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Basford History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Basford History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The Anglo-Saxon name Basford comes from when the family resided in Nottinghamshire having derived from the Old English word basaforde, which means the dweller by the birch-ford. Another reference suggests that the names was derived from the ford near the home of Bassa (Bassa's ford) or from the French expression le bas ford, meaning the lower ford. Today there are also towns named Basford in Cheshire, Nottinghamshire, Shropshire and Staffordshire and the surname may indicate a person's residence in one of these places.

Early Origins of the Basford family

The surname Basford was first found in Nottinghamshire, near Nottingham where one of the first records of the name was found as Chaplain de Basford who was listed there in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273.

Early History of the Basford family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Basford research. Another 41 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Basford History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Basford Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, French and other languages became incorporated into English through the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Basford include Bassford, Basford, Bassforde, Basforde, Bashford, Bashforde, Bashfield, Bashfeild and many more.

Early Notables of the Basford family

Notables of the family at this time include

Roger Basford was Sheriff of London at the time of King Henry VIII

Basford migration to the United States +

A great wave of immigration to the New World was the result of the enormous political and religious disarray that struck England at that time. Families left for the New World in extremely large numbers. The long journey was the end of many immigrants and many more arrived sick and starving. Still, those who made it were rewarded with an opportunity far greater than they had known at home in England. These emigrant families went on to make significant contributions to these emerging colonies in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants:

Basford Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Will Basford, aged 19, who landed in Virginia in 1635 aboard the ship "Speedwell" 1
Ann Basford who settled in Virginia in 1677
Henry Basford, who landed in Virginia in 1695 1

Basford Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

James Basford, who arrived in South Carolina in 1703 1
Jacob Basford, who landed in Hampton, NH in 1729 1

Basford Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

J Basford, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 1
John Basford, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1866

Basford migration to Australia +

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

Basford Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

William Basford, English convict from Chester, who was transported aboard the "Albion" on May 17, 1823, settling in Van Diemen's Land, Australia 2
Mr. David Basford, English convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Clyde" on 20th August 1830, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 3
Mr. George Basford who was convicted in Hertford, Hertfordshire, England for 15 years, transported aboard the "Clara" on 19th March 1857, arriving in Western Australia, Australia 4

Basford 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:

Basford Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. William Basford, (b. 1835), aged 29, British farm labourer travelling from Gravesend, UK aboard the ship "British Empire" arriving in Lyttelton, South Island, New Zealand on 6th September 1864 5
Mrs. Mary Ann Basford, (b. 1839), aged 25, British settler travelling from Gravesend, UK aboard the ship "British Empire" arriving in Lyttelton, South Island, New Zealand on 6th September 1864 5

Contemporary Notables of the name Basford (post 1700) +

William T. "Bill" Basford (1930-2022), American politician, Member of the Florida House of Representatives (1963-1966)
Stanley Ronald "Ron" Basford (1932-2005), Canadian Statesman

Citations +

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)
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Albion voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1823 with 200 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/albion/1823
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 19th February 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/clyde
Convict Records of Australia. Retrieved 11th February 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/clara
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html