Although this Northcote One-Name study only officially started in 2019, family tree research began by other members of my family in the late 1990s. I originally took over leading the research in my family around 2008 with the intention of proving that our family were not of the same line as other “Devon” Northcotes, and fed up of comparisons to various Northcotes in all parts of the country, having lived coincidentally near to a large road sign “Northcott” as a student, a statue of a Northcote and even worked in an area called Norcot (none of which I planned). Since then have become more interested in the wider origins of the name, the social history of family members and any other striking family coincidences...there is more to come!

The registered variants of the name are Northcott, Northcutt, Norcott, Norcutt, Norkett although there are other less frequent variants such as Northcotte, Northcotts, Northcut, Narracott and many more.

There is evidence that there is cross-over with other names at certain points in history which are likely to be surnames in their own right with separate origins. This includes

• Nethercott and its variants both in Somerset whereby a family of Nythercotes (taking their name from a local place now known as Great Nurcott Farm in Exton, Somerset) became known as Norcotts
• Nethercote family in Okehampton, Devon in the late middle-ages who may in fact be Northcotes. There is numerous evidence of the names Nethercote and Northecote being used interchangeably in several of the well established “Northcote” places.
• Northcroft and its variants in Newbury, Berkshire who in fact are likely to have taken their name from a family of Norcotts who lived there in the 16th Century
• A family of Norden aka Northcots living in Plymtree in Devon in the 16th Century and probably later

The Northcote surname is a locative one, i.e. it is derived from one or more place names. In the case of the Northcote name, there are at least six potential sources, including

• Northcote, first recorded 1086 (Northcote Manor Farm in East Down, near Barnstaple in North Devon)
• Nortcote first recorded 1086 (Lower Norcote near Preston, Cirencestor in Gloucestershire)
• Nordcotis, first recorded 1115 (North Coates near Grimsby in Lincolnshire)
• Northicote, first recorded 1221 (Northycote Farm near Bushbury, Wolverhampton in Staffordshire)
• Northcote, first recorded 1250 (Norcote near Southall in Middlesex).
• Northcote, first recorded 1300 (Norcott-cum-Lee in Northchurch, Berkhampstead in Hertfordshire)

These places correspond with early references to the name:

• 1166 Edil [also recorded Joel] de Norothocote, militis [knight/soldier] in Devon
• 1205 William de Nordcote in Gloucestershire
• 1256 Ralph de Norkote in Lincolnshire
• 1199 Nicholas de Northicote in Staffordshire
• 1289 John de Nitherecote in Middlesex
• 1315 Richard de Northcote in Hertfordshire, but also 1169 Agnes de Nordcota in Buckinghamshire

There are a number of Northcotes, and their variants, who are noteworthy in leaving a contribution to history, including:

• John Northecote, Sheriff of Devon (1353) & Cornwall (1354), likely the tenant and nominee of Torre Abbey from 1351-1369
• Edmund Northcote, Provost of Tavistock, Devon in 1324-5 and collector of subsidies in Devon 1342
• William Northcote, Canon of Wellhowe Abbey, Grimsby in 1356
• Sir John Northcote, created 1st Baronet of Haine in 1641 [Newton St Cyres, Devon], Colonel in the English Civil War, MP for Devon in the Long Parliament.
• John Norcott, Baptist preacher and author, removed from the Church of England in 1662 who died 1676 in Wapping, Hertfordshire.
• William Northcote, surgeon of Camelford, Cornwall who served on the Dublin and published books on cures for tropical diseases for naval expeditions such as Preventatives Of The Scurvy At Sea, published in 1777. He also served in the American War of Independance.
• Thomas Northcott, printer of George Yard, Lombard Street, Middlesex who published the works of William Penn and other quakers from 1685-1713.
• James Northcote, artist & Royal Academician, art historian and author. Illustrator to the first edition of the complete works of William Shakespeare in 1786.
• Amos Godsell Robert Norcott, Knight of the Order of the Bath, Acting Governor of Jamaica, wounded at the Battle of Waterloo and died in 1838 at Lower Glanmire near Cork, Ireland.
• Adrian Northcutt, Captain of the “Mountain Blues” born 1799 in Virginia. General in the militia in the war with Mexico and died 1869 in Tennessee, United States of America.
• Robert Saunders Northcott, born 1818 in Rutherford, Tennessee. Lieutenant-Colonel of West Virginia, Unionist and Republican in the American Civil War. Spent time in the Confederate Libby Prison in Richmond, Virginia.
• Sir Stafford Northcote, 8th Baronet of Haine, Chancellor of the Exchequer contributor to the Great Exhibition committee, co-author of the Northcote-Trevillian report on civil service. Created 1st Earl of Iddesleigh in 1885.
• Eliza Sarah Northcote, Blind performer on the enharmonic organ of St. Anne and St. Agnes, St. Martin's-le-Grand, London from 1856.
• James Spencer Northcote, curate of Ilfracombe who converted to Roman Catholicism and became President of St Mary’s College, Oscott, Birmingham in 1860.
• Henry Ponting Northcott, Commissioner and Commandant Northern Territories Gold Coast in 1897, killed in the Boer War.
• Sir John Northcote, born in Creswick, Australia in 1890, Lieutenant-General and Governor of New South Wales. Died in Wahroonga, New South Wales, Australia in 1966.
• George Vernon Northcott, CBE, property developer, founder of the Northcott Theatre, Exeter, Devon and the Northcott Charitable Trust in 1954.
• Tom Northcott, Canadian folk-rock singer born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, in 1943. Fronted Tom Northcott and the Vancouver Playboys and the Tom Northcott Trio.

From the index of the 1841 census produced by the Church of Latter Day Saints, there were 2,269 Northcotes and their variants recorded in that census. There were 3382 Norcotts and their variants although this includes some Norgate and Normacott names.

According to an ONS database there were only 390 Northcotes using the registered name variants as of September 2002 ranking the name as 13661 out of almost 270000 surnames.

If the registered name variants in this study are included that rises to 3136 Northcote/ Northcott/ Norcott/ Northcutt/ Norcutt/ Norkett names.

In the 1891 census the most populous counties of England were Devon (993 entries), London (380), Cornwall, (269), Staffordshire (119) Lancashire (116) and Somerset (81).

Maps below taken from Steve Archer's Surname Atlas show the variation in location of the six Northcote variants chosen for this study, taken from the 1881 census records. Whereas households with the Norcutt/Norkett surname had their highest frequency in the Oxfordshire/Berkshire area in 1881, Norcotts were mostly in Middlesex, Oxfordshire, Lancashire and Cheshire. By comparison, Northcote, Northcott and Northcutt had their highest frequencies in Devon and the surrounding counties, and to a lesser extent in London. In this decade, Northcotes and Northcotts were far more common than other variations, unlike today. There is further research needed to determine whether these numbers in 1881 are indicative of earlier origins, or more based on local pronunciations of the name.

There have been various migrations to Wales and Scotland and other countries such as Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, and America to name a few. One of the most detailed analyses of the American Northcote families was recorded in Northcutt and Allied Families focussing on the Southern States.

The one-name study mostly includes records relating to England with numerous entries from Parish Registers, wills, tax returns and other documents. However there are some references and reconstructed family trees which relate to family overseas in the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Peru, India and more.

All occurrences of the surname have been identified from the following early records: Birth Deaths & Marriages in England & Wales 1837-1989; wills registered at the Prerogative Court of Canterbury; 1715-1724 Oath Rolls; Protestation Rolls for 1641-2 (Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Cornwall, Devon, Middlesex, Somerset); Devon & Cornwall Hearth Tax Returns for Lady Day 1674; Devon, Cornwall & Somerset Muster Rolls for 1569; the Devon Lay Subsidy Rolls for 1543-1545, 1524-1527 & 1332; The Calendars of Close Rolls (1227-1509), The Calendar of the Fine Rolls (1216-1509), The Calendars of Patent Rolls (1216-1572), The Rolls of the Pipe.

The Northcote DNA Project is just getting started, and we expect to have many exciting discoveries and uncover a variety of genealogical lines.

We are currently inviting participants to uncover information not provided in the paper records, through the use of Y-DNA tests. This will help with family history research for Northcotes and those with Northcotes in their male ancestry. We will also discover which family trees are related. As the project progresses, the results for the various family trees will provide information about the evolution of the surname.

There are thought to be a number of living variants such as Narracott, Norcot, Norcott, Norcut, Norcutt, Norket, Norkett, Northcot, Northcote, Northcott, Northcotte, Northcut, Northcutt.

For more information follow the links below:

https://www.familytreedna.com/groups/northcote