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Blandford History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Blandford History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

In ancient Anglo-Saxon England, the ancestors of the Blandford surname lived in the region of Blandford. Further research revealed that the name is derived from ford where gudgeons abound around the county of Dorset or it may be "taken by post-Conquest scribes to mean 'White Ford,' as evidenced by the Latinization Blancoforda. " 1

Early Origins of the Blandford family

The surname Blandford was first found in Dorset at Blandford, a parish, in the union of Blandford, hundred of Coombs-Ditch, Blandford division. Abut three quarters of mile south lies Blandford-Forum. This latter parish "derived its name from its situation near an ancient ford on the river Stour, called by the Romans Trajectus Balaniensis. It was nearly destroyed by an accidental fire in 1579, but was soon afterwards rebuilt. " 2

Henry Blaneforde (fl. 1330), was an ancient English chronicler and monk of St. Albans. "A fragment of his chronicle has been preserved. Beginning with the year 1323 he possibly intended to continue the work of Trokelowe, which ends at 1330. What we have of his chronicle, however, ends in 1324, though it contains a reference to an event of 1326. The only manuscript of Blaneforde now known to exist is in the British Museum. " 3

Early History of the Blandford family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Blandford research. Another 58 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1616, 1619, 1635, 1638, 1662, 1665, 1671 and 1675 are included under the topic Early Blandford History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Blandford Spelling Variations

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, early Anglo-Saxon surnames like Blandford are characterized by many spelling variations. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages, even literate people changed the spelling of their names. The variations of the name Blandford include: Blandford, Blandeford, Blanford and others.

Early Notables of the Blandford family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

Walter Blandford (1616-1675), an English academic and bishop, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford in 1662, Bishop of Oxford in 1665 and Bishop of Worcester in 1671...
He was "the son of Walter Blandford, and was born at Melbury Abbas, Dorsetshire, in 1619...

Blandford Ranking

In the United States, the name Blandford is the 16,628^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 4

Blandford migration to the United States +

Many English families tired of political and religious strife left Britain for the new colonies in North America. Although the trip itself offered no relief - conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and many travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute - these immigrants believed the opportunities that awaited them were worth the risks. Once in the colonies, many of the families did indeed prosper and, in turn, made significant contributions to the culture and economies of the growing colonies. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families has revealed a number of immigrants bearing the name Blandford or a variant listed above:

Blandford Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

John Blandford, who settled in Boston, Massachusetts in 1620
John Blandford, who landed in New England in 1641 5
Alexander Blandford, who settled in New England in 1699

Blandford migration to Australia +

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

Blandford Settlers in Australia in the 18th Century

Mr. William Blandford, English convict who was convicted in Southampton, Hampshire, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Barwell" in September 1797, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6

Blandford Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. John Blandford, English convict who was convicted in Wiltshire, England for 7 years for breaking and entry, transported aboard the "Burrell" on 22nd July 1830, arriving in New South Wales 7
Mr. James Blandford, English convict who was convicted in Wiltshire, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Eliza" on 2nd February 1831, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 8
Ann Blandford, aged 22, a house maid, who arrived in South Australia in 1853 aboard the ship "Epaminondas" 9

Blandford 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:

Blandford Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Emily Blandford, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Gertrude" in 1863 10
Maud Blandford, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Gertrude" in 1863 10
Rosa Blandford, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Gertrude" in 1863 10
George Blandford, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Gertrude" in 1863 10
Eliza Blandford, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Gertrude" in 1863 10
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Blandford 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. 11

Blandford Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

John Blandford, who settled in Jamaica in 1684

Contemporary Notables of the name Blandford (post 1700) +

Mark Harden Blandford (1826-1902), American soldier, politician, Representative from Georgia in the Confederate Congress (1864-65) and a Justice of Georgia State Supreme Court (1872)
Heinz Blandford (b. 1919), American politician
Roger Blandford, American astronomer and astrophysicist, recipient of numerous awards including Helen B. Warner Prize (1982), Dannie Heineman Prize for Astrophysics (1988), and the Eddington Medal (1999)
Robert L. Blandford, American politician, American Labor Candidate for U.S. Representative from New York 37th District, 1952 12
Robert Heinz Blandford (b. 1919), American Republican politician, Candidate in primary for Michigan State Senate 16th District, 1954; Delegate to Michigan State Constitutional Convention from Kent County 1st District, 1961-62 12
Douglas Blandford, American politician, Mayor of Rockville, Maryland, 1932-46 12
Donald J. Blandford, American Democratic Party politician, Member of Kentucky State House of Representatives 14th District, 1968-83 12
Hugh Francis Blandford (1917-1981), English chess endgame composer from Southampton
Sidney Dara Blandford (1868-1929), Newfoundland lawyer and politician who represented Bonavista in the Legislative Assembly of Newfoundland and Labrador from 1904 to 1913, son of Samuel Blandford
Samuel Blandford (1840-1909), Newfoundland sealing captain and politician who represented Bonavista Bay in the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly from 1889 to 1893, brother of Darius Blandford
... (Another 3 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 29th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/barwell
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 5th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/burrell
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 28th February 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eliza
South Australian Register Monday 26th December 1853. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) Epaminondas 1853. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/epaminondas1853.shtml
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 12th December 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 1) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html