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Swanston History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Swanston History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

Early Origins of the Swanston family

The surname Swanston was first found in Durham where they were Lords of the manor of Stockton from early times. But by the year 1221 they had moved north into Scotland and acquired the lands of Swaynystoun, near Colinton, in Midlothian, where Duncan Swainston was the scion of that branch. 1

Swainston Manor lies 1 mile (1.6 km) to the east of Calbourne on the Isle of Wight. It was originally a manor house but has now been converted to a hotel. It has a 12th-century chapel on its 32 acres thought to have been built by the Bishops of Winchester.

Early History of the Swanston family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Swanston research. Another 98 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1605, 1660 and 1661 are included under the topic Early Swanston History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Swanston Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Swainson, Swanston, Swenson, Swenston, Swainston, Swanson and many more.

Early Notables of the Swanston family

Notable amongst the family name during their early history was Dr. Alan Swainston of York; and Francis Swanton (c 1605-1661) of Wincanton, Somerset, an English lawyer and politician...
Another 28 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Swanston Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Swanston migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Swanston Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Isabella Swanston, who arrived in Maryland in 1672 2
Edward Swanston, who landed in Maryland in 1674 2

Swanston Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Sherland Swanston, who settled in Nevis in 1774

Swanston Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

G. Swanston settled in San Francisco, California in 1850

Swanston migration to Australia +

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

Swanston Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Henry Swanston, Scottish ploughman who was convicted in Edinburgh, Scotland for 7 years for poaching, transported aboard the "Blenheim" on 11th March 1837, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 3

Swanston 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:

Swanston Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. A. Swanston, Scottish settler travelling from Glasgow aboard the ship "Three Bells" arriving in Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 13th July 1858 4
Mrs. Swanston, Scottish settler travelling from Glasgow aboard the ship "Three Bells" arriving in Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 13th July 1858 4
Child Swanston, Scottish settler travelling from Glasgow aboard the ship "Three Bells" arriving in Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 13th July 1858 4
T. Swanston, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Viscount Canning" in 1865
Mr. Robert M. Swanston, (b. 1837), aged 28, British labourer travelling from London aboard the ship "Eastern Empire" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 4th January 1865 5

Contemporary Notables of the name Swanston (post 1700) +

Charles Swanston (1789-1850), English merchant, banker and politician
Eliard Swanston (d. 1651), English actor in the Caroline era
Walt Swanston, Director of Diversity Management for National Public Radio (NPR) in Washington, DC
James Beck Swanston (1878-1957), Conservative member of the Canadian House of Commons
Hamish F. G. Swanston (b. 1933), Scottish theologian and historian
Marcia Swanston, Canadian Mezzo-Soprano
Joel Swanston Jennings, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Kentucky, 1996 6

Citations +

Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 15th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/blenheim
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 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 19) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html