Vincent-Vinson – Surname Saturday

By Don Taylor

Name Origin

It seems that the surname “Vinson” has two separate origins. First is that it comes from the “son of Vin or Vincent.” The second is that it is a corruption or variant of “Vincent.” It does not appear that my wife’s ancestors were from a patronymic society, so Vinson is more likely  a corruption of “Vincent.”

When in doubt, I’ll now use Vincent as the preferred surname, unless there is some uncontroversial reason for using Vinson. That plan suggests I need to relook carefully at my wife’s great-grandmother, Susan R Vinson, whose parents were John and Lenora Vincent.

Geographical

Worldwide there are approximately 283,936 people who bear the Vincent surname.

It is most prevalent in France, with the United States having the second-highest incidence, with over 67,000 Vincent’s in the US.

My Wife’s Earliest Vincent Ancestors

All of my wife’s Vincent ancestors lived in North Carolina. Her earliest known Vincent ancestor was Philip Vincent. It is not clear where he was born, but during the 1800 Census, he was over 45, suggesting he was born before 1755. He lived in Edgecombe County, North Carolina, in 1790. In 1840, Philip’s son, Burkett Vincent, was living in Halifax County with a household consisting of 5 people. His was one of only 22 Vincent families living in North Carolina during 1840. Burkett’s son, John Vincent was born about 1816 in Halifax County and died sometime before 1870. His daughter, Susan R. Vincent (aka Susan Vinson) was born on 22 August 1848. She married Peter Fletcher Howell shortly after the Civil War, on 10 December 1866.

Direct Vincent (Vinson) Ancestors

1. 1. 9. Great-grandmother: Susan R Vinson (aka Vincent) (1848-1910) Family Search
      10. 2^nd Great-grandfather: John Vincent (1816-1870) Family Search
      11. 3^nd Great-grandfather: Burkett Vincent (1779-1850) Family Search
      12. 4rd Great-grandfather: Philip Vincent (bef. 1755-c.1807) Family Search

Known relatives.

My records have 155 direct-line descendants of Philip Vincent identified, which is almost 5% of my Howell-Darling Research.

Sources:

• Ancestry Surname Page: https://www.ancestry.com/learn/facts
• Forebears Surnames Page: https://forebear       s.io/surnames
• Ancestry – Don Taylor’s Howell-Darling-2017 accessed 29 Dec 2019.