On 12 Aug 1793 Joseph Blackett married Ann Lister (bapt. 1761) in Welbury, Yorkshire, where at least three of their sons were born. The family of Robert (bapt. 1794) settled in Northallerton, and that of John (bapt. 1800) in Thirsk, both in Yorkshire. We have not been able to establish the parentage of Joseph. For a descendancy chart of Joseph Blackett please click here.

In 1824 George Forster Blackett (1794-1858), the son of Richard Blackett and Mary Forster, who married in Berwick Upon Tweed, Northumberland in 1783, emigrated to Australia, accompanied by his brother James Trotter Blackett. The town of Blackett, now a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, is named after George. (See Blacket(t)s Down Under). For a descendancy chart of George Forster Blackett please click here.

Joseph Blackett, who married Elizabeth Watson 27 July 1771 in St. Oswald, Durham City, is described in parish records as a wheelmaker or spinnelwheel-maker. (In the 1771 marriage entry Joseph is shown as a widower and Elizabeth as a widow.)

In his book, My Name Is Blacket, Nick Vine Hall, relying on earlier research carried out by the late Cedric Blackett, shows Joseph to be the son of Henry Blackett (1705-1744). This seems unlikely. In an 1811 submission to the College of Arms the eminent historian and genealogist Robert Surtees shows Henry as having had five daughters but no sons. This is confirmed by Henry’s Will dated 3 Oct 1744. Moreover, Surtees also refers to a Grant of Administration de Bonis Non taken out in 1787 by Katharine (b.1729), Henry’s eldest daughter, and her husband, Nicholas Clarke, covering the unadministered part of the estate of Henry’s grandfather, also Henry (1639-1704), there being no surviving male issue. Surtees goes on to state that “it seems pretty plain that all the male line of Henry… is extinguished.”

Henry’s family were Anabaptists, based around Witton-le-Wear. We have found no mention in Anabaptist records of a Joseph Blackett being excommunicated from their church and no record of Joseph’s baptism or birth in either Anabaptist records or the parish registers covering Durham City held at Durham Record Office, nor in the Witton registers. Both Cedric Blackett and the Hudleston papers held by Durham University show Joseph Blackett as having been born in 1733, but this may have been based on his being shown as aged 70 in the entry for his burial in the 1803 St. Oswald’s register, and the birth date may not therefore be secure. It is not clear whether or not both authorities came to their conclusions independently or whether one followed the other. If Joseph’s father was named Henry, (and we have found no evidence to support this), there is one possibility, namely Henry, the son of Christopher Blackett, of Little White, Brancepeth, baptised in 1701. Christopher almost certainly descended from the Blacketts of Shipley and Helmington and is known to have had financial dealings with his third cousin, Edward Blackett of Bedburn Hall, who was a witness to the birth of Christopher’s eldest daughter in 1705. Edward’s mother, Jane, was a close friend of Henry Blackett the Anabaptist, and in her Will appointed Henry one of the guardians of her children. No further connections with this Henry have been found, however, nor a marriage or burial for Henry, the son of Christopher, who may have been named after his maternal grandfather Henry Atkinson.

Joseph had at least two surviving sons. By 1799, the elder son, Henry Brymer Blackett, had settled in Darlington, about 18 miles south of Durham City, where he was working as a machine maker at the time of his marriage. He remained in Darlington and continued his trade at least until 1851. His eldest son, Henry, took up a similar occupation but had moved to Barnard Castle by the early 1820s.

The younger son, Cuthbert, followed in his father’s footsteps as a spinning wheel maker and also moved to Darlington, where, like his brother, he married in 1799. By 1801, however, he had returned to Durham City, continuing his trade, and was living at Abbey Mill, Durham (exact location in the city unknown) from at least 1804 to 1820. Pigot’s directories of 1828/29 and 1834, however, show Cuthbert carrying on business (in partnership with Thomas Gainforth) as Blackett & Gainforth, carpet and worsted manufacturers of Framwellgate. It is possible that the worsted business had commenced at Abbey Mill as William Dean is shown as a worsted manufacturer of Abbey Mill in 1828/29 and, (with Matthew Dean), in 1834, and so the premises may have been used by Cuthbert before Blackett & Gainforth moved into newly built premises on the east side of Framwellgate some time after 1823. Interestingly, the previous occupant of the Framwellgate premises was Thomas Watson, the same surname as Cuthbert’s mother at the time of her marriage to Joseph Blackett in 1771. Cuthbert is shown in 1841 as a “worsted manufacturer” living in Framwellgate, Durham City, and in 1851 as a “retired worsted and carpet manufacturer.”

Several important Blackett lines descend from Joseph, including descendants of several of Cuthbert’s children in Australia and New Zealand, some of the East Anglian Blacketts, and the line that includes Col. William Cuthbert Blackett C.B.E. (see A Blackett Aid to Miners).

For a descendancy chart of Joseph Blackett and Elizabeth Watson please click here.

Frederick Blackett was born in Hull in 1821/22, the son of Thomas Blackett and Emma Clarkson, who married in Hull in 1819, but had moved to County Durham by the time of his marriage to Sarah Watson in 1841. His second daughter, Ann or Anna (1844-1913), married Henry Flounders (1836-1904) in 1866 and emigrated to Ohio between 1876 and 1879, where some of their descendants live to this day. For a descendancy chart of Thomas Blackett and Emma Clarkson please click here.

In 1766 Robert Henry Blackett, the son of John and Mary, was baptised in Bethnal Green, London. He married Sarah Brett in 1785 in Shoreditch. This branch of the family, several of whom were weavers, lived in and around London for generations, though Robert’s great-grandson, George Frederick Blackett (1847-1925), had moved to County Durham by 1870. It is not known if there was a remaining family connection with the north east, or if George’s move was coincidental. For a descendancy chart of Robert Henry Blackett please click here.

In 1696 William Blackett (b. 1660/61, the son of William), a yeoman of Riding Barns, married Ann Errington in Whickham, near Gateshead, Co. Durham. Ann died in 1701 and William married Ann Atkinson in 1711. The family maintained their connections with the Whickham area over several generations, as did that of William’s brother John. For a descendancy chart of William Blackett, the father of William Blackett who married Ann Errington, please click here.
A second branch of the family also lived in Whickham, where in 1717 Francis Blackett married Elizabeth Stephenson. In 1738 he married Mary Johnson. Their great-granddaughter, Elizabeth Blackett, married Edward Charlton in Whickham in 1810, and at least three of their children were given the 2nd/3rd name of Blackett, a practice which has continued to this day (2009). Robert Blackett Charlton, who founded the engineering company of R. Blackett Charlton Ltd. in 1885, descends from this line, as does William Charlton Blackett, of Blackett and Howden fame (see A Blackett Music Maker) . For a descendancy chart of Francis Blackett please click here.
A third Whickham branch descends from Benjamin Blackett, who married Margery Sharper in 1730, and a fourth, based in neighbouring Lamesley, from Luke Blackett of Tinker Row, who died in 1774. For a descendancy chart of Benjamin Blackett please click here and for a descendancy chart of Luke Blackett please click here.

The connection between all of these branches has not been established, nor that with Thomas Blackett (abt 1744-1825), gentleman of Ravensworth Castle, Lamesley, who married Jane Blackett in 1766, though it is believed that Thomas was the son of William Blackett and Esther Ogle. (For a descendancy chart of William Blackett and Esther Ogle please click here.) However, there is a strong possibility of a connection between all or most of them, given that many of their immediate descendants lived in the hamlets of Fellside and Lowhand.

In 1702 John Blackett married Isabella Wright in London. They had at least four children, who were baptised in Stepney, where the family was based for several generations. John’s great-grandson, also John (1757-1831) was a wealthy merchant who moved into ship-building, but who lost much of his fortune in the depression of the 1820s/1830s. (Blackett’s Wharf, Limehouse Reach, was painted in 1811 by Thomas Whitcombe.) John’s son, another John (1785-1832) was one of the founders of the publishing business of Hurst and Blackett (see Blacketts and Literature ). For a descendancy chart of John Blackett and Isabella Wright please click here.

Isaac Blackett was born about 1590 and died 4 May 1642 in Tynemouth, Northumberland. His burial record states that he was of Chirton, Northumberland, but the only baptismal record of an Isaac Blackett around that time that we have found is that of Isaac baptised 25 July 1598 in Pittington, Co. Durham. No other connection has been found with Pittington, however, and several generations of Isaac’s descendants lived in Tynemouth and neighbouring Longbenton and Newcastle-upon-Tyne. For a descendancy chart of Isaac Blackett please click here.

In 1795/96 John and Lt. George Blacket, both serving with the Royal Artillery, arrived in Ceylon, now Sri Lanka, as part of a British force sent to take over the island from the Dutch. Army records cite George under Royal Artillery Drivers (horses for the guns).
George died in Colombo in 1809, but John’s son, James Blackett (1808-1893), and his descendants went on to become coffee, and later tea, planters. A family link with tea planting in Sri Lanka continues to the present day. For a descendancy chart of the unknown Blackett who was the father of John and George please click here.

Blacketts have lived in Cumberland and Westmorland for several centuries and the earliest entry we have come across is the marriage of Marion Bleckett (sic) to John Welles in Penrith on 29 August 1556. There is thought to be a connection between these early Blacketts and John Blackett (b. before Oct 1670) of Appleby-in-Westmorland, who married Julia, or Julia Ann, Bellas in 1702, and whose descendants are recorded in the tree as a separate module. John’s great-grandson, Thomas, b. 1747, lived for some years in Barbados, where his son, Stephen, was born in 1780. Stephen married his first cousin, Mary Blackett, born in Barbados in 1782, the daughter of William Blackett (b.1752 Appleby, Westmorland) and Rebecca Ross. The marriage took place in Appleby, Westmorland, England in 1808. No connection has yet been found between these Blacketts and other Blacketts who are known to have lived in the Island around that time. For a descendancy chart of John Blackett who married Julia Bellas, please click here.

In 1785 William Blackett arrived in Prince Edward Island, now a Canadian province. In 1777 he had married Martha Applequest in Bethnal Green, London. Some sources state that he was sent out by the British Government to North America to buy lumber for the English shipyards. William and Martha settled in the island, and around 1790 William bought 100 acres of land running alongside what is now known as Blackett’s Creek. Many of this family have been boat builders or fishermen. (Nb. There are several family trees online which include branches of the Prince Edward Island Blacketts, but which contradict each other in certain respects. Where possible we have tried to show data reconcilable with the censuses.) For a descendancy chart of William Blackett and Martha Applequest please click here.

Several Blackett families lived in Devon, mostly in and around Plymouth. William Blackett, born 1791/92, had at least four children born in the city, as did Henry Blackett (1816/17-1894), and the splendidly named Sampson Blackett (1801/02-1887) had at least two children born there. The links between these families have not been found. No direct link has been found between them and William Blackett, Governor of Plymouth. (See A Blackett Governor ).

Please click on the names to see the respective descendancy charts.

James Blackett, the son of William Blackett and Jane Grison, was born in Tweedmouth, Northumberland in 1810. Although the descendants of his sister Jane (1806-1851/61) remained in Northumberland, as did most of the descendants of his brother William (b. 1808, Ancroft, Northumberland), James’s three sons moved firstly to Lancashire, in and around Manchester, where all three married and had children, and then to Kent, chiefly in Woolwich and Plumstead, (now districts of Greater London.)

William’s son, John (b. 1838), emigrated to Canada in 1866 and married Isabella in Quebec in 1870. They had at least six children, all born in Quebec. For a descendancy chart of William Blackett and Jane Grison please click here.

An additional line of Kentish Blacketts descends from William Blackett, who married Elizabeth Barber in Deal, Kent in 1762. One branch of this line emigrated to New Zealand. For a descendancy chart of William Blackett and Elizabeth Barber please click here.

On 9 July 1749 Thomas Blackett, the son of John Blackett and Hannah Story, was baptised at Sedgefield, Co. Durham. Branches of this family continued to live in Sedgefield for several generations, and Blacketts had lived there for some years prior to Thomas’s baptism, the earliest marriage discovered being that of Maria Blacket to Joseph Fairburn in 1733.
Although this tree can be connected with the “main” Blackett tree through the 1929 marriage of Norman Blackett to Alma Hetherington, the granddaughter of Alice Blackett, there are no obvious candidates among the many John Blacketts of the early 18th century. (John is the most frequently encountered Christian name of the Blacketts.)

In 1737 Thomas Blackett married Margaret Carter in Houghton-le-Spring, Co. Durham, where at least six of their children were born. Their eldest son, John, (1740-1822) married Hannah Reed in 1774. John and Hannah had at least 11 children born in Cox Green and Penshaw, some of whom remained in the area, some settling in Sunderland and some moving some miles south to Sedgefield. A member of this branch, Thomas (1807-1878), a grandson of John, moved to London and then to Kent, where his daughter Elizabeth Jane Blackett married James William Rand and had at least 6 children.

Thomas and Margaret’s third son, George, married Margaret Lawson in 1772 in Penshaw, where their son, Thomas, was born later that year. Thomas then moved to Sunderland, where most of his descendants over several generations were born.

For a descendancy chart of Thomas Blackett and Margaret Carter please click here.

Joseph Byron Blackett (1824/25-1905), who married Caroline Mary Cutler in 1857, was a London physician and surgeon, as was his younger son, Edward (1870-1948). Although Joseph’s place of birth is shown in the censuses as Westminster, no baptismal record has been found. This may have been because the family were Catholic, as Joseph’s eldest son, also Joseph (1858-1936) became a Roman Catholic Priest. What is known, however, is that Joseph senior was a child of the second marriage of Powell Charles Blackett (abt. 1791-1847) to Jeanne Gille, who was born in Belgium 1801/02. Powell Charles Blackett became a naval surgeon in 1809, but is shown as being on half-pay in the 1840 Naval List. For a descendancy chart of Joseph Byron Blackett and Caroline Mary Cutler please click here.

In 1802 Peter Blackett (Abt. 1776-1843/45), a bricklayer, and Mary Basham (1775-1862), were married in Sculthorpe, a village a few miles inland from the north Norfolk coast. Branches of this family remained in Sculthorpe and the neighbouring villages of Syderstone and East Rudham for several generations, though some branches moved to the London area, and one branch of these settled in Chobham, Surrey. For a descendancy chart of Peter Blackett please click here.

John Blackett was born in East Rudham in 1758, where he married Elizabeth Vincent in 1787. A number of members of this family are shown in Parish records by the name “Black”, possibly due to the East Anglian dialect at the time encouraging the “swallowing” of the final consonant. We have not yet established John’s connection with Peter. John’s grandson William and his family moved to Rotherham, Yorkshire in the 1870s, where several of his descendants settled, possibly following the example of his mother, Elizabeth, (the widow of John’s son James), who moved to Yorkshire some time in the 1860s. One of William’s grandsons, Thomas, emigrated to Canada in 1911 with his wife and settled in Toronto, Ontario. For a descendancy chart of John Blackett and Elizabeth Vincent please click here.

William and Jane Blackett lived in Leeds, Yorkshire, and in 1778 their son James was born in the Woodhouse area of the city. James became a Wesleyan minister, and married Anne Catharine Randolph in 1810 in Bristol, Gloucestershire. James and Anne then moved to Warwickshire where their first two sons were born, two further sons being born in Staffordshire. Their second son, James, born 1812, married Ann Parker of Attleborough, Norfolk in 1839 and then moved to Yorkshire. Two of James’s grandsons, James William Blackett and his brother Charles Herbert (Bert) Blackett, together with their mother Emma, emigrated to the USA in 1891 and settled in New York State, USA.
Another son of William and Jane, William, remained in the Leeds area, but in 1854 his grandson, William Blackett Pollard, emigrated with his family to Launceston, Van Diemen’s Land (now Tasmania). William was in poor health and died the following year but his family remained in Australia.
For a descendancy chart of William Blackett and Jane please click here.

Another Wesleyan family of Blacketts from Leeds emigrated to New York State, USA, although no connection has yet been found to the James Blackett mentioned above. William Blackett was born in Leeds in 1801. Like his parents Jonathan Blackett and Elizabeth (nee Whitely), William was a staunch Methodist. Around 1805 William and his parents emigrated to Albany, New York State, where his father was naturalised in 1808, dying a few years later. At the age of 17 or 18 William moved with his step-father and family to New Brunswick, New Jersey, where he married Sarah Eliza Stevenson in 1823, and in 1826 to New York City, where he ran a successful hardware store. In 1856 he moved to Clermont, Iowa where he established another store, and was subsequently joined there by his sons James and Henry. He finally established a store in Lawler, Chickasaw County, which his son Henry eventually took over. James’s grandson, Vernive Hill Blackett, ran one of America’s largest advertising agencies, which was responsible for the creation of the “soap opera”, as outlined in Blacketts in Politics. For a descendancy chart of Jonathan Blackett and Elizabeth Whitely please click here.

George Blackett (abt 1743-1830) married Margaret Young in 1789 at Greatham, a village between Billingham and Hartlepool in Co. Durham. Some of George’s descendants were still living in Greatham as recently as the end of the 19th century. For a descendancy chart of George Blackett and Margaret Young please click here.

In 1808 John Blackett married Ann Elliott in Portsea, Hampshire. Their son, John Elliott Blackett (1813-1901), was born in neighbouring Portsmouth. They seem to have had connections with Co. Durham, however, as in 1839 John Elliott Blackett married Grace Scouler, who was born in Sunderland 1818/19, in the Stockton district of Co. Durham. This family then moved to Kent. For a descendancy chart of John Blackett and Ann Elliott please click here.

No connection has yet been found between the above Blacketts and William Blackett who married Ann Brooker in Alverstoke, just outside Portsmouth, in 1776. They subsequently moved a few miles north-west to Fareham, Hampshire where their son Thomas was born in 1792. Thomas moved to Kent and then to London, where several of his descendants settled. For a descendancy chart of William Blackett and Ann Brooker please click here.

Given Portsmouth’s maritime connections, it is quite possible that both these branches stem from Blacketts elsewhere in England who became seafarers.

In 1841 Thomas Blackett (1840-1888) was living in North Shields with Jessie Blackett, aged 60, who was born in Scotland, Ann aged 20, Margaret aged 10 and Jessie aged 4. Thomas married Christen Atchinson (1840/41-1902) in 1862 and their family remained in North Shields before moving to Yorkshire and finally to West Hartlepool. In 1881 Thomas was living there, his occupation being shown as a carpenter and mastmaker. The parents of Thomas have not been established, nor his relationship to the other Blacketts with whom he was living in 1841. For a descendancy chart of Thomas Blackett and Christen Atchinson please click here.

Robert Collingwood Blackett (1807-1878) was born in London, the son of Peter Blackett and Mary Russell, who is believed to have been the daughter of Lady Elizabeth Russell. A shipwright by trade, he was an accomplished violinist and artist. He was an early convert to the Church of the Latter Day Saints, and with his family emigrated to the USA in 1856, finally settling in Utah. Robert’s ancestry can be traced back to Alexander Blackett, who married Elizabeth Scotland in Gateshead, Co. Durham in 1707, but the lineage prior to that has not been established. For a descendancy chart of Alexander Blackett and Elizabeth Scotland please click here.

Another line of descent from Alexander and Elizabeth Scotland includes several generations of Joseph Snowball Blacketts, who have had maritime connections over the generations. This line, who mostly live in the United States, was originally thought to descend from Isaac Blackett of Chirton, Northumberland (see entry above), but this now seems unlikely.

John Blackett (1783-1854) was baptised in Longwitton, not a great distance from the Blackett seat of Wallington, Northumberland. His parents were Michael Blackett and Mary Maslingham. He may have been born outside of wedlock as his baptismal entry refers to him as “John Blackett or Maslingham.” Michael is also shown as the father of “William Blackett or Spearman”, who was born in Longwitton four years previously and whose mother was Isabel Spearman.

John Blackett’s seven children and at least three of his grandchildren were born in Longwitton or neighbouring Hartburn.

We have discovered nothing further about this Michael Blackett. To see a descendancy chart of Michael Blackett please click here.

In 1734 William Blackett married Lydia Wood in Easingwold, Yorkshire. One of William’s descendants, Thomas Blackett, (bapt. 1819 in Almondbury, Yorkshire) emigrated to Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, where in 1844 he married Isabella Bolan (b. 1818/19 in Northumberland). Thomas’s brother, Robert (1825-1876), also emigrated to Michigan in 1842 along with his brothers William and Richard, and married Ann Eliza Colton (1827-1861) in Kalamazoo, Michigan in 1849. Thomas and Robert’s sister, Martha (1831-1919), also settled in Kalamazoo and married William Morley (1831-1905). For a descendancy chart of William Blackett and Lydia Wood please click here.

Edmund Phipps Blackett (1829/30-1887) was born in Harwich, Essex. After his marriage to Adelaide Elizabeth Collings (1840/41-1896) in London in 1861 the family moved to Cambridge. For a descendancy chart of Edmund Phipps Blackett please click here.

Hudson Blackburn Blackett, the son of John Blackett and Mary Anne, was baptised in Newcastle Upon Tyne, Northumberland, in 1813 and married Ann Anderson in 1837. He was a mariner and was lodging with his daughter Ann White and her family in 1881. Ann named one of her sons John Hudson White, born in 1884, and one of her grandsons, born in 1898, also had the same name. For a descendancy chart of Hudson Blackett and Ann Anderson please click here.

In 1703 John Blackett married Dorothy Applegarth in Richmond, Yorkshire. Four of their children were born in the village of Kirkby Ravensworth, a few miles to the north of Richmond. The family remained in Yorkshire for two generations before at least one branch moved north to County Durham.

It was from this branch that John Blackett (1769-1848) moved to London, later to be joined there by his younger brother Joseph (see A Blackett in Poetry). Although most of John’s children by his 2nd marriage remained in London, his youngest son, Ebenezer Edward Blackett (1821-1905), emigrated to South Australia, where he married Matilda Puddy (1829-1897) in 1852. Their son, Rev. John Blacket (1856-1935), became a Methodist minister and well known author (see Blacketts and Literature). A further branch, the family of Thomas Crosby Blackett (1829-1905) emigrated to New Zealand.
For a descendancy chart of John Blackett and Dorothy Applegarth please click here

In 1797 Abraham Blackett married Esther Carter in Shoreditch, London. Descendants of their daughter Elisabeth, born in Bishopsgate in the City of London in 1800, and of their son Joseph, born in 1813 in the City of London, remained in the Shoreditch/Bethnal Green area of London for several generations. For a descendancy chart of Abraham Blackett and Esther Carter please click here.

In 1663 John Blackett, the son of Nicholas, was baptised in Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland. The family remained in the area of Berwick and Bamburgh, a little way down the coast, for several generations until John’s great-great-grandson, John Anderson Blackett (1790-1855), moved to Wapping, London. Two of his sons, James Douglas Blackett (1828/29-1912) and William Richard Blackett (1830/31-1902), became members of the London Stock Exchange. (See Stock Exchange Blacketts). For a descendancy chart of John Blackett please click here.

In Rookwood cemetery in Lidcombe, Sydney, New South Wales is the grave of George Henry Blacket (he seems to have dropped the 2nd “t” from his name), together with his wife, Sarah Elizabeth, and youngest son William. George Henry was born in 1867 in the Penrith district of New South Wales and was the son of James Blackett and Rachel (nee) Campbell, who emigrated from Scotland to Australia some time between 1849 and 1853. George Henry is believed to descend from Malcolm (Blakater) Blackett and Jennet Cairns, who married in St. Ninians, Stirling, Scotland in 1726, but the line back from them is not known. For a descendancy chart of Malcolm (Blakater) Blackett and Jennet Cairns please click here.

In 1814 Robert Blackett married Sarah Johnson in Oswaldkirk, Yorkshire. Their eldest son, William Walton Blackett, was born in Catton, Yorkshire and married four times, moving around the north Yorkshire/ south Durham area before settling in Guisborough, Yorkshire. The second son, Johnson Blackett, was born in Wolviston, Co. Durham but moved across the Pennines to Cumberland after his marriage, finally settling in Cheshire. For a descendancy chart of Robert Blackett and Sarah Johnson please click here

In 1810 Robert Blackett married Sophia Dyball in Shoreditch, London. Sophia was baptised in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk in 1786, where a number of their descendants were subsequently born. According to family legend Robert was a sailor and he or his family had had a ships chandler’s business in Newcastle before losing it through drink. It is not known which Robert, out of several born in Newcastle around the right time, married Sophia. Sophia’s son, Walter Jones Blackett, born 1826, was christened as such, but is shown as Walter Jones in several censuses, though his children were registered with the surname of Blackett. For a descendancy chart of Robert Blackett please click here.