First found in Surrey where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D. The place name Clapham or "Clappa's farm"dates back to Anglo-Saxon times. Osgoode Clapa (d. 1054) held land in the Kingdom of East Anglia. He can be found as a witness to charters from 1026, and is mentioned the " Anglo-Saxon Chronicles." Other early records of the name include Simon Clapp in the Curia Regis Rolls for Oxfordshire in 1206; William le Clop in the Assize Rolls of Yorkshire of 1222; and Laurence Clappe listed in the Pipe Rolls for Oxfordshire in 1230.

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More about the Clap History...

Please remember that this page is only a small extract of our complete history that includes:

• Ancient origin of the name (usually pre-1100)
• Known spelling variations
• Early movement of the family name during the Middle Ages
• Noteworthy bearers from the 1500-1600s
• First settlers to North America
• Notable contemporary bearers of the name
• A description and/or full color picture of the Coat of Arms, Crest, and Motto (where available)

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Clap surname or a spelling variation of the name include : Thomas Clapp, who was on record in Barnstable Massachusetts in 1630; Roger Clapp, who arrived at Nantasket, MA, aboard the "Mary and John" in 1630; Edward Clapp, who came to Dorchester, MA in 1633.

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