NameCensus.

UK surname

Cogswell

A locational surname derived from a place in Essex, England, meaning "well near a hollow" or "well near a cog".

In the 1881 census there were 237 people recorded with the Cogswell surname, ranking it #11,509 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 190, ranked #20,262, down from #11,509 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Trowbridge, London parishes and Lambeth. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Bradford, Teignbridge and West Berkshire.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Cogswell is 272 in 1911. Compared with 1881, the name has fallen by 19.8%.

1881 census count

237

Ranked #11,509

Modern count

190

2016, ranked #20,262

Peak year

1911

272 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Cogswell had 237 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #11,509 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 190 in 2016, ranked #20,262.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 272 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Multicultural Inner Suburbs.

Cogswell surname distribution map

The map shows where the Cogswell surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Cogswell surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Cogswell over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 148 #13,028
1861 historical 174 #13,483
1881 historical 237 #11,509
1891 historical 221 #13,897
1901 historical 256 #12,934
1911 historical 272 #12,205
1997 modern 212 #16,996
1998 modern 208 #17,693
1999 modern 209 #17,771
2000 modern 209 #17,723
2001 modern 197 #18,108
2002 modern 181 #19,463
2003 modern 186 #18,928
2004 modern 184 #19,183
2005 modern 178 #19,535
2006 modern 179 #19,592
2007 modern 182 #19,618
2008 modern 182 #19,800
2009 modern 186 #19,946
2010 modern 201 #19,387
2011 modern 195 #19,610
2012 modern 201 #19,147
2013 modern 194 #19,932
2014 modern 185 #20,739
2015 modern 189 #20,345
2016 modern 190 #20,262

Geography

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Where Cogswells are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Trowbridge, London parishes, Lambeth, St Giles Camberwell and St Matthew Bethnal Green. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Bradford, Teignbridge, West Berkshire, Tonbridge and Malling and Bromley. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Trowbridge Wiltshire
2 London parishes London 3
3 Lambeth London (South Districts)
4 St Giles Camberwell London (South Districts)
5 St Matthew Bethnal Green London (East Districts)

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Bradford 018 Bradford
2 Teignbridge 017 Teignbridge
3 West Berkshire 020 West Berkshire
4 Tonbridge and Malling 005 Tonbridge and Malling
5 Bromley 007 Bromley

Forenames

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First names often paired with Cogswell

These lists show first names that appear often with the Cogswell surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Cogswell

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Cogswell, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Baseline UK

Group

Multicultural Inner Suburbs

Nationally, the Cogswell surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Multicultural Inner Suburbs, within Baseline UK. This does not mean every Cogswell household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These neighbourhoods house many younger and middle-aged adults with children. All ethnic minorities, apart from those identifying as Pakistani or Bangladeshi, appear to be present in above average proportions. Affiliation to Christian religions is uncommon. Long-term disability rates are low, mirrored in limited provision of unpaid care. Privately rented terrace houses and flats are the norm. Managerial, professional and technical occupations are prevalent, and work is rarely part time. Many individuals have degree level qualifications. These areas form the inner suburbs of many of the UK’s towns and cities.

Wider pattern

This Supergroup exemplifies the broad base to the UK’s social structure, encompassing as it does the average or modal levels of many neighbourhood characteristics, including all housing tenures, a range of levels of educational attainment and religious affiliations, and a variety of pre-retirement age structures. Yet, in combination, these mixes are each distinctive of the parts of the UK. Overall, terraced houses and flats are the most prevalent, as is employment in intermediate or low-skilled occupations. However, this Supergroup is also characterised by above average levels of unemployment and lower levels of use of English as the main language. Many neighbourhoods occur in south London and the UK’s other major urban centres.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs

Group

Professional Periphery

Within London, Cogswell is most associated with areas classed as Professional Periphery, part of Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These neighbourhoods predominantly house residents aged 45+, with many aged 85+. Most employed residents work in senior roles, and relatively few work in unskilled jobs. Terraced housing is comparatively rare, but communal living is more common. More residents identify as of Indian ethnicity and more affiliate with non-Christian religions. Disability levels are below the Supergroup average.

Wider London pattern

The age distribution of these neighbourhoods is skewed towards the middle-aged and old, although few residents live alone or in communal establishments and numbers of dependent children are around average. Owner occupation is the norm, as is residence in detached or semi-detached houses. Residential densities are low and many households have spare rooms. Most residents were born in the UK and, aside from some identifying as members of Chinese or Indian ethnicities, identify as White. Mixed ethnicity households are rare. Incidence of married couples is higher than average and few individuals have never been married. A large proportion of individuals still in employment work in administrative and secretarial occupations, or in the construction industry. Few residents are students, and many households own more than one car.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Cogswell is most concentrated in decile 3 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the less healthy end of the index.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

3
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Cogswell falls in decile 8 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the less deprived end of the index.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

8
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Cogswell is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 50-60 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

8
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

This describes the area pattern most associated with Cogswell, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Cogswell

The surname Cogswell originated in England during the 12th century. It is derived from the Old English words "cog" meaning a small boat and "well" referring to a spring or water source. The name likely referred to someone who lived near a well or spring where small boats docked.

Early recordings of the surname include Roger de Cogeswell in the Pipe Rolls of Norfolk in 1166 and Thomas de Coggeshale in the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1285. The name also appeared as Coggeshal, Cogshall, and Coxwell in various medieval records.

There are several places in England called Coggeshall, most notably the market town in Essex, which may have influenced the spelling variations of the surname over time. The Domesday Book of 1086 mentions a manor called "Coghessalt" in this area.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Ralph de Coggeshall, an English chronicler and monk who lived from around 1150 to 1228. His major work, the "Chronicon Anglicanum", is an important historical source for the period of 1066 to 1200.

Another notable individual was William Cogswell, born in 1592 in Westbury Leigh, Wiltshire, England. He was one of the earliest settlers in Massachusetts Bay Colony, arriving in 1635 and founding the town of Ipswich.

John Cogswell (1768-1830) was a successful merchant and shipowner in New York City. He amassed a considerable fortune trading with the West Indies and China.

Sir William Cogswell (1857-1951) was a British civil servant and administrator who served as the Governor of Tasmania from 1913 to 1918.

Evangeline Cogswell (1922-2016) was an American author known for her historical fiction novels set in New England, including "The Penobscot Expedition" and "The Inn at Bath".

The Cogswell surname continues to be found throughout the English-speaking world, particularly in the United States, Canada, and Australia, reflecting the migration patterns of its bearers over the centuries.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Cogswell families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Cogswell surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Middlesex leads with 60 Cogswells recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.60x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 60 2.60x
Surrey 47 4.17x
Wiltshire 43 21.03x
Somerset 22 5.91x
Lancashire 14 0.51x
Kent 12 1.52x
Hampshire 7 1.48x
Glamorgan 6 1.49x
Northumberland 6 1.74x
Cheshire 5 0.98x
Lincolnshire 4 1.08x
Essex 3 0.66x
Denbighshire 2 2.29x
Berkshire 1 0.58x
Cumberland 1 0.50x
Flintshire 1 1.61x
Nottinghamshire 1 0.32x
Sussex 1 0.26x
Worcestershire 1 0.33x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Trowbridge in Wiltshire leads with 27 Cogswells recorded in 1881 and an index of 298.67x.

Place Total Index
Trowbridge 27 298.67x
Camberwell 25 16.93x
Twickenham 20 201.82x
Hackney London 10 7.72x
Lambeth 10 4.96x
Bethnal Green London 9 8.96x
Frome 9 101.12x
Box 7 402.30x
Chorlton On Medlock 7 16.06x
Kingston On Thames 7 25.87x
Portsea 7 7.54x
Lyncombe Widcombe 6 61.60x
Meopham 6 612.24x
Newcastle On Tyne St 6 33.65x
Chester St Oswald 5 54.11x
Hulme 5 8.73x
Islington London 5 2.23x
Swindon 5 31.53x
Greenwich 4 10.87x
St Pancras London 4 2.15x
Swansea Town 4 12.12x
Great Grimsby 3 12.79x
Hanwell 3 73.17x
Mile End Old Town London 3 6.10x
Walcot 3 15.14x
West Ham 3 2.98x
Bathwick 2 48.54x
Castleton 2 7.30x
Guildford Holy Trinity 2 93.02x
Limehouse London 2 7.88x
Llandaff 2 14.94x
Abergele 1 39.84x
Bath St James 1 25.77x
Battersea 1 1.18x
Broughton 1 29.15x
Broughton Gifford 1 204.08x
Charlcombe 1 204.08x
Chiswick 1 7.92x
Cookham 1 18.48x
East Grinstead 1 18.12x
Hilperton 1 153.85x
Kidderminster Borough 1 5.66x
Louth 1 11.81x
Mansfield 1 9.28x
Northop 1 45.45x
Semington 1 303.03x
Southwark St Olave 1 56.82x
St George Bloomsbury 1 7.54x
St Mary Within 1 40.16x
Stoke Newington London 1 5.55x
Tenterden 1 35.97x
Thursley 1 123.46x
Westport St Mary 1 67.57x
Whitechapel London 1 4.39x
Woolwich 1 3.43x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Cogswell surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Mary 10
Alice 7
Annie 7
Elizabeth 7
Jane 6
Martha 6
Sarah 6
Eliza 5
Ellen 5
Maria 5
Clara 3
Emily 3
Florence 3
Ada 2
Caroline 2
Eleanor 2
Emma 2
Harriet 2
Helena 2
Kate 2
Marion 2
Matilda 2
Alicia 1
Amy 1
Ann 1
Bessy 1
Bilenda 1
Catherine 1
Charlotte 1
Deborah 1
Edith 1
Eliz. 1
Elizt. 1
Elizth.D. 1
Emly 1
Ernest 1
Helen 1
Kathanira 1
Leah 1
Lilian 1
Lily 1
Lucey 1
Lucy 1
Mariane 1
Maud 1
Mercy 1
Rebecca 1
Rhoda 1
Ruth 1
Tina 1

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Cogswell surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
William 11
John 7
Thomas 7
Albert 6
James 6
Arthur 5
Benjamin 4
Charles 4
Edward 4
Frederick 4
George 4
Henry 4
Edmund 3
Fredk. 3
Joseph 3
Mark 3
Robert 3
Walter 3
Harry 2
Herbert 2
Samuel 2
Alfred 1
Benjiman 1
Caleb 1
Daniel 1
Edwd. 1
Edwin 1
Fred.W. 1
Fredk 1
Gordon 1
Hugh 1
Infant 1
Jacob 1
Jamie 1
Launcelot 1
Lewellyn 1
Mary 1
Norris 1
Percy 1
Philip 1
Richard 1
Stephen 1
Thos.Hy. 1
Vernon 1

FAQ

Cogswell surname: questions and answers

How common was the Cogswell surname in 1881?

In 1881, 237 people were recorded with the Cogswell surname. That placed it at #11,509 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Cogswell surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 190 in 2016. That gives Cogswell a modern rank of #20,262.

What does the Cogswell surname mean?

A locational surname derived from a place in Essex, England, meaning "well near a hollow" or "well near a cog".

What does the Cogswell map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Cogswell bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.