Adamthwaite
One-Name Study

Topics

• About the Adamthwaite One-Name Study
• Variants
• Origin of the surname
• Historical occurrences
• Frequency of the name
• Distribution of the name
• Data
• DNA project
• Links
• Contact Details

About the Adamthwaite One-Name Study

This project is very much ‘work in progress’. The information held on our website has been contributed by various members of the Adamthwaite mailing list on Rootsweb.com, some of whom have been researching the name for several decades. We currently have over 60 members of the mailing list. The general aim of our group is to build a worldwide Adamthwaite family tree and to that end we welcome anyone who has Adamthwaites in their family tree to join the mailing list and share information.

Variants

The earliest occurrences of the name appear as Adamthwayt, Adamtwyat and Adamthwat, later becoming Adamthwait. The current form is usually Adamthwaite (occasionally Adamsthwaite). However, the variety of mistranscriptions, particularly on on-line censuses, is amazing – Idamthwate, Adamthavale, Adamshwaste, Adam Hinote, Adamthvisete, Adamtunriz, Adanthwill, Adamthoah, Dolamothwaite, Adamttimould, Adam Schwarte, and my personal favourite Shdamthawa. I am assured that the correct pronunciation (in and around Ravenstonedale at least) is Adamth’t.

Origin of the surname

It seems highly likely that the earliest Adamthwaites were occupants of an isolated group of farmhouses on the moors in the parish of Ravenstonedale, Westmorland, England. The Pipe Roll of Cumberland and Westmorland of 1248 mentions an AdamThwayt however this name appears to have evolved from earlier entries (dating 1235 through to 1247) where it is shown as Adam Cayt or Adam Kayet. Several mentions of the original group of farms at Adamthwaite have been found in manorial documents dating back to the mid 1500s, but the present building was rebuilt by Thomas Adamthwaite in 1684.

Historical occurrences

Apart from the AdamThwayt mentioned above, the earliest written record we have found is for Roland Adamthwaite of Carlisle diocese, who was ordained at New College Chapel Oxford on 28 February 1461. He was the earliest of a number of Reverends Adamthwaite, a few of whom had somewhat worrying involvement in Yorkshire Academies which were later to be immortalised by Charles Dickens in 'Nicholas Nickleby'!

In 1541, in a manuscript containing a conveyance of the farms and tenements of Ravenstonedale by King Henry VIII in the 32nd year of his reign, details 194 landholders in the dale, including:

Reynold Adamthwaite (4 acres); Robert Adamthwaite (9 acres); Richard Adamthayte (6 acres); Widow of Ed. Adamthayte (cottage); Widow of Robert Adamthayte (8 acres) (source: Rev. W Nicholls' 1877 'History & Traditions of Ravenstonedale, Westmorland'

The same publication also describes the Grand Jury in Ravenstonedale which in 1581 had the power to try cases of contention, variance, debts, demands, titles, claims and tenant-right – two of the 13 members of the jury were William Adamthwaite and John Adamthwaite.

The Ravenstonedale Parish Registers contain records of many Adamthwaites who were baptised, married and buried in Ravenstonedale between the years of 1572 and 1812 – varying amounts of information are given about these people, but there are occasional mentions of their place of abode: Adamthwaite, Artelgarth, Hill, Malastang, Town, Lowcomb Head,, Fell-end, Newbiggin, Murthwaite, Steps Beck, Streetside (all these places are within a short distance of Ravenstonedale.

The Registers contain some fascinating notes: there were plagues recorded in 1579, 1588, 1623 and 1730. 24 burials which took place between sep 1678 and 1679 (including two Adamthwaites) were ‘wound up and buryed in nothing but wt was made of sheepswool only according to an Act of Parliament for that purpose enacted’.

Frequency of the name

We have identified a strong clustering of early records from Ravenstonedale in Westmorland. The following figures relate only to births or baptisms

Before 1550: A search of the IGI reveals no Adamthwat (or variant) entries before the year of 1550.

Between 1550 and 1600 there are a total of 22 baptisms recorded on IGI – 20 of these in Ravenstonedale, Westmorland, 2 in St Crux, York. (Note: duplicates and non-extracted entries have been discounted)

Between 1601 and 1700 (total 86 baptisms): We have collected records from a variety of sources and have identified a total of 86 Adamthwaite baptisms in this period – of these 64 were in Westmorland (all but one in Ravenstonedale); 14 were in the West riding of Yorkshire and 8 were in the City of London.

Between 1701 and 1800 (total 83 baptisms): in this period there were 61 baptisms recorded in Westmorland, 20 in the West Riding of Yorkshire and 2 in the City of London.

Between 1801 and 1900 (total 366 baptisms/births): As well as a huge increase in the recorded number of births/baptisms, much more movement is detected at this time as the many Adamthwaite farmers and agricultural labourers sought work in mining and other industries in County Durham and Lancashire, and for the first time the number of Adamthwaites in London and Middlesex outnumbered those in Westmorland. The last Adamthwaite birth was recorded in Ravenstonedale in 1833, though there were still many families in surrounding towns and villages. Also during this century a number of Adamthwaites emigrated to Australia, Canada and America. In the UK the following numbers of baptisms were recorded – Bucks (1); Cumbs (7); Dublin (2); Durham (28); Gloucs (4); Kent (2); Lancs (40); London city (7); Middx (111); North Riding (15); Notts (4); Surrey (28); Sussex (3); Staffs (1); Warwk (1); Westmorland (63); West Riding (44)

Between 1901 and 2000 (total 314 births): Although the distribution across the country has continued, the main areas inhabited by Adamthwaite families remain in London and surrounding counties, and in the north of England in the counties of Westmorland, Yorkshire, Durham and Lancashire.

According to the ONS database, there were 132 individuals with the surname Adamthwaite living in England, Wales and the Isle of Man in 2002. This compares with 79 individuals found in the 1841 census, 95 in the 1851 census, 121 in the 1861 census, 140 in the 1871 census, 158 in the 1881 census, 191 in the 1891 census and 151 in the 1901 census.

Distribution of the name

Distribution maps for 1841 - 1901 UK censuses are shown on our website (see link below) together with information about migration.

Data

Our Adamthwaite Archive website contains a large amount of data, as well as articles about various members of the Adamthwaite family, a photo gallery of our ancestors and the places where they lived, copies of wills and other historical documents.

By cross indexing the BMD and census records together with invaluable information gleaned from wills, we have been able to identify nine family lines – all of which originate in Ravenstonedale (Westmorland) or just across the county border in Sedbergh (West Riding of Yorkshire). Both places are now in the county of Cumbria. The vast majority of BMD events between 1700 and 1950 and virtually all census records have been classified into one of these family lines and are clearly shown on the spreadsheets. Amongst the international membership of the Adamthwaite mailing list we have at least one representative of each of these family lines.

UK: Details of all registered births, marriages and deaths between 1837 and 2004 have been extracted from the GRO index – annotated records are shown on our archive site (cut off points have been used to ensure no records are given for living individuals). Also all Adamthwaites appearing in the England and Wales censuses between 1841 and 1901 have been transcribed from original images and are included on the website, along with a number of Wills and other documents.

Australia and New Zealand: Known birth, marriage and death information is included, but this is known to be incomplete at present.

United States and Canada: Known birth, marriage and death information is included as well as some census data, however this too is known to be incomplete at present.

DNA project

Our original hypothesis was that most, if not all, of the Adamthwaite lines that we have identified were originally descended from a single individual named Adamthwaite, and that he lived in the farm of that name near Ravenstonedale in Westmoreland. However after embarking on our DNA surname project in September 2008, it already appears from the first few results received that in fact three of the largest of the nine lines identified were descended from different individuals, and that probably the place came before the surname, which was adopted by several different families who were living at Adamthwaite around the time that surnames were first adopted. We are hopeful that as more volunteers join the project, the picture will be clarified!

Details of our Adamthwaite DNA project can be found at FamilyTreeDNA Adamthwaite project. To be eligible to join the project, you must be directly descended from the original Adamthwaite family through the male line. Results from the project are made available on our website as they arrive.

Links

The Adamthwaite Archive is our main resource: as well as including census and BMD data, the site also provides charts showing the reconstructed family trees for the nine lines of Adamthwaites we have identified.

The website explains out how to join the Adamthwaite Mailing List on Rootsweb.com and read past copies of our quarterly Newsletter, which is circulated to all members of the Mailing List.

Contact details

For further information, contact:

Mrs Sue Mastel
E-mail:

This page last updated 19 February 2009.

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Profiles of other one-name studies registered with the Guild may be found here.