Show ContentsTuton History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The name Tuton reached England in the great wave of migration following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Tuton family lived in Dutton, Lancashire. Today Dutton is a civil parish and village within the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester, but this parish dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 where it was listed as Duntune and literally meant "farmstead at a hill" from the Old English words dun + tun. 1 Dutton is also a civil parish in the Borough of Ribble Valley in Lancashire.

Early Origins of the Tuton family

The surname Tuton was first found in Lancashire where Odard Dutton, nephew of Hugh Lupus was granted the lands of the Barony of Dutton in 1066. He was directly descended from William, Earl of Eu, who married a niece of William the Conqueror. Dutton in Cheshire was an ancient family seat.

"This place, called in Domesday Book Duntune, was the seat of the family of Dutton, who exercised peculiar authority over the musicians and minstrels of the county, under a grant from the Lacys, barons of Walton, requiring them to pay suit and service at a court held before the lord of Dutton, or his deputy, at Chester, every year on Midsummer-day, and to take out a licence for the exercise of their calling." 2

The township of Ness in Chester was at one time of significance to the family. "This place is mentioned in Domesday Survey as being part of the possessions of Walter de Vernon; in the time of Richard II., it was held by the Duttons under the king as Earl of Chester, in capite, by military service." 2 However the family did not hold the lands for long as "on the marriage of the heiress of that family, 7th James I., to the heir of Thomas, Lord Gerard, Ness became the property of the Gerards, of Gerard's Bromley." 2

Again in Cheshire, one branch of the family was found at Appleton with Hull. "The manor, with its hamlets of Hull and Stockton, belonged in the reign of Henry III. to Geffrey Dutton, and subsequently passed, with Budworth, to Sir Peter Warburton, Bart. Bradley, another manor, was given by Geffrey, son of Adam de Dutton, to the ancestor of Thomas Daniers or Daniel, whose daughter and heiress, in the reign of Edward III., brought it by marriage to the Savage family." 2

Early History of the Tuton family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Tuton research. Another 196 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1191, 1248, 1275, 1332, 1415, 1421, 1459, 1545, 1594, 1624, 1640, 1647 and 1657 are included under the topic Early Tuton History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Tuton Spelling Variations

Before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Sound was what guided spelling in the Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Tuton family name include Dutton, Duton, Duttone and others.

Early Notables of the Tuton family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Sir Geoffrey Dutton; Sir Thomas Dutton (1421-1459), a medieval English knight who died at the Battle of Blore Heath, Blore Heath, England defending the throne of King Henry VI...
Another 36 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Tuton Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ireland Migration of the Tuton family to Ireland

Some of the Tuton 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.

Migration of the Tuton family

To escape the political and religious chaos of this era, thousands of English families began to migrate to the New World in search of land and freedom from religious and political persecution. The passage was expensive and the ships were dark, crowded, and unsafe; however, those who made the voyage safely were encountered opportunities that were not available to them in their homeland. Many of the families that reached the New World at this time went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of the United States and Canada. Research into various historical records has revealed some of first members of the Tuton family to immigrate North America: John Dutton who arrived in America in 1630 and Thomas Dutton who arrived soon after, settling in Reading.



  1. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  2. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.


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