Doddswork History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The ancient roots of the Doddswork family name are in the Anglo-Saxon culture. The name Doddswork comes from when the family lived in the township of Dodworth, in the parish of Silkstone in Yorkshire.

Early Origins of the Doddswork family

The surname Doddswork was first found in the historic West Riding of Yorkshire at Dodworth, a township, in the parish of Silkstone, wapentake of Staincross. 1

Today Dodworth is South Yorkshire and is a village in the metropolitan borough of Barnsley. The Domesday Book of 1086 lists the place name as Dodesuu(o)rde and literally meant "enclosure of a man called Dod(d) or Dod(d)a," from the Old English personal name + "worth." 2

The first record of the family was Lefode de Dodesuurda who was listed in the Inquisitio Eliensis (included in the Domesday Book as lands of Ely Abbey) in 1086.

Years later, Adam de Dodworth was listed in the Feet of Fines of Yorkshire in 1375. 3 The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 list: Walterus de Dodworth; and Willelmus de Dodword. 4

Early History of the Doddswork family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Doddswork research. Another 66 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1544, 1585, 1593, 1599, 1629, 1631, 1654 and 1660 are included under the topic Early Doddswork History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Doddswork 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 Doddswork has appeared include Dodsworth, Dodworth and others.

Early Notables of the Doddswork family

Notables of the family at this time include Matthew Dodsworth (c.1544-1631), an English judge and sometime before 1593, appointed as Judge of the Admiralty Court in England's Northern Counties. Roger Dodsworth (1585-1654), was an English antiquary and son of Matthew Dodsworth, registrar of York Cathedral, was born at Newton Grange, Oswaldkirk, Yorkshire, in the house of his maternal grandfather, Ralph Sandwith. "The date, according to his own account, was 24 July...
Another 70 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Doddswork Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Doddswork 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 Doddswork arrived in North America very early: James Dodsworth who settled in Barbados in 1671; another James Dodsworth settled in Maryland in 1775; M. Dodsworth arrived in San Francisco in 1852.

The Doddswork 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: Pro lege senatuque rege
Motto Translation: For King and the law

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)