Whats in a Name
The name "Tucker was a derivative from the Old English. It meant "To
Tuck", "To Fill" and it meant "Courage" usually. It is referred to as a
"Tucker", one who cleaned and thickened cloth.
Tucker has been used as a synonym for "O'Toucher", as Irish sect located
in North Tipperary, well known throughout Ireland.
The early Tuckers settled in Devonshire and Kent and all the present
Tuckers----good, bad and indifferent--may trace their earliest
Anglo-Saxon locale to this area of Southeastern England. One of the
early Tuckers, John Tucker, a brother of William Tucker, was given the
estate of South Travistock in the County of Devonshire, and in 1079 the
family was granted a coat-of-arms.
In 1538, Robert Tucker was alderman and mayor of the City of Exeter, and
during the reign of Charles 1, George Tucker was a member of the
"Warwick" party in the Virginia Company, and his son, George, Jr.,
emigrated to Bermuda.
The Tuckers in England have been distinguished people and have served
their country well. They belong to that stock of middle class English.
It has been said that they have Tudor blood in their veins. A frequent
name in the family is that of Thomas Tudor Tucker.
The English Tuckers have lived in song and literature and have gained
enviable positions in both civil and military government. Many of the
Tucker women have married important persons. Nancy Tucker married
General Lauzern, who was on Wellington's staff at Waterloo, and a long
list of others. Nancy Tucker was a sister of St. George Tucker, who
founded the branch of the family in Virginia. Raeburn's portrait of her
is considered his masterpiece and is a valued possession of the Gallery
in London.
Devonshire was the chief location of the most famous Tuckers in England.
They were involved with Sir Francis Drake, Captain Hawkins and Sir
Walter Raleigh. They also took part in the attack on the Spanish Armada.
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