de Cheldecot in Warwickshire in 1225; Edmund de Calicote in the Hundredorum Rolls for Berkshire in 1275; Richard de Coldecote in the Subsidy Rolls for Worcestershire in 1275; and John de Caldekote in the Subsidy Rolls for Sussex in 1296. 2

"Walter Calcott, in 1575, endowed a free school here with £13 per annum payable out of his manor of Williamscott, for 40 boys chosen by lot from the villages around." 3 The hamlet was also made famous as the site that Charles I. slept a night or two prior to the battle of Cropredy-Bridge.

Early History of the Collacott family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Collacott research. Another 132 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1150, 1304, 1320, 1766, 1779, 1782, 1783, 1785, 1800, 1836, 1837, 1843, 1844, 1846, 1849 and 1886 are included under the topic Early Collacott History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Collacott Spelling Variations

Only recently has spelling become standardized in the English language. As the English language evolved in the Middle Ages, the spelling of names changed also. The name Collacott has undergone many spelling variations, including Caldecot, Caldecott, Caldecotte and others.

Early Notables of the Collacott family

Notables of the family at this time include John Wall Calcott, born November 20, 1766, at Kensington, where his father carried on the business of a bricklayer and builder. Whilst a school-boy he had frequent opportunities of examining the organ at Kensington church, and having funned an acquaintance with the organist became a constant visitor to the organ-loft on Sundays. There he acquired his knowledge of the rudiments of music. His intention was to follow the profession of surgery, but the sight of a severe operation so seriously affected his nerves that he abandoned it and turned his attention to music...
Another 178 words (13 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Collacott Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Australia Collacott migration to Australia +

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

Collacott Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. Abraham Collacott, (b. 1810), aged 26, Cornish settler convicted in Cornwall, UK on 28th June 1836, sentenced for 14 years for stealing a pair of shoes and other items of clothing, transported aboard the ship "Mangles" on 18th March 1837 to New South Wales, Australia 4


The Collacott Motto +

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: In utrumque paratus
Motto Translation: Prepared for both.


  1. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  2. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  3. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  4. Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 30th May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_australia_convicts.pdf


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