Devenport History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Devenport is one of the thousands of new names that the Norman Conquest brought to England in 1066. The Devenport family lived in the township of Davenport, in the parish of Astbury in East Cheshire.

Early Origins of the Devenport family

The surname Devenport was first found in Cheshire where they were descended from Ormus de Davenport of Davenport Hall Farm 1 in the parish of Astbury in East Cheshire. He is the first recorded ancestor of the family.

"The Davenports claim precedence among the knightly families of Cheshire, - that 'seed-plot of gentry,' 'the mother and the nurse of the gentility of England,' and are traced directly to the Conquest." 2

"The manor [of Marton, Cheshire] was given to an ancestor of the Davenport family, as a dowry with the daughter of Venables, Baron of Kinderton, in the reign of Henry I." 3

Early History of the Devenport family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Devenport research. Another 150 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1477, 1566, 1597, 1598, 1623, 1631, 1645, 1670 and 1680 are included under the topic Early Devenport History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Devenport Spelling Variations

Multitudes of spelling variations are a hallmark of Anglo Norman names. Most of these names evolved in the 11th and 12th century, in the time after the Normans introduced their own Norman French language into a country where Old and Middle English had no spelling rules and the languages of the court were French and Latin. To make matters worse, medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, so names frequently appeared differently in the various documents in which they were recorded. The name was spelled Davenport, Davenporte, Donarty and others.

Early Notables of the Devenport family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was John Davenport (1597-1670), an English Puritan clergyman from Coventry, Warwickshire, co-founder of the American colony of New Haven, eponym of Davenport College, Yale University. 4Sir Humphrey Davenport of Davenport (1566-1645), was Chief...
Another 40 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Devenport Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Devenport family to Ireland

Some of the Devenport family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 34 words (2 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Devenport migration to the United States +

Because of this political and religious unrest within English society, many people decided to immigrate to the colonies. Families left for Ireland, North America, and Australia in enormous numbers, traveling at high cost in extremely inhospitable conditions. The New World in particular was a desirable destination, but the long voyage caused many to arrive sick and starving. Those who made it, though, were welcomed by opportunities far greater than they had known at home in England. Many of these families went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Devenport or a variant listed above:

Devenport Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Susannah Devenport, who arrived in Virginia in 1701 5
George Devenport, who landed in Virginia in 1702 5
William Devenport, who landed in Virginia in 1719 5

Devenport migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Devenport Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Darius Devenport, who arrived in Canada in 1831

Devenport migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Devenport Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. John Devenport, English convict who was convicted in Stafford, Staffordshire, England for life, transported aboard the "Baring" in April 1815, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6
Mr. William Devenport, British Convict who was convicted in Liverpool, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Asiatic" on 26th May 1843, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 7

Citations +

Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
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.
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. 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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/baring
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 14th July 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/asiatic