Baken History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The history of the Baken family name begins after the Norman Conquest of 1066. They lived in Suffolk. Originally, the name Baken was originally derived from a seigniory in Normandy. Some of the family came from Maine, and there the name was also spelt Bacco. 1 This name appeared in England after members of the Baken family had migrated from Normandy to Suffolk.

"Some derive this surname from the Saxon baccen or buccen, a beech—tree. Upon the monument of Thomas Bacon, in Brome Church in Suffolk (England), there is a beech—tree engraven in brass, with a man resting under it. It appears, also, that the first Lord—keeper, Sir Nicholas Bacon, with his two wives, are represented in a similar manner." 2

Early Origins of the Baken family

The surname Baken was first found in Suffolk, where they held a family seat at Monks' Bradfield as early as the reign of Richard (1189-1199.) 3 Now known as Bradfield St. George, Monks-Bradfield is a parish, in the union of Thingoe, hundred of Thedwastry, in the west division of Suffolk. 4

Shortly after the Conquest, some of the family was also found at Letheringsett, in Norfolk. "According to the genealogy of the great Suffolk family of Bacon, one Grimbald, a relative of the Norman chieftain William de Warenne, came to England and settled near Holt. His great grandson is stated to have taken the name Bacon. " 5

Not all the family went to England as seen by William Bacon who in 1082, endowed the abbey of the Holy Trinity at Caen. "Richard Bacon occurs later; and 1154 Roger Bacon held estates in Wiltshire. In 1165 Robert, William, and Alexander Bacon held four knights' fees of ancient enfeoffment in Essex from the Barony of Montfichet. " 1

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 included: John le Bacon. T. Cecilia Bacun in Norfolk; Wymer Bacon, Surrey; and Simon Bacon, Oxfordshire. Later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed Walterus Bacun. 6

"Knightly families of Bacon or Bacune held manors in the 13th and 14th centuries in the parishes of Dengie and Mountnessing [Essex], manors which seem to have taken in each case the name of Bacon from their early lords. Probably the original Bacons of Essex branched off long ago from the great Suffolk family of Bachun, Bacun, or Bacon, itself descended from a Norman stock in the 11th century. In the 13th century, Bacun was a common name in Suffolk and Oxfordshire, and less so in Norfolk and Gloucestershire. " 7

Early History of the Baken family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Baken research. Another 208 words (15 lines of text) covering the years 1066, 1214, 1294, 1500, 1510, 1512, 1540, 1561, 1567, 1579, 1586, 1587, 1593, 1594, 1600, 1618, 1621, 1622, 1623, 1624, 1626, 1645, 1647, 1657, 1660, 1663, 1666, 1672, 1676, 1685, 1687, 1700, 1707 and 1721 are included under the topic Early Baken History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Baken Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Bacon, Bachun, Bacun and others.

Early Notables of the Baken family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Sir Nicholas Bacon (1510-1579), an English politician, Lord Keeper of the Great Seal; Sir Nicholas Bacon, 1st Baronet, of Redgrave (c. 1540-1624), MP, Premier Baronet of England, half-brother of Sir Francis Bacon; Sir Francis Bacon (1587-1657), an English judge, son of John Bacon; Sir Edward Bacon (d. 1618), of Shrublands Hall in Suffolk, an English Member of Parliament; Francis Bacon (1600-1663), an English politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1645 and 1660, supporter of the Parliamentary side in the English Civil War; Sir Nicholas Bacon, 1st Baronet, of Gillingham (1623-1666)...
Another 123 words (9 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Baken Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Baken family to Ireland

Some of the Baken family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 66 words (5 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Baken migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Baken or a variant listed above were:

Baken Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

George Baken, aged 21, who arrived in Missouri in 1841 8

The Baken Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Mediocria firma
Motto Translation: Mediocrity is safe.

Citations +

The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Arthur, William , An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names. London: 1857. Print
Shirley, Evelyn Philip, The Noble and Gentle Men of England; The Arms and Descents. Westminster: John Bower Nichols and Sons, 1866, Print.
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)