Blackston History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Early Origins of the Blackston family

The surname Blackston was first found in the West Riding of Yorkshire at Blaxton, a township in the parish of Finningley, union and soke of Doncaster. 1

"Of William Blackstone, one of the earliest episcopal clergymen resident in New England (d. 1675) a biographer writes: 'His name was variantly spelled Blackstone, Blackston, and Blaxton." 2

"But it is not likely that Blaxton in Yorkshire is the sole parent of Blackstone and its variants. Doubtless other places in South England of the same name have had their share in making up the list of surnames found in our modern directories." 3

Continuing this direction, "Blackstone, Devon, was held [in the Domesday Book of ] 1086 by Alured le Breton (from Bretagne), who appears to have been succeeded by his grandson Payne Fitz-Serlo, who granted the church of Breton to Plympton Priory " 4

Following the aforementioned first record of the family, the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 lists Agnes Blacston, as holding lands in Cambridgeshire. 3

Early History of the Blackston family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Blackston research. Another 72 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1582, 1589, 1595, 1603, 1620, 1623, 1630, 1631, 1649, 1650, 1659, 1673, 1675, 1691, 1692, 1698, 1702, 1723, 1771 and 1780 are included under the topic Early Blackston History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Blackston Spelling Variations

The name, Blackston, occurred in many references, and from time to time, it was spelt Blackstone, Blakiston, Blakistone, Blaxton, Blackiston, Blackistone and many more.

Early Notables of the Blackston family

Notable amongst the family name during their early history was

Reverend William Blaxton (Blackstone) (1595-1675), an early British settler in New England in 1623, and the first European settler of modern-day Boston and Rhode Island. According to the records of Ma...
Sir William Blackstone (1723-1780), was an English judge, jurist and professor who produced the treatise on the common law entitled "Commentaries on the Laws of England" often referred to as "Blacksto...

Blackston Ranking

In the United States, the name Blackston is the 13,851^st most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 5

Blackston migration to the United States +

The New World beckoned settlers from the Scottish-English borders. They sailed aboard the armada of sailing ships known as the "White Sails" which plied the stormy Atlantic. Some called them, less romantically, the "coffin ships." Among the early settlers bearing the Blackston surname who came to North America were:

Blackston Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Elizabeth Blackston who settled in New England in 1638
Eliza Blackston, aged 22, who arrived in America in 1638 6
Miss Eliza Blackston, (b. 1616), aged 22, British servant to the Batt family traveling aboard the ship "Bevis" arriving in New England in 1638 7
Thomas Blackston, who arrived in Virginia in 1642 6

Blackston Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Roger Blackston, who landed in Virginia in 1702 6
John Blackston, who settled in New England in 1750

Contemporary Notables of the name Blackston (post 1700) +

Ray Blackston, American award-winning Christian novelist
Benjamin H. Blackston, American Democratic Party politician, Postmaster at Frederick, Maryland, 1894-98 8

The Blackston Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Do well and doubt not

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's. Retrieved October 6th 2021 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 15) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html