| ![Show Contents]() Garret History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
Etymology of GarretWhat does the name Garret mean? Although the Garret surname came to Britain with the Normans, it derives from the Germanic personal names Gerard, or Gerald, composed of the elements "gar," or "ger," meaning "spear," "hard," meaning "brave," or "strong," and "wald," meaning "rule." The Anglo-Norman surname Garret in Ireland was often Mac Gerailt, and was used as a synonym of Fitzgerald. Early Origins of the Garret familyThe surname Garret was first found in County Carlow (Irish: Cheatharlach) a small landlocked area located in the province of Leinster in the South East of Ireland, where some of the name may have come from Anglicized versions of MacOrcachta, believed to be descended from Cathal, brother of Teige Mor, of the powerful O'Connors of Connacht. However, it is thought that the majority of this name in Ireland are of English (Norman) stock. Early History of the Garret familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Garret research. Another 27 words (2 lines of text) covering the year 1598 is included under the topic Early Garret History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Garret Spelling VariationsPronunciation, rather than spelling, guided the early scribes and church officials in recording names. This process of estimation often produced to the misleading result of one person's name being recorded under several different spellings. Numerous spelling variations of the surname Garret are preserved in documents of the family history. The various spellings of that name included Garrett, Garratt, MacGarrett, McGarraty, Garret, Garrat, Garet, Garitt, Garatt and many more. Early Notables of the Garret familyOutstanding amongst the family at this time was - Thomas Garrett, who was a Mayor of Dublin and an Alderman in 1598
Garret RankingIn the United States, the name Garret is the 16,157th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1 However, in France, the name Garret is ranked the 3,843rd most popular surname with an estimated 1,500 - 2,000 people with that name. 2
| Garret migration to the United States | + |
During the late 18th and 19th centuries hundreds, of thousands of Irish left their homeland for North American shores. The earlier settlers left for the promise of free land or to participate in the development of what was seen as a new land. This pattern of immigration continued for many years, growing at a slow but steady pace. The 1840s, however, forever disrupted this pattern. In that decade, Ireland experienced an unprecedented plague of disease, starvation, and death, all of which were produced by the failure of the island's potato crop. That decade alone the numbers of people leaving the island rivaled all of the previous years of Irish immigration combined. When these large immigrants hit North American shores they unfortunately encountered more discrimination from the established population. They were, however, very warmly received by industrialists and those with a passion for nation building. The former saw the Irish as a cheap source of labor required for the extraction of coal and lumber, and the manufacture of products, the latter regarded them as a means to occupy the west and to construct the essential bridges, railways, canals, and roadways required by an industrialized nation. Whenever and however the Irish arrived in North America, they were instrumental to the development of what would become the great nations of the United States and Canada. Immigration and passenger lists have shown many early immigrants bearing the old Irish name of Garret:
Garret Settlers in United States in the 17th Century- Mr. William Garret, (Garrett), brick layer who arrived in Jamestown, Virginia aboard the ship "Discovery" in 1607 3
- Francis Garret, aged 25, who landed in Virginia in 1635 aboard the ship "Thomas & John" 4
- Eliza Garret, who arrived in Virginia in 1640 4
- Jon Garret, who arrived in Virginia in 1642 4
- Tho Garret, who arrived in Virginia in 1647 4
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Garret Settlers in United States in the 18th Century- Thomas Garret, who landed in Virginia in 1714 4
- William Garret, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1751 4
Garret Settlers in United States in the 19th Century- Michael Garret, aged 30, who arrived in Delaware in 1812 4
- James Garret, who arrived in New York in 1824 4
- P Garret, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 4
- Robert Garret, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1865 4
| Garret 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. 5Garret Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century- Mr. Owen Garret, (b. 1615), aged 20, British settler travelling from London, England aboard the ship "Anne and Elizabeth" arriving in Barbados in 1635 6
- Mr. Steeven Garret, (b. 1616), aged 19, British settler traveling aboard the ship "Paul of London" arriving in St Christopher (Saint Kitts) in 1635 7
| Contemporary Notables of the name Garret (post 1700) | + |
- Devin Garret Townsend (b. 1972), Canadian musician, songwriter and record producer
- Teunis Garret Bergen (1806-1881), American Democratic Party politician, U.S. Representative from New York 2nd District, 1865-67; Delegate to New York State Constitutional Convention, 1867-68 8
- Garret Zuppiger (1985-2013), American forest firefighter killed in the Yarnell Hill Fire, near Yarnell, Arizona, ignited by lightning on June 28, 2013; he was eulogized by Brandon Bunch in the film Only the Brave (2017)
- Garret M. Van Horn, American politician, Member of New Jersey State House of Assembly from Hudson County, 1858-60 9
- Garret G. Ackerson Jr. (1904-1992), American politician, U.S. Vice Consul in Cape Town, 1928-29; U.S. Consul in Havana, 1943 10
- Garret Carlson, American Republican politician, Candidate for Michigan State House of Representatives 53rd District, 1998 11
- Garret Augustus Hobart (1884-1899), American politician, 24th Vice President of the United States (1897-1899) under President William McKinley
- Garret Dorset Wall (1783-1850), American military officer and politician, Governor of New Jersey in 1829
- Garret Crossman (b. 1982), Australian rugby league player
- Garret Bembridge (b. 1981), Canadian professional NHL ice hockey forward
| Historic Events for the Garret family | + |
- Mr. R Garret, British Petty Officer, who sailed into battle on the HMS Prince of Wales (1941) and survived the sinking 12
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: Semper fidelis
Motto Translation: Always faithful.
- "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
- http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
- Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's Retrieved January 6th 2023, retrieved from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
- 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)
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
- Pilgrim Ship Lists Early 1600's. Retrieved 23rd September 2021 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
- Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's (Retrieved October 4th 2021 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
- The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 4) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
- The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 8) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
- The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, August 16) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
- The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 30) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
- HMS Prince of Wales Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listprincecrew.html
 |
