The Carlton family had lived in Tilmanstone, a small farming village northwest of Dover in the County of Kent in England for about 175 years. From 1750 to about 1825 the family owned considerable land and businesses in the village. About 1830 the family fortunes suddenly turned sour and as a result, four brothers came to the Unites States to gain a fresh start, thus establishing the Long Point branch of the Carlton family.

It appears that the cause of the Carlton immigration was because Edward the Gentleman (1745-1827), in his will of 1827 divided his estate, giving both of his sons William and Edward a fifth part. Although William did well with his part and increased his worth to around £32,000 ($1,500,000 US 1984), it appears that Edward the Carpenter (1774-1847) worked as a carpenter and did not increase his worth. Because Edward the Carpenter and Judith Prebble had 17 children, it would have been difficult for all the children to make a living in the small village. This fact is enhanced by the fact that the children came of independent age between 1830 and 1850, a time during which England wa sending millions of emigrants overseas in the wake of the post Napoleonic war depression combined with the rapidly advancing industrial revolution. Histories of the period indicate that the southern agricultural regions (including Kent County) suffered greatly at this time. The Cambridge History of the British Empire states that "a gentleman in Kent is sending (emigrants) off by wagon loads ... Their fate seems to have been less dreadful that the method of riddance ... for some of them sere sending later for their relatives and friends." This is precisely what Benjamin Carlton did after his brother Joseph died in Cleveland while his father had died in England. Benjamin sent for his brothers Frederick and 13 year old Edward in 1841.

Joseph and Benjamin Carlton immigrated to the United States from England in the summer of 1835, arriving in New York City after a 61 day sea voyage. They went first to Cleveland, Ohio where Benjamin became a stonemason's apprentice. Joseph died in Cleveland in 1836. Benjamin then worked as a mason in Columbus and St. Louis before settling in Bureau County, Illinois. When his brothers Frederick and Edward arrived from England in 1840 or 1841, they all took up residence in Livingston County and homesteaded in Long Point Township.

When the brothers first came to Long Point there were several log cabins in a grove. Benjamin remembered killing wild game in the area and related tales of herds of 100 deer bounding over the prairie or through a forest. The three brothers farmed for over 60 years and all did quite well, increasing their worth and land as time went on. Frederick lived to be 91, Benjamin 90, and Edward 79. Benjamin married twice and had a daughter by each wife. Frederick had 7 children but only one daughter lived to adulthood. Edward became the only one of the four immigrant brothers to have sons to carry the Carlton name on in the new country.

Edward married Diadama Hallum and they had three sons; David Henry, Benjamin, and Absalom, each of whom established a branch of the family:

David Henry continued to work part of Edward's Long Point farm and lived to be 76. He had a daughter and two sons; Edward Arthur and Ralph. Ralph had no children but Edward Arthur had four sons; Ross Edgar, David Raleigh, Jon Lee, and Edward Carrol.

Benjamin established his family in Anita, Iowa and he lived to be 77. He also had a daughter and two sons; Jesse and Edward. Jesse lived in Chicago and had a daughter and a son Thomas. Tom lived in Burlingame, California and had three daughters. Edward lived in Anita, Iowa and he had three daughters.

Absalom also continued to work part of Edward's Long Point farm and lived to be 83. He had two daughters and two sons; Frank and Dennis. Dennis had no children but Frank had a daughter and two sons. Frank had two sons, Edward and Robert. He lived for some time in Oak Park, Illinois. Edward had three daughters and lived in Greensboro, North Carolina. Robert lived in Wilmington, Delaware until he retired to Austin, Texas. Robert had two daughters and two sons, Edward and William. Edward was living in New Orleans, Louisiana in 1985 while William was living in League City, Texas in 1985 and had a daughter.

Consequently, there are currently three Carlton branches of the original Carlton emigrants from Tilmanstone, all descended from Edward the Immigrant. These are the Long Point Branch from David Henry, which has many living male Carltons; the Anita branch from Benjamin, which lost Tom Carlton, it's last male, in 1993; and the Oak Park branch from Absalom, which has four living males.

This page was updated on 2-21-98. If you have queries or comments, email rcarlton@arkansas.net