Surname Saturday: Some Quaker Surnames of Chester Co PA, Bucks Co PA and Guilford Co NC

My gg grandfather, Eli Branson Frazier, a Quaker,  Thorntown, Boone Co IN

The last few weeks I have spent time a lot of time revisiting my numerous Quaker ancestors, and updating my online family trees with new information--thanks to Susanna Epler and Sallie Hughes from our Anacortes genealogy group,  who are also descended from several Quaker families, and have provided fascinating new sources-- including some from Yorkshire, England!

AND after a run-in with a skeptical 23andMe Relative Finder contact--who didn't believe that WEST could be a Quaker surname, or that Quakers lived in North Carolina--I decided to compile a list of some of more well-known Quaker surnames from Chester Co PA, Bucks Co PA and Guilford Co NC.

While I don't claim to be an expert in Quaker genealogy--and I'm sure someone else has done this already--  I just wanted to put this list up on my blog for others to use as a reference,  along with some of the more commonly known Quaker settlements.  Some of the surnames are unusual and immediately recognizable.

This is not a complete list by any means, and it's not alphabetized!

QUAKER SURNAMES FROM CHESTER COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA:

BEALS, BROWN (descendants of brothers William Brown & James Brown, both Quaker ministers), CLAYTON, REYNOLDS, BEESON, MENDENHALL, CHAMNESS, OZBURN/OSBORN, HIATT/HYATT, COX, BRINTON, HUTTON, PEACHY, MILLER (descendants of John Miller, a Quaker from Ireland), JANNEY, BOWATER, PIGGOTT/PICKETT, HARRY (aka HARRIS in records), BEZER/BEZAR, MACY, COLLETT, UNDERWOOD, PACKER, HEWES/HUGHES, WITHERS, RICHARDSON, WILLIAMS, ROBERTS, JONES, PUGH (ap HUGH), PRICE (ap RHYS), BEVAN (ap EVAN).

Note: Many of these families migrated to Guilford Co NC around 1754.


QUAKER SURNAMES FROM GUILFORD COUNTY NORTH CAROLINA:

BRANSON, FRAZIER/FRAZER, HOGGETT/HOCKETT, HINSHAW, STANLEY, POPE, WHEELER, OTWELL, HODSON/HODGESON, MILLIS, UNTHANK, SAFERIGHT, HAWORTH/HAYWORTH,  RUDDUCK, MILLIKAN, THORNBROUGH, WAY, HUNT, STEVENS/STEPHENS, COFFIN (Nantucket MA to Guilford NC) STARBUCK (Nantucket MA to Guilford NC).

Note: Many of the Guilford Co NC families & entire monthly meetings moved to the midwest in the early 1800s: Indiana, Iowa & Ohio.

QUAKER SURNAMES FROM BUCKS COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA:


COWGILL, STACKHOUSE, HAYHURST, HEATON, SCOTT, CUTLER, HARDING, BULLOCK,  NAYLOR, COMLY, PAXSON, LOVETT, MARRIOT, HUTCHINSON.


Note: Several of these families migrated to the midwest by the 1800s.

Some of the locations of early Monthly Meetings pre--1800:

• Chester Co PA: New Garden MM, Nottingham MM, Chichester MM (and more)
• New Castle MM, Delaware
• Burlington MM, NJ
• Salem MM, NJ
• Bucks Co PA: Middletown MM, Falls MM, more?
• Guilford Co NC: New Garden MM, Center MM, Deep River MM and more
• Cecil Co Maryland: Nottingham MM originally in Chester Co PA, ended up in Maryland due to state borders being changed.
• Frederick Co VA: Hopewell MM
• Loudon Co VA: Fairfax MM

There were many more, of course.  Often entire congregations would move together, as can be seen with the New Garden MM, which left Chester Co PA and settled in Guilford Co NC.

And another note:  In my Quaker family, especially in the 1800s,  parents seemed to like to name children after other members of their monthly meeting.  Sometimes they were related, and sometimes not.  For instance, my grandfather's full name was ALONZO COX HUBER, and he was named after his mother's first cousin, ALONZO COX b 1857, son of JEREMIAH COX & ELZENA FRAZIER.

My great great grandfather  ELI BRANSON FRAZIER b 1826, was likely named after ELI BRANSON b 1776,  of Cane Creek MM, in NC ( I have not yet found a family connection between the BRANSONs & the FRAZIERs).  In fact, all of ELI's siblings were named after other Quakers.

If anyone has anything to add to this discussion or if  you'd like to add to the surname or location list, please let me know!

Have a great day!


Betty

© Betty Tartas  2011