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| Origins Available: |
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The surname Barksted was first found in Yorkshire where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor in the West Riding. After the Battle of Hastings in 1066, William, Duke of Normandy, having prevailed over King Harold, granted most of Britain to his many victorious Barons. It was not uncommon to find a Baron, or a Bishop, with 60 or more Lordships scattered throughout the country. These he gave to his sons, nephews and other junior lines of his family and they became known as under-tenants. They adopted the Norman system of surnames which identified the under-tenant with his holdings so as to distinguish him from the senior stem of the family. After many rebellious wars between his Barons, Duke William, commissioned a census of all England to determine in 1086, settling once and for all, who held which land. He called the census the Domesday Book, 1 indicating that those holders registered would hold the land until the end of time. Hence, conjecturally, the surname is descended from the tenant of the lands of Barkston, held by Ilbert de Lacy as over-lord, a Norman Baron who was recorded in the Domesday Book census of 1086.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Barksted research. Another 54 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1219, 1607, 1611 and 1662 are included under the topic Early Barksted History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
A multitude of spelling variations characterize Norman surnames. Many variations occurred because Old and Middle English lacked any definite spelling rules. The introduction of Norman French to England also had a pronounced effect, as did the court languages of Latin and French. Therefore, one person was often referred to by several different spellings in a single lifetime. The various spellings include Barkston, Brakston, Braxton, Brackston, Barckston, Braxton, Barxton, Barkstead, Barksted and many more.
Outstanding amongst the family at this time was
Many English families left England, to avoid the chaos of their homeland and migrated to the many British colonies abroad. Although the conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and some travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute, once in the colonies, many of the families prospered and made valuable contributions to the cultures of what would become the United States and Canada. Research into the origins of individual families in North America has revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Barksted or a variant listed above: Wm. Barkstead, who settled in Virginia in 1701; Carter Braxton, who came to Ontario in 1871; Charles J. Braxton, who came to Texas in 1841; Christipher Braxton, who came to Mississippi in 1798.