Contents [hide]

Stratford History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Canada Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Motto Citations

Stratford History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The Stratford surname is a habitation name derived from one of various places, so named. These place names come from the Old English words "stroet," and "ford;" thus describing a location where the road crossed a stream. Places named Stratford that can be found in the Domesday Book include towns in Suffolk, Wiltshire, and of course Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, held at that time by the Bishop of Worcester.

Early Origins of the Stratford family

The surname Stratford was first found in Suffolk where a Robert de Stratford was listed in the Domesday Book, as holding the Hundred of Samford both before and after the Conquest.

John de Stratford (died 1348) was Archbishop of Canterbury and Treasurer and Chancellor of England. He was born at Stratford-on-Avon, where he and his brother Robert de Stratford (died 1362) held property. His father, the elder Robert de Stratford is attributed the foundation in 1296 of the chapel of the guild at Stratford and of the almshouses in connection therewith.

Ralph de Stratford (died 1354), was Bishop of London and probably the son of a sister of John de Stratford, Archbishop of Canterbury, and of Robert de Stratford, Bishop of Chichester. 1

Early History of the Stratford family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Stratford research. Another 81 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1273, 1379, 1589, 1602, 1633, 1640, 1660, 1689, 1698, 1707, 1727, 1736, 1739 and 1777 are included under the topic Early Stratford History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Stratford Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Stratford, Strafford and others.

Early Notables of the Stratford family

Notables of the family at this time include

Edmund Stratford (died 1640?) an English Catholic divine, descended from an ancient family in Worcestershire...
Nicholas Stratford (1633-1707), born at Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, was an Anglican prelate, Bishop of Chester from 1689 to 1707...

Stratford Ranking

In New Zealand, the name Stratford is the 930^th most popular surname with an estimated 801 people with that name. 2

Migration of the Stratford family to Ireland

Some of the Stratford family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 61 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Stratford migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Stratford Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Richard Stratford, who arrived in Maryland in 1637-1640 3
Joseph Stratford, who landed in Maryland in 1664 3
William Stratford, who landed in Maryland in 1668 3
Anthony Stratford, who landed in Maryland in 1684 3

Stratford Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

James Stratford, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1839 3

Stratford migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Stratford Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Thomas Stratford, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749
William Stratford, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1750
Mr. Thomas Stratford U.E. who settled in Eastern District [Cornwall], Ontario c. 1784 4

Stratford migration to Australia +

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

Stratford Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. James Stratford, (Joseph), English convict who was convicted in Surrey, England for 7 years for larceny, transported aboard the "Baring" in December 1818, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, he died in 1885 5
George Stratford, who arrived in Holdfast Bay, Australia aboard the ship "John Renwick" in 1837 6
John Stratford, who arrived in Holdfast Bay, Australia aboard the ship "John Renwick" in 1837 6
Lucy Stratford, who arrived in Holdfast Bay, Australia aboard the ship "John Renwick" in 1837 6
Mary Stratford, who arrived in Holdfast Bay, Australia aboard the ship "John Renwick" in 1837 6
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Stratford 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:

Stratford Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

George A Stratford, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1840 aboard the ship Aurora
John Stratford, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1840 aboard the ship Cuba
John Stratford, aged 26, a gamekeeper, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Cuba" in 1840
Charles Stratford, aged 23, a farm labourer, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Clifford" in 1842
Sarah Stratford, aged 24, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Clifford" in 1842
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Stratford 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. 7

Stratford Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Mr. Robert Stratford, (b. 1618), aged 16, British settler travelling from London, UK arriving in St Christopher (St. Kitts) on 5th January 1634 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Stratford (post 1700) +

Timothy P Stratford, American executive, Vice Chairman and General Counsel for General Motors in China
William J. Stratford, American Democratic Party politician, Postmaster at Forest City, Pennsylvania, 1949-81 8
Stan Stratford, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate in primary for Kentucky State House of Representatives 33rd District, 1973 8
Lieutenant William Samuel Stratford (1789-1853), British Naval officer and astronomer, 1st Secretary of the Astronomical Society in 1820
Cecil Vernon Wingfield Stratford (1853-1939), English international footballer
Paul Stratford (b. 1955), English former professional footballer
Nicholas Stratford (1633-1707), Anglican prelate
Ralph Stratford, English medieval Bishop of London
Alfred Hugh Stratford (1853-1914), English sportsman
Robert de Stratford (1292-1362), English bishop and was one of Edward III of England's principal ministers
... (Another 4 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Stratford 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: Virtuti nihil obstat et armis
Motto Translation: Nothing resists valour and arms.

Citations +

Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
"Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
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)
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 September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/baring
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) JOHN RENWICK 1837. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1837JohnRenwick.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 18) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html