Contents [hide]

Cannon History Etymology Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables World Ranking

United States Australia New Zealand West Indies South Africa

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Suggested Reading Sources

Cannon History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Etymology of Cannon

What does the name Cannon mean?

While the Anglicized versions of Irish names are often familiar to people, their Irish Gaelic heritage is often unknown. The original Gaelic form of the name Cannon is Ó Canain, from the word "cano," which means "wolf cub." 1

Early Origins of the Cannon family

The surname Cannon was first found in Tirconnell (Irish: Tír Chonaill) present day Donegal, located in Northwestn Ireland in the province of Ulster, where they held a family seat from very ancient times.

Early History of the Cannon family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cannon research. Another 156 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1500, 1659 and 1687 are included under the topic Early Cannon History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cannon Spelling Variations

The archives that survive today demonstrate the difficulty experienced by the scribes of the Middle Ages in their attempt to record these names in writing. Spelling variations of the name Cannon dating from that time include Cannon, O'Cannon, MacCannon, Cannan, Cannen, Cannin, MacCannan, McCannon, McCannan and many more.

Early Notables of the Cannon family

More information is included under the topic Early Cannon Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cannon World Ranking

In the United States, the name Cannon is the 373^rd most popular surname with an estimated 74,610 people with that name. 2 However, in Australia, the name Cannon is ranked the 730^th most popular surname with an estimated 5,323 people with that name. 3 And in the United Kingdom, the name Cannon is the 699^th popular surname with an estimated 9,577 people with that name. 4

Cannon migration to the United States +

A massive wave of Irish immigrants hit North America during the 19th century. Although many early Irish immigrants made a carefully planned decision to leave left Ireland for the promise of free land, by the 1840s immigrants were fleeing a famine stricken land in desperation. The condition of Ireland during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s can be attributed to a rapidly expanding population and English imperial policies. Those Irish families that arrived in North America were essential to its rapid social, industrial, and economic development. Passenger and immigration lists have revealed a number of early Irish immigrants bearing the name Cannon:

Cannon Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

John Cannon, who arrived in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1621 aboard the ship "Fortune" 5
Edward and Ann Cannon who settled in Virginia in 1646
Edward Cannon, who arrived in Virginia in 1646 5
Joan Cannon, who landed in Virginia in 1649 5
Joane Cannon, who arrived in Virginia in 1652 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Cannon Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Margaret Cannon, who arrived in Virginia in 1701 5
Mary Cannon, who arrived in Virginia in 1706 5
Ellinor Cannon, who arrived in Virginia in 1706 5
Richard Cannon, who settled in Georgia in 1732 with his wife Mary, two sons, and a daughter
Richard Cannon, who arrived in Savanna(h), Georgia in 1733 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Cannon Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

William Cannon, who arrived in America in 1810 5
Patrick Cannon, who landed in New York, NY in 1811 5
Hugh Cannon, who landed in New York, NY in 1815 5
Bridget Cannon, who arrived in New York, NY in 1816 5
Moses Cannon, who arrived in New York, NY in 1816 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Cannon migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Cannon Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Thomas Cannon, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1749
William Cannon, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749
Eleanor Cannon, who landed in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1749-1752
William Cannon, who arrived in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1749-1752
Bridget Cannon, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1750
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Cannon Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Robert Cannon, who arrived in Canada in 1820

Cannon migration to Australia +

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

Cannon Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. John Cannon, English convict who was convicted in Worcester, Worcestershire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Baring" in April 1815, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6
Mr. James Llewellin Cannon, English convict who was convicted in Bristol, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Baring" in December 1818, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6
Mrs. Elizabeth Cannon, (Carman), (b. 1785), aged 38, Irish House keeper who was convicted in London, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Brothers" on 20th November 1823, arriving in New South Wales, Australia and Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 7
Isaac Cannon, English convict from Middlesex, who was transported aboard the "Asia" on October 22nd, 1824, settling in New South Wales, Australia 8
John Cannon, a cartwright, who arrived in New South Wales, Australia sometime between 1825 and 1832
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Cannon 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:

Cannon Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

William Cannon, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1840
William Cannon, aged 27, a labourer, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Martha Ridgeway" in 1840
Mr. William Cannon, (b. 1813), aged 27, British Labourer travelling from England aboard the ship "Martha Ridgway" arriving in Wellington, New Zealand on 14th November 1840 9
Mr. Thomas Cannon, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Zambesi" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 20th September 1863 10
Mary Cannon, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Ernestina" in 1865
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Cannon migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 11

Cannon Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

John Cannon, who settled in Barbados in 1660

Cannon Settlers in West Indies in the 18th Century

John Cannon, who settled in Jamaica in 1716

Contemporary Notables of the name Cannon (post 1700) +

Lawrence T. Cannon (1947-2024), American NBA basketball player, born and raised in Philadelphia
Christopher Black "Chris" Cannon (1950-2024), American politician, Member of the United States House of Representatives, for the Republican Party, representing the third district of Utah from 1997 to 2009
Joseph D. Cannon, American politician, Candidate for U.S. Senator from New York, 1916 12
Steve Cannon (1935-2019), American writer and the founder of the cultural organization A Gathering of the Tribes
William Abb "Billy" Cannon (1937-2018), American football running back and tight end, inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2008 and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 1976
General John Kenneth Cannon (1892-1955), American Commanding General of the Tactical Air Command, Langley AFB, Virginia (1951-1954) 13
Major-General Peter Leo Cannon (1897-1962), American Adjutant-General of Rhode Island (1941-1945) 14
Lieutenant-General Robert Milchrist Cannon (1901-1976), American Deputy Commander in Chief US Army Pacific (1959-1961) 15
Dyan Cannon (b. 1937), American film and television actress, director, screenwriter, editor, and producer
Sarah Ophelia Colley Cannon (1912-1996), birth name of Minnie Pearl, American country comedienne who appeared at the Grand Ole Opry for more than 50 years (1940 to 1991)
... (Another 108 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Cannon family +

HMAS Sydney II

Mr. Lionel James Cannon (1914-1941), Australian Telegraphist from Subiaco, Western Australia, Australia, who sailed into battle aboard HMAS Sydney II and died in the sinking 16

HMS Dorsetshire

John Cannon, British aboard the HMS Dorsetshire (1945) when she was struck by air bombers and sunk; he survived the sinking 17

HMS Royal Oak

Robert James Cannon (1915-1939), British Able Seaman with the Royal Navy aboard the HMS Royal Oak (1939) when she was torpedoed by U-47 and sunk; he died in the sinking 18

RMS Lusitania

Mr. Robert Henry Cannon, English Inspector from Kensington, Liverpool, England, who worked aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and died in the sinking and was recovered 19

Sources +

MacLysaght, Edward, The Surnames of Ireland. Ireland: Irish Academic Press, sixth edition, 1985. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2366-3)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
"UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/baring
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/brothers
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Asia 1 voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1824 with 9 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1824
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, February 11) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, November 3) John Cannon. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Cannon/John_Kenneth/USA.html
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, November 3) Peter Cannon. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Cannon/Peter_Leo/USA.html
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, November 3) Robert Cannon. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Cannon/Robert_Milchrist/USA.html
HMAS Sydney II, Finding Sydney Foundation - Roll of Honour. (Retrieved 2014, April 24) . Retrieved from http://www.findingsydney.com/roll.asp
Force Z Survivors HMS Dorsetshire Crew List, (Retrieved 2018, February 13th), https://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listdorsetshirecrew.html
Ships hit by U-boats crew list HMS Royal Oak (08) - (Retrieved 2018 February, 9th) - retrieved from https://uboat.net/allies/merchants/crews/ship68.html
Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 6) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/