Looking for Totton

Hi Vonnie,

Thank you for your message.

Have you tried using the Irish Times surname search engine? This gives you a list of all the households in Ireland that were recorded with a specific surname in the mid-19th century in Ireland. As you can see from the results it was not a very common surname in Ireland. Follow this link to see:

http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/surname/index.cfm?fuseaction=Go.&Surname=Totton&UserID=

You could also try doing a search in the land records pertaining to Ireland in the 19th century. There are two:

The Tithe Applotment Books (1823-18338) found at http://titheapplotmentbooks.nationalarchives.ie/search/tab/home.jsp

and Griffith?s Valuation (1848-1864) found at http://www.askaboutireland.ie/griffith-valuation/     

The 1901 and 1911 census records are also available to search online now. You could try using these to see if any Tottons were still in the area at the turn of the century. You can find this here:

http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/search/

Another good online database is https://familysearch.org/ This is a huge database of genealogical records that has been compiled by the Church of the Latter Day Saints.

Some other websites which may be helpful in your research are:

The National Archives of Ireland http://www.nationalarchives.ie/genealogy1/genealogy-records/introduction/

The National Library of Ireland http://www.nli.ie/en/family-history-introduction.aspx

The National Archives UK ? genealogy search: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/looking-for-person/

The Public Records Office of Northern Ireland http://www.proni.gov.uk/index/family_history.htm

The Library & Archives of Canada - http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/index-e.html

Genealogy Links: http://www.genealogylinks.net/uk/ireland/antrim/index.html

You could also try contacting the Ulster Historical Foundation for assistance-however a fee may apply. Here are their contact details:

Ulster Historical Foundation,

49 Malone Road,

Belfast BT9 6RY,

Northern Ireland.

Phone: +44 28 9066 1988   Email: enquiry@uhf.org.uk

I hope that this is helpful. Best of luck with your research!

Kind regards,

Genealogy Support

Hi Vonnie!   I think we may have a connection....somehow.  My Totton line were in the same area, at the same time, as your William Totton....and there weren't many Tottons/Tottens!  My gtgtG John Totton was baptised at Soldierstown, Aghalee, in 1814.  His parents were John Totton and Mary Montgomery who were married at Glenavy Parish Church in 1813.  John Totton senior (my gtgtgtG) was born about 1790.  These two generations (wives and children of the two John Tottons) lived and farmed in the Deerpark Townland in the parish of Glenavy.  I have been able to reconnect with descendants in the area and confirmed the connection to our family here in New Zealand.  We also have a very close cousin in the US (confirmed by DNA testing), and other branches in England, Canada and Australia.

There are various family stories - the Tottons were Ulster Scots, they came over from Scotland to work as gamekeepers (or gatekeepers or both) on the Hertford estate, they came originally (pre Scotland) from Tottenham in London......Interesting, but not yet confirmed.

Any information you have on William Totton, Margaret, or any other family member, would be a great help.  Our Irish cousins mostly use the "en" spelling of the surname, but a branch in England consistently spell the name as we do with the "on" ending.  The two spellings seem to be interchangeable.

Looking forward to your feedback...and as an aside, just wondered if your line is the Carswell line I spotted on the net?  If so, your Totton family must have been amongst the earliest settlers in Drummond, Lanark Co.  I came across the site coincidentally while hunting the Carswell surname which is also in my family.

Cheers, Treeseeker