The Howcutt & Howcott surname

• Possible origins
• Where the family moved
• Spelling variations
• American versions
• Other surnames that may be linked
• Howcutt as a forename
• The Howcutt surname in fiction

About 120 Howcutts were living in England, Wales and Scotland at the beginning of 2012. They all owe their surname to one or another of:

• Mark Michael Howcutt (1837-1897)

• Frederick William Howcutt (1885-1931)

• Charles Howcutt (1841-1910)

Mark and Charles both grew up at Brixworth, Northamptonshire. Frederick William's grandfather had also come from that village. The branches of the Howcutt family that originated from places other than Brixworth have either died out in England or do not spell their name as Howcutt any more. These families were to be found at places including Coventry, Lichfield and Birmingham.

In past centuries, a large proportion of children died in infancy. Only two of the nine brothers and sisters of William Howcutt (1726-1782) of Brixworth survived to get married; if he too had died young there would be no Howcutts living in Britain today.

Possible origins

There is no proof of the origin of the Howcutt surname. The main possibilities are that it could have come from:

• the surname Harcourt (which was found in latter Middle Ages in south Leicestershire where Howcutts later emerged), or 

• a place name

Some villages that might have inspired the surname are:

• Holcot, Northamptonshire  

• Hulcott, Buckinghamshire  

• Huncote, Leicestershire

Where the family moved

The earliest probable reference to the family is in 1474 at Coventry. 

The 1524 lay subsidy taxation list for Leicestershire includes William Hulcott at Husbands Bosworth and Thomas Harcatt at Claybrooke. These places are within a few miles of villages where Howcotts lived in the second half of the 16th century, so these people are probably related to the family.

The earliest record of the surname at Bitteswell, Leicestershire is dated 1568. During the latter part of the 16th century, one family moved from Bitteswell, via Gilmorton to Bruntingthorpe. It is likely that the Howcotts who lived at Shearsby (one mile from Bruntingthorpe) during the 17th century were also descended from the Bitteswell branch.

A Howcott family is recorded at Lichfield, Staffordshire from the early 1670s and remained there until 1729. Edward Howcott (c1645-1729) of Lichfield was a freeman of Coventry and so had probably come from that city. It is likely that he was an ancestor of the Howcutts who lived at Birmingham until 1878. There is strong circumstantial evidence that the brothers John and Edward Howcott who arrived at Edenton, North Carolina around 1700 were sons of this Edward.

James Howcutt, who arrived at Brixworth, Northamptonshire by 1721, was almost certainly born at Shearsby.

In the early 17th century. Howcotts from Shearsby and Bruntingthorpe found their way to London either for apprenticeship or in connection with cattle droving and other business activities. However, people named Howcutt have lived in London continuously only since the late 18th century. 

In the early 19^th century, descendants of the Bitteswell branch established themselves in Leicester.

Migration continued at a greater pace during the course of the 19^th century, no doubt helped by the growing railway system. Army service took some men as far afield as Jamaica and India. The furthest permanent moves were:

• James Howcutt - Brixworth to Tasmania, 1827

• John Howcutt (of Scotland) - Liverpool to New York, 1835

• Sarah Ann Howcutt - Brixworth to Australia about 1880

During the past hundred years, people moved home more often and over longer distances. New clusters of Howcutts formed at Lambeth, Wiltshire, Bradford and Paisley. The last Howcutt at Brixworth died in 1900, the same year as the final descendant of the Bitteswell branch expired at Leicester. Since then very few Howcutts have lived anywhere in the original heartland of Leicestershire, Warwickshire and Northamptonshire - and then only for a few years.

Spelling variations

Between 1474 and 1511, records at Coventry mention the surname Hulcot or Holcot(e). These are probably versions of the name Howcott that is found there from 1578 onwards.  

The Howcott spelling is first found at Bitteswell in 1572, though Howcote was more usual there until after 1600. During the 17^th century, spelling there gravitated to Howcott before settling as Howcutt during the 18^th century. At Shearsby, a similar pattern is found with Howcutt first appearing in 1698.

Before the 1700s, spellings were not standardised, even amongst people who could read and write. In 1627, “Robert Howcotte” provided the earliest signature of a family member. However, the same person wrote his surname as Holcott when making his will in 1655. 

The next known autograph is by “William Howcott”, who was a churchwarden and the register of Shearsby in 1673. An example of his handwriting appears below  

"The Register of the Mariages Births and Burialls of the Inhabitants of Sheasby beginning in the yeare 1673 / Will. Howcott Register"

The spelling Howcutt is first found in 1698, when James was christened at Shearsby. His father was a churchwarden there in the previous year and signed his name as "Will. Howcut". 

After the family reached Brixworth in 1720, they lived only a few miles from the village of Holcot. Spellings of the surname in the Brixworth parish records during the 18^th century often started with "Hol-" or "Hal-".

By 1800, the surname was normally spelled Howcutt in England and has remained so ever since. The only Howcott entries to be found in the births, marriages and deaths registered in England and Wales from 1837 onwards record people whose surnames were usually given as Howcutt, apart from one American Howcott who was born in England. 

American versions

It is probable that all the Howcotts currently living in the USA have their surname through one of two brothers, John & Edward Howcott, who arrived in the area of Edenton, North Carolina around 1700.

There are probably about 70 Howcotts currently living in the USA. The majority are descendants of Miles Howcott (c1830-1905) or Benjamin Howcott (c1850-1890), who both lived at or near Plymouth, North Carolina and were released from slavery at the time of the American Civil War.

A much larger number of Americans bear surnames such as Hocutt and Hocott that are, at least in many cases, variations of Howcott.

Other surnames that may be linked

It is possible that the Hawcutt family may be distantly related. 

The surnames Orcott, Orcutt, Aucott and Aucutt also may be connected to the Howcutt family. Extensive information on the Orcott and similar surnames can be found on Joel Orcutt's website.

Howcutt as a forename

The earliest record found of Howcutt or Howcott being used as a christian name was written in 1726, when Raphael Howcott of Coventry made his will and remembered a relation by the name of Howcott Longworth.

The births, marriages and deaths that were registered in England and Wales from July 1837 to 2005 include the following entries where Howcutt was one of a person's forenames. The month under the heading "Quarter" is the final month of the 3-month period during which the event was registered, except for the death in 1988, which shows the actual month of registration.

Irish marriage

"The Cork Examiner", 6 June 1863, records the marriage at Cloyne Cathedral, Ireland on 4 June 1863 of W. Howcutt Perkins, Esq., of Westfield House, Arnesby, Leicestershire to Caroline Jane, daughter of John Wilkinson, Esq., of Barnabrow.

First World War casualty

Howcutt Lionel Bent Burdett, son of Thomas and Eliza Burdett, of 41, Windermere St., Leicester; husband of Annie Elizabeth Burdett, of 10 West Bridge, Leicester died on 1 August 1917 and is commemorated on the Ypres (Menin Gate) memorial, panel 19-22.

The Howcutt surname in fiction

Frances Ridley Havergal (1836-1879) is perhaps best known as the author of the devotional hymn “Take my life and let it be”. Another of her works was a book titled “Bruey; a little worker for Christ” which was first published in 1873. In this, the heroine obtained a contribution towards missionary work from the fictitious “Mr and Mrs Howcutt”.

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