Show ContentsColliton History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Colliton family

The surname Colliton was first found in Devon where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor. After the Battle of Hastings in 1066, William, Duke of Normandy, having prevailed over King Harold, granted most of Britain to his many victorious Barons. It was not uncommon to find a Baron, or a Bishop, with 60 or more Lordships scattered throughout the country. These he gave to his sons, nephews and other junior lines of his family and they became known as under-tenants. They adopted the Norman system of surnames which identified the under-tenant with his holdings so as to distinguish him from the senior stem of the family. After many rebellious wars between his Barons, Duke William, commissioned a census of all England to determine in 1086, settling once and for all, who held which land. He called the census the Domesday Book, 1 indicating that those holders registered would hold the land until the end of time. Hence, conjecturally, the surname is descended from the tenant of the lands of Coleton, held by Warin from his overlord Iudhael of Totnes, who was recorded in the Domesday Book census of 1086.

Early History of the Colliton family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Colliton research. Another 116 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1080, 1172, 1548, 1608, 1635, 1664, 1666, 1669, 1681, 1682, 1685, 1689, 1694, 1700 and 1754 are included under the topic Early Colliton History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Colliton Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Colleton, Coleton, Culleton, Culliton, Collaton, Cullaton, O'Culleton, O'Colleton, MacColleton, MacCulliton and many more.

Early Notables of the Colliton family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was John Colleton (1548-1635), English Catholic divine, son of Edmund Colleton, gentleman, of Milverton, Somersetshire.Sir John Colleton, 1st Baronet (1608-1666), was an English Royalist officer to King Charles I during the English Civil War; his holdings were seized when the Cavaliers were defeated by Parliamentary forces, but...
Another 54 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Colliton Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ireland Migration of the Colliton family to Ireland

Some of the Colliton family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 79 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Colliton migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Colliton Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Patrick Colliton, who arrived in New York in 1827 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Colliton (post 1700) +

  • Jeremy Colliton (b. 1985), Canadian former professional NHL ice hockey centre


  1. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  2. 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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