Ledford History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The name Ledford has a long Anglo-Saxon heritage. The name comes from when a family lived in the area of Latchford in the parish of Grappenhall in Chester. Ledford is a habitation name from the broad category of surnames that were derived from place-names. They were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. Other local names are derived from the names of houses, manors, estates, regions, and entire counties.

Early Origins of the Ledford family

The surname Ledford was first found in Chester at Latchford, a chapelry in the union of Grappenhill, in the hundred of Bucklow. There is no mention in the Domesday Book of the place so presumably it was either of little significance or was established at a later time. Latchford had anciently two weekly markets and two annual fairs, granted to it by Edward III. The township is included in the parliamentary borough of Warrington, and comprises 731 acres. The family is believed to have originated here. Latchford is also a hamlet, in the parish of Great Haseley, poor-law union of Thame, hundred of Ewelme, in Oxfordshire, but this hamlet remained small through the ages as by 1890 it containing only 32 inhabitants whereas at that time the former Latchford had 2,361. 1

The Lackford variant is believed to have originated in Lackford, Suffolk, a parish, in the union and hundred of Thingoe. 1 Today, the parish contains the Lackford Lakes nature reserve and SSSI, created from reclaimed gravel pits. Lackford Hall was built around 1570, but the parish dates back much further than that. In fact, the Domesday Book of 1086 lists the place as Lecforda and probably meant "ford where leeks grow," from the Old English "leac" + "ford." 2 The Lackford hundred consisting of 83,712 acres and is similarly listed in the Domesday Book. 3

Early History of the Ledford family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ledford research. Another 72 words (5 lines of text) covering the year 1630 is included under the topic Early Ledford History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ledford Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate spelled their names differently as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Ledford have been found, including Latchford, Latchforde, Lashford, Lashforde and others.

Early Notables of the Ledford family

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

Ledford Ranking

In the United States, the name Ledford is the 1,700^th most popular surname with an estimated 17,409 people with that name. 4

Migration of the Ledford family to Ireland

Some of the Ledford family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 36 words (3 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ledford migration to the United States +

Families began migrating abroad in enormous numbers because of the political and religious discontent in England. Often faced with persecution and starvation in England, the possibilities of the New World attracted many English people. Although the ocean trips took many lives, those who did get to North America were instrumental in building the necessary groundwork for what would become for new powerful nations. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America bore the name Ledford, or a variant listed above:

Ledford Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

John Ledford, who landed in North Carolina in 1763 5

Ledford Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Ellen Ledford, aged 19, originally from Donegal, Ireland, who arrived in New York in 1903 aboard the ship "Columbia" from Londonderry, Ireland 6
Benjamin Ledford, aged 42, who arrived in New York, New York in 1912 aboard the ship "Pennsylvania" from Hamburg, Germany 6
Peter Ledford, originally from Liverpool, England, who arrived in New York City, New York in 1919 aboard the ship "Carmania" from Liverpool, England 6
Bella Ledford, aged 25, originally from Londonderry, Ireland, who arrived in New York in 1921 aboard the ship "Cameronia" from Queenstown, Ireland 6
Mary Ledford, aged 24, originally from Kildare, Ireland, who arrived in New York City, New York in 1922 aboard the ship "Tuscania (1922)" from Londonderry, Ireland 6

Contemporary Notables of the name Ledford (post 1700) +

Frank F. Ledford Jr. (b. 1934), American orthopedic surgeon who served as the 37th Surgeon General of the United States Army
John R. Ledford (b. 1968), American entrepreneur, co-founder and former president of ADV Films
Dwayne Ledford (b. 1976), former American center in the National Football League
Lily May Ledford (1917-1985), American clawhammer banjo and fiddle player
Homer C. Ledford (1927-2006), American instrument maker and bluegrass musician from Kentucky
Mark Ledford (1960-2004), American trumpet player, vocalist, guitarist and drummer
Brandy Lee Ledford (b. 1969), American actress and model
Cawood Ledford (1926-2001), American Hall of Fame and longtime radio play-by-play announcer
Len Ledford, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from South Carolina, 1972 7
Jeff Ledford, American Republican politician, Candidate in primary for Oklahoma State House of Representatives 55th District, 2009 7
... (Another 2 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
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)
"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)
Ellis Island Search retrieved 15th November 2022. Retrieved from https://heritage.statueofliberty.org/passenger-result
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 9) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html