Contents [hide]

Millett History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Millett History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Millett is a name that was carried to England in the great wave of migration from Normandy following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Millett family lived in Buckinghamshire. The name, however, is reference to the family's place of residence prior to the Norman Conquest of England in 1066, Miall, Normandy. Alternatively, the name could have been a "metonymic occupational name for a grower or seller of millet or panic grass, from the Old French word 'milium' " 1

Early Origins of the Millett family

The surname Millett was first found in various counties and shires throughout Britain as seen in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273: Roger Millot in Nottinghamshire; and John Milot in Huntingdonshire. The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 lists: Willelmus Melot; Johannes Millot; Matilda Millot; and Rogerus Millotson. 2 The History and Antiquities of North Durham, by Rev. James Raine in 1852 lists the following family in Durham: John Mylote in 1380; William Melot in 1433; and Robert Millot in 1512.

Early History of the Millett family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Millett research. Another 74 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Millett History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Millett Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, Norman French and other languages became incorporated into English throughout the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Millett include Millet, Millett and others.

Early Notables of the Millett family

More information is included under the topic Early Millett Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Millett Ranking

In the United States, the name Millett is the 9,661^st most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 3

Migration of the Millett family to Ireland

Some of the Millett family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Millett migration to the United States +

In England at this time, the uncertainty of the political and religious environment of the time caused many families to board ships for distant British colonies in the hopes of finding land and opportunity, and escaping persecution. The voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, though, and many arrived in North America sick, starved, and destitute. Those who did make it, however, were greeted with greater opportunities and freedoms that they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Early immigration records have shown some of the first Milletts to arrive on North American shores:

Millett Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Frances Millett, who landed in Virginia in 1622 4
Mr. Richard Millett who arrived in Salem, Massachusetts in 1630 aboard the ship "Ambrose" as part of the Winthrop Fleet 5
Henry Millett, who arrived in Virginia in 1651 4
Ralph Millett, who landed in Virginia in 1653 4
William Millett, who landed in Virginia in 1657 4
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Millett Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Mary Millett, who settled in Boston in 1768

Millett Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Thomas Mathew Millett, who arrived in New York, NY in 1845 4
Bartholomew Millett, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1876 4
Mr. Francis Millett, (b. 1874), aged 18, Cornish labourer travelling aboard the ship "Teutonic" arriving at Ellis Island, New York on 4th May 1892 en route to the United States 6

Millett migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Millett Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Nathaniel Millett, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749-1752

Millett Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Mr. John Millett, aged 40 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Ann" departing 16th May 1847 from Liverpool, England; the ship arrived on 30th June 18487 but he died on board 7

Millett Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century

Mr. William Millett, (b. 1884), aged 20, Cornish miner, from St Austell, Cornwall, UK travelling aboard the ship "Cedric" arriving at Ellis Island, New York on 15th April 1904 en route to Rossland, British Columbia, Canada 6

Millett migration to Australia +

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

Millett Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Henry Millett, (b. 1790), aged 26, English seaman who was convicted in Norfolk, England for life for house breaking, transported aboard the "Fame" on 9th October 1816, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
Mr. William Millett, English convict who was convicted in London, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Dromedary" on 11th September 1819, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 9
Mr. Henry Millett, (b. 1810), aged 22 born in Cornwall, UK convicted in Cornwall on 24th March 1832, sentenced for death reduced to life for housebreaking, transported aboard the ship "Circassian" in 1832 to Van Diemen's Land, Tasmania, Australia 10
Mr. Henry Millett (b. 1810), aged 22, Cornish settler convicted in Cornwall, UK on 24th March 1832, sentenced for life for housebreaking, transported aboard the ship "Circassian" on 4th October 1832 to Van Diemen's Land, Tasmania, Australia 11
Mr. Henry Millett, Cornish convict who was convicted in Cornwall, England for life, transported aboard the "Circassian" on 4th November 1832, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 12
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Millett 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:

Millett Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mrs. Angelina Millett, (b. 1855), aged 19, Cornish settler departing on 7th May 1874 aboard the ship "Eastern Monarch" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 22nd July 1874 13
Mr. Henry Millett, (b. 1853), aged 21, Cornish farm labourer departing on 7th May 1874 aboard the ship "Eastern Monarch" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 22nd July 1874 13
Mr. William Millett, (b.1856), aged 21, Cornish farm labourer departing on 31st July 1877 aboard the ship "Otiaki" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 4th November 1877 14

Contemporary Notables of the name Millett (post 1700) +

Katherine Murray "Kate" Millett (1934-2017), American feminist writer, educator, artist, and activist; she won the Lambda Pioneer Award for Literature, received Yoko Ono's Courage Award for the Arts, and was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame
John David Millett (1912-1993), the 16th president of Miami University in Oxford, Ohio
Arthur Millett (1874-1952), early American silent film motion picture actor
Lewis Lee Millett Sr. (1920-2009), United States Army officer who received the Medal of Honor
Larry Millett (b. 1947), American journalist and author
Robert Millett, American politician, Mayor of Rock Island, Illinois, 1985-89 15
Lewis H. Millett, American Republican politician, Member of Massachusetts State House of Representatives Eighteenth Essex District, 1905 15
James M. Millett (b. 1869), American Democratic Party politician, Member of Minnesota State Senate 20th District, 1915-28; Candidate for U.S. Representative from Minnesota 3rd District, 1920 15
George Millett, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Montana, 1912 15
Frank L. Millett, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Maine, 1904 15
... (Another 7 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Millett family +

Arrow Air Flight 1285

Mr. John Morton Millett (1958-1985), American Sergeant from Idyllwild, California, USA who died in the Arrow Air Flight 1285 crash 16

HMS Cornwall

Robert Frank Millett (d. 1942), British Sub Lieutenant aboard the HMS Cornwall when she was struck by air bombers and sunk; he died in the sinking 17

Citations +

Hanks, Patricia and Flavia Hodges, A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988. Print. (ISBN 0-19-211592-8)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
"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)
Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's. Retrieved January 6th 2023 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 3rd May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_ellis_island_1892_on.pdf
Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 89)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 27th September 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/fairlie
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th July 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/dromedary
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 30th May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/tasmanian_convicts_cornish.pdf
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 30th May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_australia_convicts.pdf
Convict Records of Australia. Retrieved 8th February 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/circassian
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 2018, April 30). Emigrants to Lyttelton 1858-84 [PDF]. Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/new_zealand_assisted.pdf
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 2018, April 30). Emigrants to Auckland 1872-80 [PDF]. Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/new_zealand_assisted.pdf
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 14) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
American War Memorials - Flight 1285. (Retrieved 2016, August 24) . Retrieved from http://www.uswarmemorials.org/html/monument_details.php?SiteID=317&MemID=550
Force Z Survivors Crew List HMS Cornwall (Retrieved 2018, February 13th) - Retrieved from https://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listcornwallcrew.html#A