Show ContentsWasborowe History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Wasborowe is a name that was brought to England by the ancestors of the Wasborowe family when they migrated to the region after the Norman Conquest in 1066. The Wasborowe family lived at Washbourne in Devon. [1] The Domesday Book lists the village as Waseborne [2] and literally meant "stream used for washing (sheep or clothes.)" [3]

Alternatively, the name could have originated at Washburn, in Yorkshire or at Great Washbourne or Little Washbourne, parishes in Gloucestershire. [4] The Gloucestershire parishes actually date back to Saxon times when they were collectively known as Uassanburnan in 780. By the time of the Domesday Book both were known Waseborne. [2]

Early Origins of the Wasborowe family

The surname Wasborowe was first found in Devon where it is related the family took their name from Waseborne, now Wasbourne in that county soon after the Norman Conquest in 1066. This village was granted to Hermer from Gotshelm. [1]

By the end of the 11th century they had branched to Worcestershire where they became a family great consequence. They were generations of knights at the Manor at the Washbournes intermarring with the distinguished families of Zouch, Corbett, Wysham, Blount and the Earls of Warwick. Sir Roger Washbourne is the first on record.

Early rolls reveal Williara de Wasseburn listed in the Pipe Rolls for Worcestershire in 1204. John Washburn was found in the Subsidy Rolls for Worcestershire c. 1280 and William de Wasshebourn was found in the Feet of Fines for Yorkshire in 1333. [1]

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 list William de Wassebourn in Huntingdonshire and Anthony Washbourne from Worcestershire was registered at Oxford University (no date given.) [5]

Early History of the Wasborowe family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Wasborowe research. Another 126 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1598, 1599, 1606, 1616, 1631, 1654, 1687, 1759, 1760, 1824, 1829 and 1833 are included under the topic Early Wasborowe History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Wasborowe Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence in the eras before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate regularly changed the spellings of their names as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Wasborowe have been found, including Washbourne, Washburn, Washborne, Washborn and others.

Early Notables of the Wasborowe family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was William Washbourne, High Sheriff of Montgomeryshire in 1631; and Thomas Washbourne (1606-1687), an English clergyman and poet, Canon of Gloucester, best known for his 1654 book Divine Poems. "He was younger son of John Washbourne of Wichenford, Worcestershire. The Washbourne family had been settled in Gloucestershire for several centuries. " [6]John Washbourn (1760?-1829), was a local historian, son of John Washbourn (d. 1824?) and was descended from an ancient Gloucestershire family (Burke...
Another 80 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Wasborowe Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Wasborowe family

For many English families, the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. For such families, the shores of Ireland, Australia, and the New World beckoned. They left their homeland at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. Many arrived after the long voyage sick, starving, and without a penny. But even those were greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. Numerous English settlers who arrived in the United States and Canada at this time went on to make important contributions to the developing cultures of those countries. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Wasborowe were among those contributors: Margerie Washborn settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1635 with her two sons, Joe, and Phillip; John Washborne settled in Virginia in 1619; one year before the ".



  1. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  2. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  3. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  4. Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
  5. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  6. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print


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