Brodhead History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The ancient history of the name Brodhead dates back to the days of the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. It was a name given to a person with a large forehead or large head; it may alternately apply to someone who habitually wore a broad hood. The surname Brodhead is derived from the Old English words brad, which means broad, and heafod, which means head. The Old Norse word hofud and the Danish word hoved have the same meaning as the latter word and may have been substituted for it in some cases. The surname Brodhead may also be derived from residence on a wide point of land projecting into a sea or lake, or from possession of plowed farmlands with a wide strip of unplowed land at either end of the field. The surname Brodhead often literally means dweller by the broad headland.

Early Origins of the Brodhead family

The surname Brodhead was first found in Durham, where they held a family seat from ancient times.

Early History of the Brodhead family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Brodhead research. Another 156 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1243, 1273, 1281, 1295, 1327, 1332, 1379, 1572 and 1664 are included under the topic Early Brodhead History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Brodhead Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Brodhead include Broadhead, Broadhed, Brodhead, Bradheuid, Brodheved, Brodhod, Brodeheved, Braydhed, Brodeheued and many more.

Early Notables of the Brodhead family

More information is included under the topic Early Brodhead Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Brodhead migration to the United States +

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Brodhead or a variant listed above:

Brodhead Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Daniel Brodhead, who arrived in New York in 1664 1

Brodhead Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

F Brodhead, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1855 1

Contemporary Notables of the name Brodhead (post 1700) +

John Curtis Brodhead (1780-1859), American Democratic Party politician, U.S. Representative from New York 7th District, 1831-33, 1837-39 2
John C. Brodhead, American politician, Delegate to Kentucky Secession Convention, 1861 2
John Brodhead Jr., American politician, Member of New York State Assembly from Sullivan and Ulster counties, 1821-22 2
John Brodhead (1770-1838), American Democratic Party politician, Member of New Hampshire State Senate 2nd District, 1817-21, 1825-27; U.S. Representative from New Hampshire at-large, 1829-33 2
Jefferson Davis Brodhead (1859-1920), American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Pennsylvania, 1892, 1904; U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania 26th District, 1907-09 2
Franklin R. Brodhead, American politician, Member of New York State Assembly from Orange County 2nd District, 1879 2
Daniel D. Brodhead, American Democratic Party politician, Postmaster at Summit Hill, Pennsylvania, 1845-49 2
Conrad Brodhead, American politician, Member of New York State Assembly from Ulster County, 1841 2
Calvin E. Brodhead, American politician, Member of New Jersey State House of Assembly from Union County, 1911 2
Albert Gallatin Brodhead Jr. (1815-1891), American Democratic Party politician, Member of Pennsylvania State Senate, 1870-72; Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Pennsylvania, 1876 2
... (Another 8 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

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)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, February 1) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html