Henderson History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

Etymology of Henderson

What does the name Henderson mean?

The name Henderson is a patronymic name denoting "son of Henry." While most of the family hail from Scotland, as a Border Clan some of the family claimed England and Wales as their homeland. "The border Clan of Henderson are found as Hendirsonne, Henresoun, Henryesson. and Hendersonne in documents of the 16th and 17th centuries." 1

Early Origins of the Henderson family

The surname Henderson was first found in Yorkshire where Thomas Hendeson was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379. 1

Early History of the Henderson family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Henderson research. Another 110 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1374, 1783, 1797, 1817, 1819, 1820, 1821, 1848 and 1878 are included under the topic Early Henderson History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Henderson Spelling Variations

Italian surnames come in far more variations than the names of most other nationalities. Regional traditions and dialects are a decisive factor in this characteristic. For example, northern names tend to end in "o", while southern in "i". Also important, but not unique to Italy, was the fact that before dictionaries and the printing press most scribes simply spelled words according to their sounds. The predictable result was an enormous number of spelling variations. The recorded spellings of Henderson include Henderson, Henreyson, Henryson, MacKendrick and many more.

Early Notables of the Henderson family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

James Henderson (1783?-1848), English writer on Brazil, born about 1783, was a native of Cumberland or Westmorland. On 11 March 1819 he sailed from England to Rio de Janeiro, where he waited upon Henr...
John Henderson (1797-1878), collector of works of art and archæologist, born in Adelphi Terrace, London, in 1797, was son of John Henderson and Georgiana Jane, only child of George Keate, F.R.S. His f...

Henderson World Ranking

In the United States, the name Henderson is the 81^st most popular surname with an estimated 236,265 people with that name. 2 However, in Canada, the name Henderson is ranked the 143^rd most popular surname with an estimated 23,218 people with that name. 3 And in Australia, the name Henderson is the 99^th popular surname with an estimated 25,950 people with that name. 4 New Zealand ranks Henderson as 62^nd with 4,993 people. 5 The United Kingdom ranks Henderson as 111^st with 43,537 people. 6

Henderson migration to the United States +

An examination of many early immigration records reveals that people bearing the name Henderson arrived in North America very early:

Henderson Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Thomas Henderson, who arrived in Jamestown, Va in 1607 7
Alex Henderson, who landed in Virginia in 1650 7
Gilbert Henderson, who arrived in Virginia in 1652 7
John Henderson, who arrived in Maryland in 1655 7
Henrick Henderson, who landed in Virginia in 1657 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Henderson Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

James Henderson, who landed in Virginia in 1704 7
John Henderson, who landed in Virginia in 1705 7
Jacob Henderson, who landed in Virginia in 1710 7
Charles Henderson, who was banished to Virginia in 1716
William Henderson, who arrived in South Carolina in 1716 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Henderson Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Jacob Henderson, who landed in America in 1800 7
Samuel Henderson, who landed in Virginia in 1800 7
James Henderson, who arrived in New York, NY in 1803 7
David Henderson, aged 20, who arrived in New York, NY in 1803 7
Ann Henderson, aged 8, who arrived in New Castle or Philadelphia in 1804 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Henderson Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Hamilton McKennie Henderson, who arrived in Alabama in 1917 7

Henderson migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Henderson Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

William Henderson, who arrived in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1749-1752
Charles Henderson, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749-1752
Nathaniel Henderson, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749-1752
Emanl Henderson, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1750
Margaret Henderson, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1750
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Henderson Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

George Henderson, who arrived in Canada in 1817
John Henderson, who arrived in Canada in 1820
Charlotte Henderson, aged 13, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Nancy" in 1834
Henry Henderson, aged 24, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Nancy" in 1834
Ann Jane Henderson, aged 22, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Nancy" in 1834
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Henderson migration to Australia +

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

Henderson Settlers in Australia in the 18th Century

Mr. James Henderson, English convict who was convicted in Hampshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Barwell" in September 1797, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
Mr. William Henderson, (b. 1778), aged 19, English convict who was convicted in York, Yorkshire, England for life for highway robbery, transported aboard the "Barwell" in September 1797, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8

Henderson Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. James Henderson, Scottish convict who was convicted in Aberdeen, Scotland for 14 years, transported aboard the "Baring" in December 1818, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 9
Mr. Samuel Henderson, English convict who was convicted in Lancaster, Lancashire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Claudine" on 20th May 1821, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 10
Mrs. Mary Henderson, (b. 1804), aged 25, Irish dairy maid who was convicted in Fermanagh, Ireland for 7 years for stealing, transported aboard the "Edward" on 1st January 1829, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 11
Mr. Joseph Henderson, British Convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for life, transported aboard the "Dunvegan Castle" on 13th March 1830, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 12
Mr. James Henderson, Scottish convict who was convicted in Edinburgh, Scotland for 14 years, transported aboard the "Burrell" on 22nd July 1830, arriving in New South Wales 13
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Henderson 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:

Henderson Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

David Henderson, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1840
Thomas Henderson, who landed in Auckland, New Zealand in 1840
William Henderson, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1840
Thomas Maxwell Henderson, aged 29, a blacksmith, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "London" in 1840
Catherine Henderson, aged 32, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "London" in 1840
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Henderson 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. 14

Henderson Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Francis and William Henderson, who arrived in Barbados in 1680

Contemporary Notables of the name Henderson (post 1700) +

Donald Ainslie "D. A." Henderson (1928-2016), American physician, educator, and epidemiologist, best known for his tireless effort to eradicate smallpox for which he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom (2002) and numerous other awards
Rickey Nelson Henley Henderson (1958-2024), nicknamed "Man of Steal", an American Major League Baseball left fielder who played for 25 seasons for nine teams from 1979 to 2003, inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2009
Mike Henderson (1953-2023), American singer-songwriter
Cedric Henderson (1965-2023), American professional NBA basketball player who played from 1985 to 1995
Michael Henderson (1951-2022), American bass guitarist and vocalist, best known for his work with Miles Davis in the early 1970s
Hazel Henderson (1933-2022), English-born, American futurist and an economic iconoclast from Bristol, Gloucestershire who authored several books including Building a Win-Win World, Beyond Globalization, Planetary Citizenship, and Ethical Markets: Growing the Green Economy
Fletcher Henderson (1897-1952), American jazz and swing musician
Mario Henderson (1984-2020), American professional NFL football player who was an offensive tackle who played from 2007 to 2015
John Henderson (1912-2020), American college football player who played four seasons as a guard for the Texas Longhorns
Zachary Ryall Henderson (1955-2020), American CFL professional football player from Jena, Louisiana
... (Another 283 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Henderson family +

Empress of Ireland

Mr. George Henderson (1874-1914), Canadian First Class Passenger from Montreal, Quebec, Canada who survived the sinking on the Empress of Ireland 15

Halifax Explosion

Mrs. Jane Henderson (1881-1917), Canadian resident from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada who died in the Halifax Explosion (1917) 16
Mr. Harry Henderson (1882-1917), Canadian resident from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada who died in the Halifax Explosion (1917) 16

HMAS Sydney II

Mr. William Laurence Douglas Henderson (1920-1941), Australian Stoker from Mosman Park, Western Australia, Australia, who sailed into battle aboard HMAS Sydney II and died in the sinking 17

HMS Dorsetshire

John Bell Henderson (d. 1945), British Stoker 1st Class aboard the HMS Dorsetshire when she was struck by air bombers and sunk; he died in the sinking 18

HMS Hood

Mr. John Henderson (b. 1922), English Signalman serving for the Royal Navy from Wallsend, Northumberland, England, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking 19

HMS Prince of Wales

Mr. William H Henderson, British Leading Stoker, who sailed into battle on the HMS Prince of Wales (1941) and survived the sinking 20
Mr. Ralph C Henderson, British Leading Air Fitter FAA, who sailed into battle on the HMS Prince of Wales (1941) and survived the sinking 20
Mr. Henry N Henderson, British Petty Officer, who sailed into battle on the HMS Prince of Wales (1941) and survived the sinking 20

HMS Repulse

Mr. George John Henderson, British Canteen Assistant NAAFI, who sailed into battle on the HMS Repulse (1941) and died in the sinking 21

Ibrox disaster

Adam Henderson (b. 1971), Scottish football supporter, from Dumbartonshire who was at the Ibrox disaster on 2nd January 1971 when a human crush among the crowd killed 66 and injured 200 people he died of his injuries 22

Lady of the Lake

Mr. David Henderson (b. 1814), Irish labourer from Limavady, Northern Ireland who sailed aboard the "Lady of the Lake" from Greenock, Scotland on 8th April 1833 to Quebec, Canada when the ship hit ice and sunk of the coast of Newfoundland on the 11th May 1833 and he died in the sinking

RMS Lusitania

Mr. John Henderson, English First Waiter from England, who worked aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and survived the sinking 23
Mrs. Violet Alice Henderson, Canadian 2nd Class passenger from Montréal, Quebec, Canada, who sailed aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and survived the sinking 23
Master Harris Huntley Henderson, Canadian 2nd Class passenger from Montréal, Quebec, Canada, who sailed aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and survived the sinking 23

SS Alcoa Puritan

J.W. Henderson, American Cook from Mobile, Alabama, who was working aboard the SS Alcoa Puritan (1942) traveling from Port of Spain, Trinidad to Mobile, Alabama when it was torpedoed by U-boat U-507; he survived the sinking 24

USS Arizona

Mr. William Walter Henderson, American Seaman Second Class working aboard the ship "USS Arizona" when she sunk during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7th December 1941, he died in the sinking 25

USS Indianapolis

Ralph Lewis Henderson, 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 26

The Henderson 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 virtus nobilitat
Motto Translation: Virtue alone ennobles.

Sources +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Surnames Meanings, Origins & Distribution Maps - Forebears." Forebears, https://forebears.io/surnames
"Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
"Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/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 29th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/barwell
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/baring
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th February 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/claudine
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 19th November 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/edward
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 12th August 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/dunvegan-castle
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 5th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/burrell
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
Commemoration Empress of Ireland 2014. (Retrieved 2014, June 16) . Retrieved from http://www.empress2014.ca/seclangen/listepsc1.html
Halifax Explosion Book of Remembrance | Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. (Retrieved 2014, June 23) . Retrieved from https://maritimemuseum.novascotia.ca/what-see-do/halifax-explosion/halifax-explosion-book-remembrance
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
H.M.S. Hood Association-Battle Cruiser Hood: Crew Information - H.M.S. Hood Rolls of Honour, Men Lost in the Sinking of H.M.S. Hood, 24th May 1941. (Retrieved 2016, July 15) . Retrieved from http://www.hmshood.com/crew/memorial/roh_24may41.htm
HMS Prince of Wales Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listprincecrew.html
HMS Repulse Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listrepulsecrew.html
Bradford City Football Club In memory (retrieved 22nd March 2021). Retrieved from https://www.bradfordcityafc.com/club/in-memoriam/
Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 6) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Alcoa_Puritan_(1941) - (Retrieved 2018, February 8th)
Pearl Harbour: USS Arizona Casualties List Pearl Harbour December 7, 1941. (Retrieved 2018, July 31st). Retrieved from http://pearl-harbor.com/arizona/casualtylist.html
Final Crew List, retrieved 2021, October 30th Retrieved from https://www.ussindianapolis.com/final-crew