Contents [hide]

Higham History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Higham History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The origins of the Higham name come from when the Anglo-Saxon tribes ruled over Britain. The name Higham was originally derived from a family having lived in or beside an enclosed region. The surname Higham originally derived from the Old English word "hegham" which referred to an "enclosed dwelling." 1

Early Origins of the Higham family

The surname Higham was first found in Norfolk at Heigham, Potter, a parish, in the hundred of Happing. 2

The parish dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was recorded as Echam. 3

But by 1182, the parish was known as Higham Potter and possibly meant "homestead with a hedge or hatch-gate. The affix must allude to the pot-making here at an early date." 4

As far as early records of the family is concerned, Osward de Hecham was listed in the Pipe Rolls for Essex in 1176 and a few years later, Hugo de Hegham was listed in the Pipe Rolls for Kent in 1198. 5

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 had three early entries for the family: Ralph de Hegham, Norfolk; Thomas de Hegham or Heyham, Kent; and Robert de Heyham, Suffolk. 1

Later, Robertus de Hegham was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379. "This surname is derived from a geographical locality, 'of the Hegham,' i.e. the enclosed dwelling, a spot in East Cheshire that gave rise to a surname now very familiar to the directories of the surrounding district. Also parishes in the Dioceses of Norwich, Peterborough, and Rochester, which no doubt have contributed to the list in South England." 1

Early History of the Higham family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Higham research. Another 101 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1440, 1495, 1545, 1554, 1555, 1558, 1559, 1560, 1568, 1570, 1571, 1572, 1634 and 1636 are included under the topic Early Higham History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Higham Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, French and other languages became incorporated into English through the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Higham include Hyam, Hyams, Hygham, Hyham, Higham, Highams and many more.

Early Notables of the Higham family

Notables of the family at this time include

Sir Clement Higham, (also Heigham), of Barrow Hall, Suffolk, (1495-1571), a Member of Parliament, Speaker of the House of Commons (1554-1555), Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer, and a Privy Councillor...
John Heigham (c. 1568-1634), was an English Roman Catholic printer, writer, and translator and was probably descended from a younger son of the ancient family of Heigham or Higham, of Higham, Cheshire...

Higham Ranking

In the United States, the name Higham is the 16,899^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 6

Higham migration to the United States +

A great wave of immigration to the New World was the result of the enormous political and religious disarray that struck England at that time. Families left for the New World in extremely large numbers. The long journey was the end of many immigrants and many more arrived sick and starving. Still, those who made it were rewarded with an opportunity far greater than they had known at home in England. These emigrant families went on to make significant contributions to these emerging colonies in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants:

Higham Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Lawrence Higham, who landed in Maryland in 1671 7
Thomas Higham, who settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1698

Higham Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Farwell Higham, who settled in New England in 1755

Higham Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Thomas Higham, who arrived in Charleston, South Carolina in 1812 7
Thomas Higham, who arrived in New York in 1822
Abel, James, and William Higham, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1828
John Higham, aged 58, who arrived in New York in 1868 7

Higham Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Francis Higham, aged 25, who settled in America from Wigan, in 1901
David Edward Higham, aged 45, who landed in America from Surrey, England, in 1908
Florence Higham, aged 37, who landed in America from London, in 1908
Emma Higham, aged 10, who immigrated to the United States from Wigam, England, in 1910
Edward Higham, aged 29, who immigrated to America from Bolton, England, in 1911
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Higham migration to Australia +

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

Higham Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. William Higham, (b. 1792), aged 29, British Convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Countess of Harcourt" on 8th April 1821, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land), he was executed in 1833 8
Mr. George Higham, English convict who was convicted in Chester, Cheshire, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Eden" on 8th July 1840, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 9
Mr. Abraham Higham, English convict who was convicted in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England for 10 years, transported aboard the "Candahar" on 26th March 1842, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 10
Mr. John Higham, English convict who was convicted in Salford, Greater Manchester, England for 10 years, transported aboard the "Emerald Isle" on 28th June 1843, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 11
Thomas Newbold Higham, aged 30, who arrived in South Australia in 1856 aboard the ship "Amazon"
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Higham 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:

Higham Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. Henry Higham, British settler travelling from Gravesend, UK aboard the ship "Dinapore" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 5th August 1857 12

Contemporary Notables of the name Higham (post 1700) +

John Higham (1920-2003), American historian
Dick Higham (1851-1905), American baseball player
Nicholas John Higham FRS (b. 1961), English mathematician
Charles Higham (b. 1931), English biographer and poet
Jennifer Higham (b. 1984), British television and film actress
Edward Higham (1846-1885), Australian politician

Historic Events for the Higham family +

HMS Repulse

Mr. James Higham (b. 1918), British Stoker, who sailed into battle on the HMS Repulse (1941) and survived the sinking 13

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.
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)
"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 24th March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/countess-of-harcourt
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 20th October 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eden
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 9th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/candahar
Convict Records Voyages to Australia. Retrieved 25th March 2022 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/emerald-isle
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
HMS Repulse Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listrepulsecrew.html