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Hard History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Hard History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Germany

The name Hard is an old Anglo-Saxon name. It comes from when a family lived in Upper Hardres or Lower Hardres, near Canterbury referred to as Hardres. Both parishes dates back to Saxon times where they were collectively known as Haredum in 785. 1 By the Domesday Book of 1086, the parishes were known as Hardes. 2 The place names literally mean "place at the woods," from the Old English "harad." 1

Early Origins of the Hard family

The surname Hard was first found in Kent, where family members were Lords of the manor Lyminge. The earliest recorded ancestor is Robert de Hardres, who lived during the reigns of Edward the Confessor and William the Conqueror. He held his lands from the Archbishop of Canterbury, which consisted of a church, a mill, and a fishery of forty eels, as recorded in the Domesday Book. 2

"There are two parishes in that county so called, and Hardres Court was the family seat down to the extinction of the baronetcy in 1764. The family derived from Ardres in Picardy and conferred their name upon the Kentish localities-a circumstance of rare but not of unique occurrence. "3

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 had two listings for the family, both in Kent: Gunnora de Hardres; and Robert de Hardres. 4

Early History of the Hard family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Hard research. Another 195 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1606, 1610, 1635, 1642, 1660, 1664, 1669, 1673, 1676, 1679, 1681, 1686, 1688, 1718, 1736 and 1764 are included under the topic Early Hard History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hard Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years, the English language had no fast system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations are commonly found in early Anglo-Saxon surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Hard were recorded, including Hardress, Hardres, Hardresse, Hardrese, Harders and many more.

Early Notables of the Hard family

Distinguished members of the family include

Sir Richard Hadres of Kent, Baronet, who was buried in London in 1676

Hard Ranking

In the United States, the name Hard is the 12,415^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 5

Hard migration to the United States +

To escape oppression and starvation at that time, many English families left for the "open frontiers" of the New World with all its perceived opportunities. In droves people migrated to the many British colonies, those in North America in particular, paying high rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Although many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, those who did see the shores of North America perceived great opportunities before them. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Research into various historical records revealed some of first members of the Hard family emigrate to North America:

Hard Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Xtopr Hard, who landed in Virginia in 1651 6
William Hard, who arrived in Virginia in 1663-1664 6
William Hard, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1683 6

Hard Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Jacob Hard, aged 24, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1748 6

Hard Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Hard, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1840 6
Samuel Hard, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 6
Carl August Hard, who settled in Minneapolis sometime between 1873 and 1878

Hard migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Hard Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Mr. James Hard U.E. who settled in Eastern District [Cornwall], Ontario c. 1784 7
Mr. Phili Hard U.E. who settled in Eastern District [Cornwall], Ontario c. 1784 7

Hard migration to Australia +

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

Hard Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Thomas Hard, English convict from Cambridge, who was transported aboard the "Agincourt" on July 6, 1844, settling in Van Diemen's Land, Australia 8

Contemporary Notables of the name Hard (post 1700) +

Darlene Ruth Hard (1936-2021), American professional tennis player; she captured singles titles at the French Championships in 1960 and the U.S. Championships in 1960 and 1961
Ron Hard, American Libertarian politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Texas 6th District, 1982 9
Myron E. Hard, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for Ohio commissioner of common schools, 1897 9
Judy Hard, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Florida, 1972 9
John A. Hard, American politician, Warden (Borough President) of Bantam, Connecticut, 1920 9
Henry Merritt Hard (1842-1929), American politician, Member of New York State Assembly from Orleans County, 1882-83 9
Gideon Hard (1797-1885), American politician, Representative from New York 33rd District, 1833-37; Member of New York State Senate 8th District, 1842-47; County Judge in New York, 1856-60 9
David M. Hard, American politician, Member of New York State Assembly from Otsego County 2nd District, 1858 9
D. D. T. Hard, American politician, Delegate to Ohio State Constitutional Convention from Jackson County, 1850-51 9
Benjamin Hard (1779-1836), American politician, Member of Connecticut State House of Representatives from Newtown, 1825-26, 1828 9
... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
"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)
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2014, November 24) Agincourt voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1844 with 226 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/agincourt/1844
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 29) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html