Contents [hide]

Harden History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Canada Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Harden History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland
Scotland

As a surname, Harden is thought to be derived from the place named Harden in West Yorkshire. The place name in turn is derived from the Old English words "hara," or "hare," and "denu," or "valley." 1

Early Origins of the Harden family

The surname Harden was first found in Roxburghshire where one of the first records of the name was "John de Hardene of the county of Roxburghe rendered homage [to King Edward I] in 1296." 2 In Scotland, the family claim Harden in Roxburghshire as their ancient homestead. Other early record list Ricaraus de Harden as selling a horse in 1312 and William of Harden was "custumar" of Dundee in 1359. 2

Harden is a hamlet, in the parish of Bingley, union of Keighley, Upper division of the wapentake of Skyrack, in the West Riding of Yorkshire. 3

One of the first records of the family was of Ricardus de Hareden who was listed in Wiltshire in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. The "Placita de Quo Warranto, temp. Edward I-III" listed Henry de Hardene in Norfolk, 20 Edward I (during the 20th year of Edward I's reign) and William de Hardene in Sussex.

The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 had two listings of the family: Willelmus de Hardeyn; and Adam de Hardeyn. 4

Early History of the Harden family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Harden research. Another 93 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1296, 1512 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Harden History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Harden Spelling Variations

Although the name, Harden, appeared in many references, from time to time, the surname was shown with the spellings Harden, Hardene, Hardin, Hardon and others.

Early Notables of the Harden family

Notable amongst the family name during their early history was

John of Hardene

Harden Ranking

In the United States, the name Harden is the 1,123^rd most popular surname with an estimated 27,357 people with that name. 5

Migration of the Harden family to Ireland

Some of the Harden family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 74 words (5 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Harden migration to the United States +

Gradually becoming disenchanted with life in Ireland many of these uprooted families sailed aboard the armada of sailing ships known as the "White Sails" which plied the stormy Atlantic. These overcrowded ships often arrived with only 60 to 70% of their original passenger list, many dying of cholera, typhoid, dysentery or small pox. In North America, some of the first immigrants who could be considered kinsmen of the Harden family name Harden, or who bore a variation of the surname were

Harden Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Ja Harden, who arrived in Virginia in 1646 6
John Harden, who settled in Nevis in 1654
Robert Harden, who arrived in Maryland in 1667 6

Harden Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

William Harden, who landed in Virginia in 1715 6
Patrick Harden, who arrived in Boston, Massachusetts in 1764 6

Harden Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Elnr Harden, who arrived in America in 1805 6
William Harden, aged 58, who arrived in New York in 1812 6
Mr. T. Harden, (b. 1817), aged 31, Cornish miner departing from Penzance aboard the ship "Mountaineer" arriving in the United States on 29th May 1848 7
George Harden, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1849 6
Alexander Harden, who landed in Mobile, Ala in 1850 6
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Harden migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Harden Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Ms. Mary Harden U.E. who settled in Saint John, New Brunswick c. 1784 8

Harden migration to Australia +

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

Harden Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. George Harden, English convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Dromedary" on 11th September 1819, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land), he was executed in 1825 9
Mr. James Harden, English convict who was convicted in Surrey, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Dromedary" on 11th September 1819, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 9
Mr. John Harden, English convict who was convicted in London, England for 10 years, transported aboard the "Equestrian" on 25th January 1844, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Island) 10
James Harden, aged 26, a shepherd, who arrived in South Australia in 1849 aboard the ship "Ascendant" 11
James Harden, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Ascendant" in 1849 11
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Harden migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Harden Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. William Harden, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Excelsior" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 17th March 1859 12
Mrs. Phillipa Harden, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Excelsior" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 17th March 1859 12
Miss Jane Harden, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Excelsior" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 17th March 1859 12
Miss Mary Harden, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Excelsior" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 17th March 1859 12
Mr. Phillip Harden, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Excelsior" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 17th March 1859 12
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Harden migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 13

Harden Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Thomas Harden, who settled in St. Christopher (Saint Kitts) in 1635

Contemporary Notables of the name Harden (post 1700) +

Marcia Gay Harden (b. 1959), American Academy Award winning and two-time Primetime Emmy Award nominated actress from La Jolla, California, known for Mystic River (2003), The Mist (2007) and Pollock (2000)
James Edward Harden Jr. (b. 1989), American actor from Los Angeles, California, known for The Reprieve (2015)
Mark Harden (b. 1958), American actor from Sonora, California, known for his work on Captain Marvel (2019), Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) and Cutthroat Island (1995)
Francis Guinn "Frank" Harden (1922-2018), American radio announcer, co-host of The Harden and Weaver Show (1960-1998)
William S. Harden (b. 1866), American Republican politician, Member of Missouri State House of Representatives from Gentry County, 1921-22 14
Thomas C. Harden, American Democratic Party politician, Member of New York State Senate 7th District, 1909-12 14
Terry Thomas Harden, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for West Virginia State House of Delegates 35th District, 1974 14
Sonia Esther Harden, American Libertarian politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from California 10th District, 2002 14
T. H. Harden Jr., American Republican politician, Chair of Roane County Republican Party, 1969-73 14
Preston L. Harden, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Georgia, 2008 14
... (Another 22 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Harden family +

Arrow Air Flight 1285

Mr. Benny J Harden (1947-1985), American Warrant Officer Class III from Clarksville, Tennessee, USA who died in the Arrow Air Flight 1285 crash 15

HMS Prince of Wales

Mr. John T Harden, British Able Seaman, who sailed into battle on the HMS Prince of Wales (1941) and survived the sinking 16

Citations +

Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, 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)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 2018, April 30). Emigrants to New York 1820 - 1891 [PDF]. Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_new_york_1820_1891.pdf
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th July 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/dromedary
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 4th May 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/equestrian
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) The ASCENDANT 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Ascendant.htm
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 29) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
American War Memorials - Flight 1285. (Retrieved 2016, August 24) . Retrieved from http://www.uswarmemorials.org/html/monument_details.php?SiteID=317&MemID=550
HMS Prince of Wales Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listprincecrew.html