Show ContentsJennison History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Jennison family

The surname Jennison was first found in Northumberland at Woolsington, a township, in the parish of Dinnington, union and W. division of Castle ward. "The lands anciently belonged to Tynemouth priory, and in the reign of Elizabeth were possessed by the Jennison family. Woolsington Park is a handsome [family] seat." [1]

Early History of the Jennison family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Jennison research. Another 124 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1153, 1510, 1525, 1584, 1587, 1590, 1597, 1600, 1607, 1613, 1649, 1652, 1654, 1656, 1677, 1679, 1680, 1683, 1684, 1688, 1700, 1701, 1705, 1734 and 1772 are included under the topic Early Jennison History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Jennison 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 Jennison family name include Jenison, Jennison, Jenyson, Jennyson and others.

Early Notables of the Jennison family

Distinguished members of the family include

  • Robert Jenison or Jennison (1584?-1652), English Puritan, son of Ralph Jenison, who died mayor of Newcastle, 16 May 1597, and cousin of Robert Jenison [q. v.], Jesuit, was born at Newcastle about 1584...


United States Jennison 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 Jennison surname or a spelling variation of the name include:

Jennison Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Tho Jennison, aged 21, who arrived in Bermuda in 1635 [2]
  • Robert Jennison, who landed in Watertown, Massachusetts in 1637 [2]
  • Alexander Jennison, who landed in Virginia in 1658 [2]
Jennison Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • John P Jennison, aged 26, who landed in New York, NY in 1822 [2]
  • H P Jennison, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 [2]
  • Mrs. M Jennison, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1855 [2]

Canada Jennison migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Jennison Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • William Jennison, who landed in Anapolis (Annapolis), Nova Scotia in 1760

Australia Jennison migration to Australia +

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

Jennison Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Miss Elizabeth Jennison, English Convict who was convicted in Dorset, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Atwick" on 28 September 1837, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) [3]

Contemporary Notables of the name Jennison (post 1700) +

  • Silas Hemenway Jennison (1791-1849), American Whig politician
  • Ray Jennison, American player in the National Football League
  • Charles R. Jennison (1834-1884), American hero of the anti-slavery faction during the Bleeding Kansas Affair
  • Stephen E. Jennison, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for New York State Assembly from Franklin County, 1900 [4]
  • S. P. Jennison, American politician, Secretary of State of Minnesota, 1872-76 [4]
  • S. Jennison, American politician, Member of California State Assembly 25th District, 1863-65 [4]
  • Robin Jennison, American Republican politician, Speaker of the Kansas State House of Representatives, 1999-2000 [4]
  • Robert L. Jennison, American politician, U.S. Vice Consul in Montevideo, 1921 [4]
  • Robert H. Jennison, American Republican politician, Speaker of the Kansas State House of Representatives, 1955-56 [4]
  • Robert Jennison, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for New York State Assembly from Cortland County, 1940 [4]
  • ... (Another 4 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)


  1. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  2. 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)
  3. Convict Records of Australia. Retreived 23rd August 2020 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/atwick
  4. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 9) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


Houseofnames.com on Facebook