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Welcome,

If you have come to this site then the odds are that you are either a Coath or are related to a Coath.

The aim of this site is to provide a link for all of those who are interested in tracing their Coath ancestors.

Several years ago I started researching my own ancestors but all too soon I ran into a brickwall I was unable to breakdown.

Several years before, my father had visited the Family Records Centre and had copied all of the Coath records of Births, Marriages and Deaths, from 1837 when records began, up to the present.

I inputted these into a spreadsheet and cross-referenced each individual until I had (for most of them) 3 or more events. I then checked the birth records against earlier marriage records and obtained their mothers and fathers. I then grouped these together into family groups.

By using this method I discovered the identity of my brickwall, who was confirmed by ordering the certificate.This has enable me to now trace my own line back to one Edward Coath who was born in 1730, possibly married Avis Tonkin or Avis Woolcock in 1754 and settled in Oreston, near Plymouth, Devon.

As I still had all the other records, and as I have been unable to locate the parents of Edward, I started the COATH One-Name Study. I have since mapped out the lines of a great many Coath's , starting with John Coathe from Newlyn East, Cornwall, in 1480 and expanding out into Devon, London, Cheshire and overseas to Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States.

Along the way the name seems to have changed slightly, even between siblings christened a few months apart.

The variations so far noted are Coathe, Couth, Cooth, Cothe and even Quoth.

I have registered the study with the Guild of One Name Studies and as such I am responsible for researching all Coath records worldwide.

Despite what several people believe I have never heard of any Coath being granted the right to bear arms, therefore if you hear that someone has a Coath Coat of Arms then treat it with suspicion. Those Coath's I have documented were for the most part Mariners, Agricultural Labourers and Tradesmen, with more than our fair share of Income Tax Inspectors.

There are however the few individuals who stand out:

• The Sheep Thief hanged at Bodmin Gaol
• The Blackbirder/Slaver "Murdered by Savages in Espirito Santo"
• The Burmese Teak Harvester
• The World War One Fighter Ace

And several others.

If you wish to find out more about our Coath ancestors then please drop me a line including as much information as you already know. This should enable me to ensure I send you the correct information.

All too often I have had "I am researching my Coath ancestry, please send me everything you have". Unfortunately I am unable to comply with these requests simply because it runs into several thousand pages. It is much easier if you send me what you have and I then fill in the blanks. This way we can both be sure that I am sending the correct information.

Please note that unless given permission I do not send out personal data on records less than 80 years old that is not readily obtainable in the public domain, ie BMD registers, Electoral registers, etc.

(Why banks insist on asking for mothers maiden names as a security question, when this can be easily discovered in a few seconds is beyond me)