Fishborn History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

Early Origins of the Fishborn family

The surname Fishborn was first found in Durham at Fishbourne, Fishburn. New Fishbourn, is a parish, in the union of West Hampnett, hundred of Box and Stockbridge, rape of Chichester in Sussex. "The remains of a Roman bath with a tessellated pavement were discovered in 1812, near the site of the Roman road here. " 1

This parish dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was first listed as Fiseborne. 2

However, our interest is in Fishburn, a township, in the parish and union of Sedgefield, N. E. division of Stockton ward, S. division of the county of Durham. For it is there that "the family of Fishburn, who assumed the local name, were the earliest proprietors on record of the vill and manor; and among other landowners of whom mention occurs, have been the families of Bulmer, Widdrington, and Conyers. " 1

This township date back to at least 1190, when it was known as Fisseburne. 3 Both locations derive their name from the Old English "fisc" + "burna," which combined meant "fish stream, stream where fish are caught." 3

There is another Fishbourne on the Isle of Wight that dates back to 1267 when it was known as Fisseburne.

The first record of the family was found in the aforementioned Durham when Ranulf of Fisheburn held estates in that county in 1250. 4

From this early entry, the name became widespread as in Scotland a few years later, "an Englishman of this name was Lord of Red Castle, Lunan, in 1306. Probably from Fishburn in co. Durham. " 5

The Fishburn, built at Whitby in 1780 was the largest of the three First Fleet storeships to Botany Bay, Australia.

Early History of the Fishborn family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Fishborn research. Another 103 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1332, 1455 and 1487 are included under the topic Early Fishborn History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Fishborn Spelling Variations

The first dictionaries that appeared in the last few hundred years did much to standardize the English language. Before that time, spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. The language was changing, incorporating pieces of other languages, and the spelling of names changed with it. Fishborn has been spelled many different ways, including Fishburn, Fishborn, Fishbourn, Fishbourne, Fishburne, Fishborne, Fishbyrn, Fishbyrne, Fyshborn, Fyshborne, Fyshburn and many more.

Early Notables of the Fishborn family

Distinguished members of the family include

Fishborne of Durham

Fishborn migration to the United States +

Thousands of English families in this era began to emigrate the New World in search of land and freedom from religious and political persecution. Although the passage was expensive and the ships were dark, crowded, and unsafe, those who made the voyage safely were rewarded with opportunities unavailable to them in their homeland. Research into passenger and immigration lists has revealed some of the very first Fishborns to arrive in North America:

Fishborn Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Philip Fishborn, who arrived in Frederick County, Maryland in 1672 6

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
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)