The Westcott surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 5,626 people carried this name — #6,097 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 52,400 people counted. About the same as in 2000 (5,626).

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What the name means

The meaning of the Westcott surname

A habitational surname from Old English.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Westcott» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a local name, from where the family lived: ‘of Westcott’.

An early record he cites: Ricardus de Westkote, Buckinghamshire, 1273 — Hundred Rolls.

His entry covers Westcott and Wesscott.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 802 · public domain.

Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s

Westcott was found among the farmers of Devon: 11 in every 10,000.

Guppy counted the farmers listed in each county’s directory and recorded a name only where it reached about 7 in every 10,000; where it does not appear, it was rarer than that, not absent.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Per 10,000 farmers, by county

Devon 11

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), alphabetical list of English and Welsh names — public domain · farmers in Kelly’s Post Office Directories of the 1880s, per 10,000 farmers in each county.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

In 1790, Westcott was counted together with Westcoat: 113 families in all.

Each family is counted by its head. About 602 people lived in those households, 5.3 to a family on average. The census counted these spellings together: Westcoat, Wescoat, Wescot, Wescots, Wescott, Wescut, Wescutt, Westcoot, Westcot, Westcott. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

Rhode Island 38
Maine 19
New York 15
Massachusetts 12
Connecticut 7
Vermont 6
South Carolina 5
Pennsylvania 4
North Carolina 4
Virginia 3

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 268 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Westcott in American newspapers,
1920.

Newspaper page from The St. Charles Herald carrying the name Westcott
The St. Charles Herald 1920-08-28
Newspaper page from Vernon Parish Democrat carrying the name Westcott
Vernon Parish Democrat 1920-09-16
Newspaper page from Vernon Parish Democrat carrying the name Westcott
Vernon Parish Democrat 1920-09-23

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 89,013 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Westcott in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1990s.

14,183 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Westcott. The most, 3,070, date from the 1930s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in Tasmania, at 1.8 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 5,895
Queensland 2,617
Victoria 2,480
Tasmania 1,624
South Australia 698
Western Australia 573
ACT (Canberra) 253
Northern Territory 14

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Westcott.

Who carried it

People named Westcott,
with a public archive behind them.

  • John Westcott
    John Westcott 1807–1888 · businessperson
  • Frederic Westcott d. 1861 · botanist
  • Anne Westcott d. 2007
  • Margaret Westcott 1516–
  • James Westcott 1762–1851 · soldier
  • David M. Westcott 1769–1842 · politician

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Westcott,
in the records of 6 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States804 records

804 records of the Westcott name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 213
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 191
  • Other U.S. records 400
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Eugene L. Westcott

    Born 1915 in New Jersey. Enlisted 1942 at Camden; power station operator from Atlantic County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1998, buried at Finn's Point National Cemetery, New Jersey.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Gary Patrick Westcott

    Born 1951; from Pomona, California. U.S. Army; killed in action 1972 in Quang Tri, South Vietnam. Buried at National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona, Phoenix, Arizona.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Mary Westcott

    Arrived at New York in 1870 aboard the Algeria from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 30; matron. From Ireland.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)

Showing 3 of 804 records for Westcott in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Australia458 records

458 records of the Westcott name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 212
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 102
  • Other Australian records 144
  1. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record Charles Westcott

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Cressy, sailing from Plymouth in 1843. Native of Bishops Lydeard, Somerset. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1856. Married 1856 in Launceston, Tasmania, aged 27.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record William Francis John Westcott

    Married 1855 in Hobart, Tasmania, aged 41. Died 1876 in Hobart, Tasmania, aged 63. Will registered in Tasmania in 1876.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Matilda Mars Westcott

    Born 1856 in Hobart, Tasmania. Died 1935 in Tasmania, aged 78.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 458 records for Westcott in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · City of Ballarat, Avenue of Honour Plaques (CC BY 3.0 AU) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Canada130 records

130 records of the Westcott name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 96
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 17
  • Other Canadian records 17
  1. The first page of an emigration file from Gündlingen, Baden, 1883
    Example: German emigration file, 1883
    Emigration record Sharp Westcott

    Left New York in 1783 aboard the L'Abondence, bound for Port Roseway, aged 12.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Sam'l Westcott

    Came to Ontario in 1873 aboard the Polynesian, landing at Quebec, bound for Hamilton, Ontario; English.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Alvah Llewellyn Westcott

    Buried in 1968 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 83.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.

Showing 3 of 130 records for Westcott in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Emigration file, Gündlingen, 1883, Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg, Staatsarchiv Freiburg B 694/1 Nr. 1389 (CC BY 4.0); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0).

United Kingdom19 records

19 records of the Westcott name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 10
  • Stirling Council burial records 8
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Lucy Westcott

    Buried in 1962 at Ballengeich Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 84.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record F. H. Westcott

    Royal Fusiliers. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Jane Westcott

    Buried in 1912 at Ballengeich Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 69.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Showing 3 of 19 records for Westcott in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

New Zealand1 record

1 record of the Westcott name in New Zealand Christchurch City cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record George Rottenberry Westcott

    Died 1914, aged 45; buried at Linwood Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

Netherlands1 record

1 record of the Westcott name in the Netherlands Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths)
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Ella Elizabeth Westcott

    Married in 1947 in Beverwijk.

    Open Archives, Noord-Hollands Archief (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Westcott.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Westcott is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

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