Surnames were, at first derived from familiar things, such as a man's occupation or the place he lived, etc. The first historical instance of the use of a surname was in 512 when the Kentish King Eric was surnamed BÆdas's Oisc which meant Spear or Lance. In the next century a monk named Biscop (Bishop) was surnamed Baducing, Baduc's son.

The beginning of the use of surnames as a common practice is hard to pin down for it varied from country to country and from district to district. In the south of England, it occurred sometime around the 12th century, in the north not until the end of the 14th century. With the Crusades in Europe over, the people began to feel the need for a family name to add to the simple name they received at birth. The noblemen who went on the Crusades observed the prestige and practical value of an added name, and when they returned, the upper classes at home followed the lead.

When clerks recorded the payment of the vassals, for fines or taxes, something more was needed, other than a simple notation of Robert, or John, for there were now simply too many Roberts and too many Johns, and no way to distinguish between them. It was useless for the clerk to ask what additional name the peasant possessed, for he had none. So the scribe began, on his own, to add a brief description in order to separate one Robert from another.

The inclination to ridicule or compliment a neighbor or acquaintance by the addition of a nickname also contributed to the development of surnames. The early descriptive surnames were used with prepositions; atte Hill (at the hill), or Myatiune (from Milton), de Bedford (from Bedford), buta Port (outside the gate), filius Alann (son of Allan), and de Tarleton (from Tarleton). Early documents were written in Latin in many countries, and here the names took on a Latin form, though the man would generally be known by his spoken name. In time English surnames dropped the preposition, except in a few cases ie, Atterbury, Bywater, and Underwood as examples. However, many Italian and French names retained the prepositional form ie: DuPont, Lo Bello etc.

Surnames were not just words or sounds, but descriptions of the person for identification purposes. They were not, at first, family names, as they described only the individual and not his family, and were not at all hereditary, intended as they were to describe the person to whom it was applied. They were not necessarily descriptive of his son or sons, and so in many cases was not handed down to the children. It was not until the beginning of the Fifteenth century that England, as a rule, began to pass on surnames from father to son. Even as it became more common there were still instances where it might be possible for the son to have a different name than his father. The lower classes normally trained their sons in the father's trade and in these instances the name would follow. But if the son chose not to continue his father's trade it would be possible for the son to have a different surname. Practically all English and European names were derived from one of four ways; from his place of residence, from his occupation, from the fathers name, or from a descriptive nickname.

As the population, and the use of surnames grew, mutations and corruptions also grew. Along with this came inconsistent spellings, for there were no vocabularies approaching anywhere near our modern references, and such did not exist till the 17th century. With no standardization, one variant of a name was as valid as another. Every writer indulged his own fancy of the moment. Since the majority of the population of the middle ages was illiterate, it was impossible for them to convey the information, or identify an error in the spelling of their own names to the recording scribes. This resulted in a great many variations of the spelling of the same name, even within families. Some variations of the spellings were considerable. There were thirty-three forms of the name Bruce in the Drummond's, "Noble British Families," and thirty-four ways of spelling Bunyan in the "Dictionary of National Biography."

The spoken alphabet of the English language consists of forty-three sounds, the written alphabet only twenty-six letters (of which five were superfluous, e, q, x, w, and y). One sound may be written many different ways; as with a long "a"; fate, raid, neigh, prey, gauge, as examples. It was the vowel that suffered most. Thirteen Vowel sounds were written in more than 100 different ways.

Variations abounded, for example the ancient Cymric name Ywein was represented in England as Ewen, and in wales as Owen. Orthographically the name varied length from three letters, as in Eun, to nine letters, as in Hewghinge, and twelve letters as represented in a Norfolk will with the spelling, Heugheinnges. Excluding Latin and Gaelic forms, it is estimated that there was no less than 100,000 possible mutations of this name.

The Caldwell family name began in France, where the original surname was de Coville; there they became Huguenots. And with time and pronunciation the name developed into, Covil, Colvin, Colwell, Calwel, Cawlwell, and Cauldwell.

After being persecuted in France during the Reformation, the Caldwells fled to Scotland around the middle of the 16th Century. The name followed approximately this path: From de Coville in France to, Cauldwell in Scotland and then to Caldwell in Ireland. The family came to Ireland during the Great Plantation, and from there in 1750 Robert and Charles Caldwell came to America.

In America the Caldwell name is borne by many families. But they undoubtedly all share the common ancestry of France, Scotland, and Ireland. The New England Caldwells share a first ancestor named Robert Caldwell of Rhode Island, and in Massachusetts a John Caldwell. In Virginia is found John Caldwell, and James Caldwell. Listed in "The Compendium of First American Families" (Volume VII page 84), is my 4th great-grandfather Robert Caldwell, and his brother Charles, of Hartslog, Pennsylvania.

The Thorlton family name can be traced from the 13th century, and its origins as Tarleton, or Tarlton. From there to the Dukes of Normandy, in the days of William the Conqueror, (in the 11th Century) and through the original name, Thorald, and its Viking ancestors. Thorald was widely used under varied spellings and pronunciations, the principal forms being; Thorald, Turrold, Tyrell, Torel, Turrell, the modern version of Thorald is Thorold. Thorald was a preceptor of William the Conqueror and, his Grand Constable at the time of the Norman invasion.

The Normans, who lived along the coast of France, were descendants of Norseman, or Vikings, from Scandinavia. During the Neolithic period, the Viking's ancestors developed a culture of farming, fishing and hunting. By the beginning of Viking Age (9th-11th centuries) they were the most skilled boat builders, fiercest warriors, and the greatest adventurers the world had ever seen. In their long ships, with their dragon heads, they ventured as far south as the Mediterranean Ocean, and as far west as the North American continent. They developed a love for battle, plunder, and carnage on a scale that struck terror in the hearts of all who heard the cry . . .

Vikings! ...

Whole villages were surrendered at just the sound of the word. Viking warriors fought with such ferocity that the fiercest won the name "Berserker," as they seemed to go mad in the heat of battle. The greatest honor a Viking Warrior could earn was the name of . . . "Berserker."

Sacking and pillaging from North Africa, to Ireland, they established their settlements, and as their conquests grew, likewise, did their knowledge. They became expert horsemen, and adopted the Christian Religion. They furthered their skills at farming, fishing and developed intellectual skills in Chess, music, games, and navigation, and slowly transformed themselves from cruel savages to more civilized traders, and creatures of colonization. But they still maintained their finely honed skills of combat.

So that in the summer of 1066, on the coast of Normandy, a Thorald stood by his commander, the Duke of Normandy, or "the Conqueror," as history would remember him. With 5,000 men, 400 ships, battle gear and horses, William prepared to do what had never been done, cross the English Channel with an army to seize the throne of England.

A fierce gale nearly destroyed William's army at sea, but he would not be denied. As king Harald Hardrada of Norway attacked the northern coast, drawing England's king Harold north to fend of the Viking invasion, William landed his army, unopposed, near the town of Pevensey.

After defeating the Viking invasion and killing Harald Hardrada, England's king Harold rushed his army south to meet the threat from William and his army, now near the town of Hastings. Here William was triumphant and Harold was killed in the battle.

With the death of Harold, and the destruction, and retreat of his army, William ascended to the throne of England, and Norman names were forever planted in the tapestry of English history. One of these would ultimately become Thorlton.

The Normans brought many drastic changes in English life. Feudalism was introduced, and government became more centralized, with the power in the hands of the king. Norman nobles replaced, and intermarried with English aristocracy. There was a rebirth of learning and religious zeal within the church. Through the Normans, England became heir to Latin institutions. Roman law was merged with the English system of Rights. For a time Norman French replaced English in the courts, and in literature, with English relegated to the lower classes. However English returned as the language of choice in the 14th century, and, Norman names began to show up on the map of England. One these names, derived from the Normans, came from the village of Tarleton.

Tarleton is from the place name of a location in Lancashire, England, the meaning, (homestead where the thorn bushes grow). A few miles from Liverpool in the Leyland Hundred is the Parish of Tarleton. It consists of six thousand acres of mostly flat, and fertile land, except for the western portion where in lies a bog, in the middle of which are two excavations called the "Bottomest" or the "Bottomless Hole." Bounded to the west by North Meols, to north by Hesketh-cum-Bec-cumstal, on the south by Ruford, and on the east by Croston there bounded for three miles by the river Douglas. In the middle of a stretch of land slightly higher than the river, is the village of Tarleton.

In the village sits the "Ram's Head Inn." This long low yellowish group of buildings was, in coaching days, an important establishment, and is still a picturesque sight. Near the ancient chapel sits St. Helen's Well and was much used as late as the seventeenth century. At the southeastern end of the village stands the old Church of St. Mary's which was built in 1719. On the western end there is a small belfry tower, a vestry and a porch.

The coming of William the Conqueror was the beginning of the evolution of the name of Thorlton. In the ranks of William's men were those anxious for the booty, and for the land and titles, offered and promised by the conquest. And, though the Anglo-Saxon English resisted the Normans, and never became Norman, in the end the two races merged, and the mixture created a new English race.

The first recorded use of the name was, that of "Maien de Tarleton" in 1204. In 1332 "Gilbert de Tarleton," and Magota de Tarlton in 1379, and in 1381 is found the name of John de Tarleton, and a little later perhaps around 1400, Walter de Tarleton, and Adam de Tarleton. And, from Leyland Hundred in 1379, comes the names of de Tarleton, where there are still Tarltons and Tarletons today. In 1413 Henry de Tarleton shows up in West Derby Hundred followed in 1421, by Richard Tarleton and in 1427 by William de Tarleton.

In 1580 a Robert Hatton married Elizabeth daughter of a Tarleton of Lancashire and in 1599 Iden Thorlton (3rd great grandaunt of Captain John Thorlton of Hartslog) married Myles Fowle. Their 2nd son George Fowle married Mary Tufts. Their 5th son Isaac Fowle married Beriah Bright. Their daughter Abigail Fowle married a sea Captain in Boston named William Smith. Their daughter Abigail married a lawyer from Braintree Massachusetts named John Adams who became the 2nd President of the United States. Their son John Quincy Adams, the cousin of all the Thorltons today, became the 6th President of the United States of America.

During the Middle Ages and even into the early part of our colonial period a Hundred was a unit of local government covering sometimes as little as two square miles, and sometimes as much as 300 square miles. It was larger than a village but smaller than a shire or county. Every hundred possessed its own government officers, and hundred courts. This unit of government was later replaced by the parish, and judicial officers became justices of the peace. Over a long period of time there were exchanges of names, including Tarleton between the Leyland Hundred and the Blackburn Hundred, derived from names in Leyland Hundred, including several names which later became fairly common in Lancashire. Then between 1452 and 1506 Tarleton began to show up as a family name around West Riding in Ripon and the surrounding villages.

The Thorlton family name is a variation of the name Tarleton of the Leyland Hundred, beginning in the early part of the 16th century. From there it migrated south to Gloucester, where the habit of adding the letter "H" was common in Lancashire and surrounding areas. This practice was most common in the Jute and Angle counties of Essex, Kent, and the Saxon counties of Sussex, Surrey, Hampshire, Wiltshire, Doresetshire, Hertfordshire, Berkshire, Buckingham, Oxfordshire, and Gloucestershire. The name's Tarlton, and Tarleton were present in Gloucester, and Lancashire but were rare elsewhere. In Gloucester the letter "h" was added to "T" creating the name Tharleton. Through time and variation the "a" was changed to "o" creating Thorleton. The name Thorleton was intermittently, Thorleton and Thorlton depending on who the scribe was.

Sometime around 1600, the Thorleton family came to Ireland by way of Liverpool, and settled in County Offaly. So the Thorltons and the Caldwells were now after 170 years, as Irish as an immigrant to America would become American. Imbued with the language, and the customs, they were now quite literally, what American historians would call the Scotch-Irish. These were the people sent to occupy the lands of the native Irish. To their minds and to their nature after those 170 years they were as Irish as the native celts.

After it's native ethnic evolution, the Caldwell name moved from France, along with the French Huguenots, then to England, and to Scotland, and Ireland. And the Thorlton name moved from their distant ancestry among the Vikings, to Normandy, then to England, Scotland, and finally Ireland . . . Ireland was now their native land . . . they were Irish.

From Ireland, my 3rd Great-Grandfather John Thorlton brought the name to America in 1771. Thorlton has been used without change since 1772, when John Thorlton while witnessing a deed on August 26, 1772, for a Mr. Jacob Beabout, signed as John Thorleton. This was the last time there is any record of the name Thorleton being used in America. All other signatures by John Thorlton were as Thorlton. There was however, one other place where the spelling was different but in this instance I am sure it was an error made by the company clerk, or recorder. During the American Revolution Captain John Thorlton was recorded as Captain John Thorleton, Captain John Thoreleton, and as Captain John Thorlton, all were simply variations by a clerk who was unsure of the proper spelling. I am sure however that John Thorlton used the spelling of "Thorlton," and after 1772 never deviated from it.

A John Thorlton was born in London in 1803. In 1808 an Edward Thorlton married Maria Bolton, then all versions of the surname Thorlton seemed to have disappeared from the British Isles, and as far as I was able to determine it no longer exists there. Today there are less than 200 Thorlton surnames in use. There are however, thousands of descendants, with almost as many names.

So what does it all mean?

Can we know where we are going by studying where we have been?

I believe so, though it is not cast in stone, for we have ultimate control of our own destinies. But understanding where we came from is to control better where we are bound. Geneticists know that traits are transmitted through the hereditary process, from parents to children, by way of forty-six Chromosomes, and that these are made up of complex molecules called "Genes." These Genes are mixed from generation to generation creating endless combinations of appearance eliminating the boring possibility of us all looking alike. They also know that hereditary traits are rigidly retained through generations, passed on utterly unchanged by outside influences, by way of the Genes. This is not to say that learned skills or experiences are inherited, only certain physical, chemical organizations that take the form of temperament, physical structure, intellectual potential, and innate drive. To dilute this formula however is added, environment, and life experiences. We now become the result of heredity and environment. Family characteristics are passed from generation to generation, and are changed so slowly they are not observable within historical periods. So, there is a little of all of the fathers and mothers who have gone before in each of us. We are one of the acorns that have fallen from the family tree. As much like our fathers and mothers as we are different, with the opportunity to carry forth the positive traits we inherited, and the possibility to alter the bad!

Following is the recorded Coat of Arms for "Tarleton"

Armorial Bearing
Quarterly, 1 and 4, gules, a chevron erminois between three cinquefoils.

Crest
On a wreath of the colours, a mural thereon a leopards face, all between two ostrich feathers.

Motto
"Post nubila phoebus" (After clouds the sun)

.............................

Tarelton......................................................Alexander

The Authors Personal Coat of Arms

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