Contents [hide]

Clinton History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Canada Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Clinton History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland
Ireland
England

Though hidden in the annals of history, the chronicles of Scotland reveal the early records of the Norman surname Clinton which ranks as one of the oldest. The history of the name is interwoven within the colorful plaid of Scottish history and is an intrinsic part of the heritage of this ancient nation.

Early Origins of the Clinton family

The surname Clinton was first found in Oxfordshire, where they were recorded as a family of great antiquity seated at Glinton with manor and estates in that shire. They are said to be descended from Reinbaldus who accompanied the Conqueror into England.

Geoffrey de Clinton (fl. 1130), was "Chamberlain and Treasurer to Henry I; he appears to have been the founder of the great Clinton family, and was probably the creator of his own fortunes, though attempts have been made to show that he was descended from William de Tankerville, chamberlain of Normandy. His name seems to occur for the first time in a charter of Henry I to Westminster Abbey - a document that cannot, from the names of the co-signatories, be dated later than 1123. " 1

Sire Johan de Clinton (d. 1315) assumed his surname from Glinton anciently written Clinton. The peerage of Baron Clinton was created for him in 1298. 2 This began a long line of Barons Clinton including: John de Clinton, 2nd Baron Clinton (d. c. 1335); John de Clinton, 3rd Baron Clinton (d. 1398); William de Clinton, 4th Baron Clinton (1378-1431); John de Clinton, 5th Baron Clinton (1410-1464) and others.

Another branch of the family was found at Hunton in Kent. "The manor [of Hunton] afterwards passed to the Gyffords, and in the reign of Edward III. to the family of Clinton, of whose ancient mansion, the site, encompassed by a moat, is still visible near the church." 3

Kenilworth in Warwickshire had a particular significance to the family in early times. "After the Conquest, Henry I. bestowed the manor upon Geoffrey de Clinton, his treasurer and chamberlain, who built the church, and founded a priory for Canons regular of the order of St. Augustine, which he dedicated to the Blessed Virgin. He erected the earlier portion of that stately Castle for the remains of which the town is principally distinguished." 3

To the far south in Devon, in the Domesday Book of 1086, "the park of Heanton Satchville belongs to Lord Clinton, whose seat is in the adjoining parish of Huish, once possessed by the bearers of that ancient name." 4

Early History of the Clinton family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Clinton research. Another 69 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1330, 1378, 1386, 1394, 1397, 1404, 1414, 1415, 1431, 1512, 1572, 1585, 1624, 1646, 1648, 1657, 1686, 1690, 1729, 1731, 1743, 1753, 1761, 1773 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Clinton History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Clinton Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Clinton, Glinton, Clintone and others.

Early Notables of the Clinton family

Notable among the family at this time was

Sir Thomas Clinton (died 1415), an English soldier and politician, Clinton was a younger son of John de Clinton, 3rd Baron Clinton of Maxstoke, Warwickshire, inherited the manors of Hunton and Bensted...
Sir William de Clinton (1378-1431), 4th Baron Clinton
Edward Clinton (1512-1585), 9th Baron Clinton, made 1st Earl of Lincoln
Edward Clinton, Baron Clinton (1624-1657), an English politician Member of Parliament for Callington (1646-1648)

Clinton Ranking

In the United States, the name Clinton is the 1,706^th most popular surname with an estimated 17,409 people with that name. 5

Migration of the Clinton family to Ireland

Some of the Clinton family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 220 words (16 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Clinton migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Clinton Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Mary Clinton, who landed in Virginia in 1636 6
Cornelius Clinton, who landed in Virginia in 1656 6

Clinton Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Charles Clinton, who settled in New York in 1728, from Northumberland in England
Christiana Clinton, who arrived in New York in 1729 6
Francis Clinton, who landed in New England in 1730 6
John Clinton, who settled in New England in 1753

Clinton Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Bartholmew Clinton, who arrived in New York, NY in 1816 6
Bartholomew Clinton, who landed in New York, NY in 1816 6
Dolly Clinton, who landed in New York, NY in 1817 6
Hannah Clinton, who arrived in New York, NY in 1817 6
James Clinton, who landed in New York, NY in 1817 6
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Clinton migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Clinton Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Mr. William Clinton U.E. who settled in Saint John, New Brunswick c. 1783 7

Clinton Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Brien Clinton, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1830

Clinton migration to Australia +

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

Clinton Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Patrick Clinton, aged 22, a labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1851 aboard the ship "Catherine" 8
Patrick Clinton, aged 22, a labourer, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Catherine" in 1851 8

Clinton migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Clinton Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. Patrick Clinton, British settler as part of the 8th Detachment of the Royal New Zealand Fencibles travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Oriental Queen" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 18th September 1849 9
Miss Henrietta Clinton, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Sir Edward Paget" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 19th December 1850 9
Miss Clinton, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Sir Edward Paget" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 25th May 1853 9
John Clinton, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Mermaid" in 1859 10
Miss J. Clinton, British settler travelling from Liverpool aboard the ship 'Mermaid' arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 19th October 1859 11

Clinton migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 12

Clinton Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Joseph Clinton, who settled in St. Christopher (Saint Kitts) in 1635
Jo Clinton, aged 19, who arrived in St Christopher in 1635 6
Mr. John Clinton, (b. 1616), aged 19, British settler traveling aboard the ship "Matthew" arriving in St Christopher (Saint Kitts) in 1635 13
Edward Clinton, who settled in Barbados in 1654

Contemporary Notables of the name Clinton (post 1700) +

Joel Clinton (b. 1981), Australian former professional rugby league footballer
General Sir William Henry Clinton GCB (1769-1846), British general during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars
Henry Fynes Clinton (1781-1852), British classical scholar and chronologist
General Sir Henry Clinton (1738-1795), British army officer and politician who is best known for his service as a general during the American Revolutionary War
George William Clinton (1807-1885), American politician, Mayor of Buffalo, New York (1842-1843)
Larry Clinton (1909-1985), American trumpeter, bandleader and arranger who worked with Tommy Dorsey, Jimmy Dorsey, Glen Gray, Louis Armstrong and others
George Clinton (b. 1941), American singer, songwriter, bandleader, and music producer, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997
Gordon S. Clinton (b. 1920), American politician, Mayor of Seattle (1956-1964)
James Clinton (1736-1812), American Revolutionary War officer
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton Senator (b. 1947), American lawyer/wife of former President Clinton, former 67th United States Secretary of State (2009-2013)
... (Another 35 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Clinton family +

RMS Lusitania

Mr. George Clinton, English Able-Bodied Seaman from England, who worked aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and survived the sinking 14

Citations +

Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
Shirley, Evelyn Philip, The Noble and Gentle Men of England; The Arms and Descents. Westminster: John Bower Nichols and Sons, 1866, Print.
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Worth, R.N., A History of Devonshire London: Elliot Stock, 62, Paternoster Row, E.G., 1895. Digital
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) CATHERINE 1851. Retrieved http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1851Catherine.htm
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 5th November 2010). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's (Retrieved October 4th 2021 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 6) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/