Berresford History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Berresford is a name of ancient Anglo-Saxon origin and comes from the family once having lived in Beresford, in Staffordshire. The name is derived from the word beris, which means bear.

Early Origins of the Berresford family

The surname Berresford was first found in Staffordshire, where the family held "a manor and township in Alstonfield, possessed by the ancestors of the several noble families of this surname for centuries." 1 It is generally thought that John de Beresford, Lord of Beresford held a manor "in the best part of the Moorlands" in 1087.

"The manor [of Fenny Bentley, Derbyshire] belonged to a branch of the Beresfords of Staffordshire, who settled at this place in the reign of Henry VI. The elder branch of the Beresfords of Bentley, soon became extinct in the male line, and the manor came, by marriage with their heiress, to the Beresfords of Staffordshire, from whom it passed into various hands." 2

"Beresford Hall, an ancient mansion now partly in ruins, stands on the west bank of the Dove, about two miles above Alstonfield. The Beresford Hall estate gives the title of Viscount to William Carr Beresford, general in the army, and Duke of Elvas, in Portugal, whose family has possessed this manor from the time of the Conquest." 2 Years later, Adam de Beresford was listed in the Subsidy Rolls in Staffordshire in 1327. 3 The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 list William de Beresford in Cambridgeshire. 4 Iselhempstead Latimer in Buckinghamshire was another ancient family seat. "This place, with the surrounding estate, belonged in the reign of Edward III. to Simon Beresford." 2

Ralph de Bereford (fl. 1329), was an English judge and "was of a legal family possessing large estates in the midland counties. He may have been a son of Osbert de Barford, or Bereford, chief gentleman to Ranulf of Hengham, justice of the common pleas, who was probably son of Walter de Barford of Langley in Warwickshire, and brother of Sir William de Bereford (d. 1326), Chief Justice of the Common Pleas in 1309. " 5

Early History of the Berresford family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Berresford research. Another 122 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1588, 1669, 1673, 1681, 1694, 1701, 1746, 1763, 1768, 1773, 1854, 1862 and 1893 are included under the topic Early Berresford History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Berresford Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Berresford family name include Beresford, Berresford, Berrisford, Berisford, Bereford and many more.

Early Notables of the Berresford family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Sir Tristram Beresford, 1st Baronet (died 1673), an Irish soldier and politician, eldest son of Tristram Beresford, from Kent who had settled in Ireland. Humphrey Berisford (died ca...
Another 35 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Berresford Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Berresford family to Ireland

Some of the Berresford family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 119 words (8 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Berresford migration to the United States +

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, 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 Berresford surname or a spelling variation of the name include:

Berresford Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Harold Berresford, aged 11, who landed in America, in 1893
J. D. Berresford, aged 35, who immigrated to the United States from Granada, in 1893
Samuel Berresford, aged 44, who landed in America, in 1893
Mary A. Berresford, aged 25, who landed in America, in 1895
Margaret Berresford, aged 20, who immigrated to the United States, in 1896

Berresford Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Hannah Berresford, aged 18, who settled in America from Macclesfield, in 1905
Samuel Berresford, aged 62, who immigrated to America from Chesterfield, England, in 1911
Arthur William Berresford, aged 46, who landed in America, in 1919
Arthur Berresford, aged 49, who settled in Milwaukee, in 1921
William Berresford, aged 24, who landed in America, in 1922
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Berresford (post 1700) +

Virginia Berresford (1902-1995), American printer, printmaker and an art gallery owner
Joshua Lee "Josh" Berresford (b. 1978), American actor, model, and spokesperson from Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania
Susan Vail Berresford (b. 1943), American foundation executive, president of the Ford Foundation (1996 to 2007)
Peter Berresford Ellis (b. 1943), English historian, literary biographer, and novelist who has published over 90 books

The Berresford 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: Nil nisi cruce
Motto Translation: Nothing unless by the cross.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print