Hammersmith History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Hammersmith is a name of ancient Anglo-Saxon origin and comes from the family once having lived in the village of Hammersley, in the county of Staffordshire. The surname Hammersmith was originally derived from the Old English word hamm, which means flat, low-lying land and the Old English word ley, which refers to a wood clearing or grove.

Early Origins of the Hammersmith family

The surname Hammersmith was first found in Staffordshire at Hammersley, "a locality probably to be found in Staffordshire." 1 We can find no record of this village today, but there is no doubt some or all of the family came from Staffordshire. By example, the Register of the University of Oxford list Walter Hamersley, in 1610 and William Hamersly in 1617 as both being from Staffordshire 1 Evidence of the family was also found at Kencott in Oxfordshire. It was here that "the family of Hammersley: the tithes were commuted for land and a money payment in 1767." 2

Early History of the Hammersmith family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Hammersmith research. Another 77 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1687 and 1801 are included under the topic Early Hammersmith History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hammersmith 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 Hammersmith family name include Hammersley, Hammersly and others.

Early Notables of the Hammersmith family

More information is included under the topic Early Hammersmith Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hammersmith 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 Hammersmith surname or a spelling variation of the name include:

Hammersmith Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Philip Hammersmith, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1753 3

Hammersmith Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Martin Hammersmith, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1865 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Hammersmith (post 1700) +

Thomas Hammersmith, American politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Ohio 1st District, 1910 4
Donalda Ann Hammersmith, American Republican politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Wisconsin 5th District, 1990, 1992 4

Citations +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
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)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 26) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html