Researching Joseph Cotton
Dig into the past of Joseph Cotton using the links below. We hope you find this information useful!
![]() | Did you know that in the 1881 UK census there were 7149 people with the Cotton surname? In that year Cotton was ranked number 569 for popularity in the UK. |
Good news! There is already a One Name Study on the Cotton surname.

The name Joseph means "God shall add (another son)" and is of Hebrew origin.
Records of Joseph Cotton on Ancestry
Ancestry is a major source of information if you are filling out the detail of Joseph Cotton in your family tree. Many large databases are available to search covering from births, deaths and marriages, military records, census records and immigration records with many other smaller collections too. Free trials are normally available and are a good way to fill out a lot of your tree quickly.
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Ancestry.com Global records search results for Joseph Cotton. |
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Ancestry.com US records search results for Joseph Cotton. |
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Ancestry.co.uk UK records search results for Joseph Cotton. |
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Ancestry.ca Canadian records search results for Joseph Cotton. |
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Ancestry.com.au Australian records search results for Joseph Cotton. |
DNA
Sometimes you can run into a brick wall in your tree and you just don't have enough evidence to make that next step back in time. A DNA test can sometimes help to make a link to a particular family name if you find you share common DNA with people who have the same or similar surnames as each other. If you are lucky then you may get a match within a few generations and discover some Cotton ancestors. Additionally, the modern DNA test can give you a breakdown of your ethnic mix - you may be surprised at the results!
Have you reached a brick wall in your Cotton Tree?
Birth, Death and Marriage Records for Joseph Cotton and the Cotton Family Tree
Birth, Death and Marriage records are often the best method of making the links to the Cotton Genealogy that will form part of your family tree. Although records vary from country to country, they are normally the most formal record of a person's relations. From the sources listed below it will be possible to locate a birth record and, from that record, a birth certificate may be obtainable which is likely to list the names of the parents, therefore taking you back another generation. A marriage certificate may also list the names of the respective fathers of the bride and groom which may then help you to find them earlier in life on a census record enabling you to fill out more detail in the Cotton family tree.
Search Parish Records for Joseph Cotton at Find My Past.
Study for the UK registered births, marriages and deaths of Joseph Cotton using the FreeBMD database.
Explore Genealogy Bank for Joseph Cotton records.
Study MyHeritage for Joseph Cotton information.
Look at the LDS Database for records about Joseph Cotton.
Research the Cotton surname using fold3 Military Archives and view images of original Cotton Military records.
![]() | Did you know that there are currently 8520 people with the Cotton surname in the UK? Cotton is now ranked number 690 for popularity in the UK. |
Cotton Family History Databases
Another way to build your tree quickly is to use the research other people have already done. This can help to confirm or refute your own deductions - however, be wary of taking this data at face value as other researchers may not have been as meticulous as you. Always try to back up deductions with some definitive sources rather than relying too heavily on others.
Search the WikiTree database for user contributed records for Joseph Cotton.
Study MyTrees for information on the Cotton family and people looking to contact living Cotton relations.
Search One Great Family for Cotton records submitted by people who are already researching the Cotton Family Tree.
Find Joseph Cotton from Ireland on findmypast.ie
Cotton Forums
There are a number of forums which are dedicated to rearching particular surnames. These can be good places to share your findings and also to tap into the knowledge that others may already have. These can sometimes be a good way of finding living relations as these tend not to show up on the other sources of information for privacy reasons.
Research the Cotton surname using Genealogy.com forums .
![]() | Did you know that there are currently 42535 people with the Cotton surname in the USA? Cotton is ranked number 143 for popularity in the USA. |
Miscellaneous Cotton Databases
Investigate the Ellis Island Database for information on Joseph Cotton. This database contains over 25 million immigration records detailing passengers arriving in the United States of America.
Some Famous People called Joseph Cotton
Joseph Cotton (mariner)
Joseph Cotton FRS (7 March 1745 – 26 January 1825), was an English mariner and merchant, a director of the East India Company and deputy-master of Trinity House.
Cotton was born at St Albans, Hertfordshire, England, the third son of Dr. Nathaniel Cotton. He entered the Royal Navy in 1760 and passed the examination for lieutenant, but left the navy and joined the East India Company.
He made a fortune from two voyages as captain of the Royal Charlotte, an East Indiaman. He then retired and lived the rest of his life in Leyton, Essex, living at Leyton House from 1789 to 1803, and in Walnut Tree House (today Essex Hall) beginning in 1813.
In 1788, he was elected an "elder brother" of Trinity House, and in 1803 became deputy-master, holding the latter post for about twenty years. He published a memoir about the origin of Trinity House in 1818.
He was a director of the East India Company from 1795 to 1823; he was also a director of the East India Docks Company (chairman in 1803), and a governor of the London Assurance Corporation, and the English Copper Company.
He attempted to introduce ramie, a fibre plant, for use in manufacturing, and was awarded a silver medal for this in 1814 by the Society for the Encouragement of Arts and Manufactures; however, the fibre found little commercial usage.
He became a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1810.
He died in Leyton in 1825 and was buried at the local parish church.
Source: Joseph Cotton (mariner), Wikipedia, The Free EncyclopediaOther names that sound a bit like Cotton
Family names can get corrupted over time, particularly where literacy was not as good. The following list contains some names that have similar sounds so you may want to also look at one or two of the more likely possibilites.
Cadamy Cadany Caddan Cadden Cadena Cadney Cadona Catania Catino Caton Catone Catonne Cattaneo Catten Cattin Cattini Catton Cauthen Cauthon Cawthon Cayton Cedeno Chaddoan Chaddoen Chadney Chadouin Chadwen Chadwin Chatain Chatan Chatham Chatin Chatom Chattan Chatten Chattin Chatwin Chaudoin Chaudowen Cheatham Cheatum Cheetam Cheetham Chetham Chetney Chetwin Chiodini Chitham Chittem Chittim Chittum Coaten Coatham Coatney Codden Codney Cotham Cotney Coton Cottam Cottem Cotten Cottham Cottoen Cottom Cottone Couden Couthon Coutinho Couton Coutton Cowden Cowdin Cowton Cuddem Cuddon Cudemo Cudney Cutten Cuttin





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