Show ContentsGutch History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Gutch family

The surname Gutch was first found in Roxburghshire. One of the first records of the name was found in France alluding to its Norman heritage: Martin Gouge (c. 1360-1444), a French chancellor.

However, some of the family were found further south at Billesley in Warwickshire in early times. "The estate was afterwards possessed by Bishop Sherlock, through whose sister, who married Sir Thomas Gooch (1674-1754), Bishop of Ely, it passed into the Gooch family." 1

Early History of the Gutch family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gutch research. Another 105 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1165, 1540, 1575, 1578, 1594, 1609, 1614, 1630, 1643, 1653, 1665, 1674, 1681, 1700, 1705, 1727, 1730, 1746, 1749, 1751 and 1754 are included under the topic Early Gutch History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gutch Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Googh, Gouche, Gowk, Googe, Gooch, Gooche and others.

Early Notables of the Gutch family

Notable amongst the family name during their early history was Sir John Gooch of Suffolk; Barnabe Googe (1540-1594), an English poet and translator; William Gouge (1575-1653), an English clergyman and author, minister and preacher at St Ann Blackfriars, member of the Westminster Assembly from 1643; Sir William Gooch (1681-1751), 1st Baronet, born in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, Governor of Virginia (1727-1749) responsible for the passage of the Tobacco Inspection Act of 1730, eponym of Goochland County, Virginia; Sir Thomas Gooch, 2nd Baronet (1674-1754), an English bishop, brother to Sir William. Barnabe Googe (1540-1594), was an English poet, son of Robert Googe, recorder of...
Another 115 words (8 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Gutch Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Gutch migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Gutch Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Robert Gutch, who arrived in Salem, Massachusetts in 1641 2

Gutch 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:

Gutch Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Henry James Gutch, aged 14, a baker, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Catherine Stewart Forbes" in 1841
  • Robert Gutch, aged 21, a shopman, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Catherine Stewart Forbes" in 1841

Contemporary Notables of the name Gutch (post 1700) +

  • T. E. Gutch, American politician, Delegate to Iowa convention to ratify 21st amendment from Monroe County, 1933 3


The Gutch 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: Audaces juvat
Motto Translation: Fortune favours the bold.


  1. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  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)
  3. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, February 1) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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