First found in Cheshire where they were seated from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D.

Families began migrating abroad in enormous numbers because of the political and religious discontent in England. Often faced with persecution and starvation in England, the possibilities of the New World attracted many English people. Although the ocean trips took many lives, those who did get to North America were instrumental in building the necessary groundwork for what would become for new powerful nations. Among the first immigrants of the name Sparks, or a variant listed above to cross the Atlantic and come to North America were : John Sparks who settled in Virginia in 1621; George Sparke who settled in Virginia in 1623; Robert Sparkes settled in Maryland in 1663; Thomas Sparkes settled in Virginia in 1616.

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