Gore History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
France
Ireland

Etymology of Gore

What does the name Gore mean?

The distinguished surname Gore emerged among the industrious people of Flanders, which was an important trading partner and political ally of Britain during the Middle Ages. As a result of the frequent commercial intercourse between the Flemish and English nations, many Flemish migrants settled in Britain. In early times, people were known by only a single name. However, as the population grew and people traveled further afield, it became increasingly necessary to assume an additional name to differentiate between bearers of the same personal name. The manner in which hereditary surnames arose is interesting. Local surnames are derived from where the original bearer lived, was born, or held land. Flemish surnames of this type frequently are prefixed by de la or de le, which mean of the or from the. The Gore family originally lived in Kent. Alternately, the name could have been given to someone who lived by a triangular piece of land and in this case, the surname was originally derived from the Middle English word gara. 1

Early Origins of the Gore family

The surname Gore was first found in Kent where Ralph de la Gore was listed in the Pipe Rolls of 1181. A few years later John de Gore was listed in 1257. Alan atte Gore was listed in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. 2

William de Gora from Wiltshire and William ad le Gorewege from Cambridgeshire were also listed in the same rolls. 3 Kirby's Quest of Somerset listed Simon atte Gore and Adam Gorwege. 4

Early History of the Gore family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gore research. Another 89 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1567, 1587, 1602, 1629, 1631, 1632, 1640, 1650, 1661, 1667, 1681, 1684 and 1697 are included under the topic Early Gore History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gore Spelling Variations

Flemish surnames are characterized by a large number of spelling variations. One reason for this is that medieval English lacked definite spelling rules. The spellings of surnames were also influenced by the official court languages, which were French and Latin. Names were rarely spelled consistently in medieval times. Scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, rather than adhering to specific spelling rules, and people often had their names registered in several different forms throughout their lives. One of the greatest reasons for change is the linguistic uniqueness of the Flemish settlers in England, who spoke a language closely related to Dutch. The pronunciation and spelling of Flemish names were often altered to suit the tastes of English-speaking people. In many cases, the first, final, or middle syllables of surnames were eliminated. The name has been spelled Gore, Gorr, Core and others.

Early Notables of the Gore family

Prominent in the family at this time was

Thomas Gore (1632-1684), English writer on heraldry, born at Alderton, Wiltshire, on 20 March 1631-1632 and was the third son of Charles Gore, of Alderton...

Gore Ranking

In the United States, the name Gore is the 1,111^st most popular surname with an estimated 27,357 people with that name. 5

Migration of the Gore family to Ireland

Some of the Gore family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 135 words (10 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gore migration to the United States +

Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Gore were

Gore Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Thomas Gore was one of the earliest recorded settlers in the United States, he settled in Virginia in 1607 aboard the ship "Discovery"
John Gore, who settled in New England in 1630
Richard Gore, who settled in New England in 1630
Mr. Stephen Gore, who left England and arrived in Maryland in 1634 aboard the ship "Ark and Dove" 6
Miss Ursula Goodenowe, who arrived aboard the ship "Confidence" in 1638 in New England and Boston stated. 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Gore Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Henry Gore, who landed in Virginia in 1714 6
Casper Gore, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1755 6
Grace Gore, who landed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1766 6

Gore Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Arthur Gore, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1816 6
Luke Gore, who landed in New York, NY in 1816 6
James Gore, who arrived in New York in 1819 6
Jost Heinr Gore, who arrived in America in 1854 6

Gore migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Gore Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Thomas Gore, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749

Gore migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Gore Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

John Gore, English convict from Kent, who was transported aboard the "Almorah" on April 1817, settling in New South Wales, Australia 8
Thomas Gore, English convict from Lancaster, who was transported aboard the "Albion" on May 29, 1828, settling in New South Wales, Australia 9
Mr. John Gore who was convicted in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Camden" on 21st March 1831, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 10
Mr. Michael Gore, (b. 1804), aged 27, English seaman who was convicted in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England for 7 years for stealing, transported aboard the "Exmouth" on 3rd March 1831, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 11
Mr. Thomas Gore, English agricultural labourer who was convicted in Wiltshire, England for 14 years for stealing, transported aboard the "Augusta Jessie" on 27 September 1834, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 12
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Gore migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Gore Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

R. Gore, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Black Eagle" in 1861 13
Mr. R. Gore, Scottish settler travelling from Glasgow aboard the ship "Black Eagle" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 19th November 1861 14
Mr. C. Gore, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Wild Duck" arriving in Wellington, New Zealand on 20th December 1867 13
John Gore, aged 22, a gardener, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Wild Duck" in 1873
Mr. James A. Gore, (b. 1854), aged 20, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Dorette" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 14th April 1874 14
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Gore (post 1700) +

Robert W. "Bob" Gore (1937-2020), American engineer and scientist, inventor and businessman, best known for the inventor of Gore-Tex
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore Jr. (b. 1948), Vice President of the United States under President Bill Clinton, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize for his work An Inconvenient Truth
Franklin "Frank" Gore (b. 1983), American NFL football running back for the San Francisco 49ers
Wilbert L. "Bill" Gore (1912-1986), American chemical engineer and the main inventor of Gore-Tex fabrics, founder of W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc in 1958
Lesley Gore (b. 1946), American singer-songwriter perhaps best known for her 1963 pop hit "It's My Party"
Sylvia Gore MBE (1944-2016), English football player and coach
Shaun Gore (b. 1968), English former professional footballer and coach
Ian George Gore (b. 1968), English former professional football centre-back
Thomas John "Tommy" Gore (b. 1953), English former football midfielder
Charles Gore (1853-1932), English theologian and Anglican bishop
... (Another 17 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Gore family +

HMS Cornwall

Sidney John Gore (d. 1942), British Petty Officer aboard the HMS Cornwall when she was struck by air bombers and sunk; he died in the sinking 15

USS Indianapolis

Leonard Franklin Gore, American crew member on board the ship "USS Indianapolis" when she was on a top secret trip for the first nuclear weapon, she was sunk by Japanese Navy on 30th July 1945, he was one of the many who were killed in the sinking due to exposure, dehydration, saltwater poisoning and shark attacks 16

The Gore 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: Sola salus servire Deo
Motto Translation: The only safe course is to serve God.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.
"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 January 6th 2023, retrieved from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Almorah voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1817 with 180 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/almorah/1817
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2014, November 24) Albion voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1828 with 192 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/albion/1828
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 2nd December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/camden
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 25th May 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/exmouth
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 14th August 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/augusta-jessie
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
Force Z Survivors Crew List HMS Cornwall (Retrieved 2018, February 13th) - Retrieved from https://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listcornwallcrew.html#A
Final Crew List, retrieved 2021, October 30th Retrieved from https://www.ussindianapolis.com/final-crew