This is a dialectal variant of Bootle a place name in Lancashire and Cumbria so called from the Olde English pre 7th century 'bodl' or 'botl' meaning a dwelling house or hall. The surname is first recorded in the latter half of the 16th century (see below). In 1602 one Thomas Bootell appears in the Preston Guild Rolls, and on December 23rd 1688, the christening of Ann Bottell is recorded in the registers of Aughton near Selby, Yorkshire. The variant spelling Bouttell is recorded in Yorkshire in 1862. Elizabeth Bouttell, daughter of Henry and Hanah, was christened in Eston on August 12th of that year. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Matthew Bootle of Lancashire, a serving man. which was dated 1595, in the Lancashire Wills Records at Richmond. during the reign of Elizabeth 1 known as 'Good Queen Bess' 1558-1603. 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.