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Harford History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables

United States Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Harford History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Early Origins of the Harford family

The surname Harford was first found in Hertfordshire where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor. After the Battle of Hastings in 1066, William, Duke of Normandy, having prevailed over King Harold, granted most of Britain to his many victorious Barons. It was not uncommon to find a Baron, or a Bishop, with 60 or more Lordships scattered throughout the country. These he gave to his sons, nephews and other junior lines of his family and they became known as under-tenants. They adopted the Norman system of surnames which identified the under-tenant with his holdings so as to distinguish him from the senior stem of the family. After many rebellious wars between his Barons, Duke William, commissioned a census of all England to determine in 1086, settling once and for all, who held which land. He called the census the Domesday Book, 1 indicating that those holders registered would hold the land until the end of time. Hence, conjecturally, the surname is descended from the tenant of the lands of Hertford held by Count Alan and Eudo Fitzherbert from the King who were recorded in the Domesday Book census of 1086.

Early History of the Harford family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Harford research. Another 173 words (12 lines of text) covering the year 1588 is included under the topic Early Harford History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Harford Spelling Variations

Norman surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. The frequent changes in surnames are largely due to the fact that the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The introduction of Norman French to England, as well as the official court languages of Latin and French, also had pronounced influences on the spelling of surnames. Since medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings. The name has been spelled Hartford, Harford, Hertford, Hartforth, Hertforth and others.

Early Notables of the Harford family

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

Harford migration to the United States +

Many English families emigrated to North American colonies in order to escape the political chaos in Britain at this time. Unfortunately, many English families made the trip to the New World 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 stormy Atlantic. Despite these hardships, many of the families prospered and went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the United States and Canada. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the name Harford or a variant listed above:

Harford Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

John Harford, who settled in Virginia in 1607
John Harford, who arrived in Jamestown, Va in 1607 2
Mary Harford, who arrived in Virginia in 1636 2
Margaret Harford, who landed in Virginia in 1637 2
William Harford, who landed in Maryland in 1652 2
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Harford Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Richard Harford, who landed in Virginia in 1703 2
Henry Harford, who landed in Virginia in 1725 2
Charles Harford, who arrived in New York in 1795

Harford migration to Australia +

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

Harford Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Samuel Harford, English convict who was convicted in Wiltshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Eliza" on 2nd February 1831, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 3
Samuel Harford a farmer, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Navarino" in 1837 4
Mary Ann Harford, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Navarino" in 1837 4
Stephen Harford a teamster, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Navarino" in 1837 4
Mary Harford, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Navarino" in 1837 4
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Harford 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:

Harford Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

James Harford, aged 34, who landed in Nelson, New Zealand in 1842 aboard the ship Bolton
Robert Harford, aged 30, a railway wagon builder, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Conflict" in 1874

Harford 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. 5

Harford Settlers in West Indies in the 18th Century

Elizabeth Harford, who settled in Jamaica in 1730

Contemporary Notables of the name Harford (post 1700) +

Sir Mark John Harford (b. 1964), 4th Baronet of Falcondale, County of Cardigan, English peer
Sir "John" Timothy Harford (1932-2010), 3rd Baronet of Falcondale, County of Cardigan, English peer
Sir George Arthur Harford (1897-1967), 2nd Baronet of Falcondale, County of Cardigan, English peer
Sir John Charles Harford (1860-1934), 1st Baronet of Falcondale, County of Cardigan, English peer
Henry Harford (1758-1760), 5th Proprietor of Maryland English diplomat, the last proprietary owner of the British colony of Maryland
Raymond Thomas "Ray" Harford (1945-2003), English footballer, coach and manager
Michael Gordon "Mick" Harford (b. 1959), English former football player who played from 1977 to 1998, Member of the 1988 England National Team, current manager
Tim Harford (b. 1973), English journalist and economist, best known for his long-running Financial Times column, "The Undercover Economist"
John Scandrett Harford FRS (1785-1866), British banker, benefactor and abolitionist, owner of Blaise Castle, Bristol 6
Mr. Timothy Douglas Harford O.B.E. (b. 1973), British Economist and Journalist, was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire on 29th December 2018 for services to Improving Economic Understanding 7
... (Another 6 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Harford family +

Empress of Ireland

Mr. N. Harford, British Seaman from United Kingdom who worked aboard the Empress of Ireland (1914) and survived the sinking 8

Citations +

Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
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 28th February 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eliza
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) NAVARINO 1837. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1837Navarino.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
Wikisource contributors. "Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900." Wikisource . Wikisource , 4 Jun. 2018. Web. 30 June 2020
"Birthday and New Year Honours Lists (1940 to 2019)." Issue 62507, 28 December 2018 | London Gazette, The Gazette, Dec. 2018, www.thegazette.co.uk/honours-lists
Commemoration Empress of Ireland 2014. (Retrieved 2014, June 17) . Retrieved from http://www.empress2014.ca/seclangen/listepsc1.html