This interesting name is locational from an apparently 'lost' location, one of the seven thousand English sites which are known to have existed in the 12th century, but have now vanished. The name is Olde English pre 7th century and translates as the family (ing) of 'wood' (possibly wood dwellers) dwelling at the farm (ton). Locational names by their very nature of being given (usually) to former inhabitants on moving to another district are very prone to corruption and in this case the name is rare and early recordings equally so. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of William Woodington (sculptor) which was dated 1806-1893, Curator of The Royal Academy during the reign of Queen Victoria The Great White Queen 1837-1901 Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.