Fairfield History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The name Fairfield reached England in the great wave of migration following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Fairfield family lived in the counties of Lancashire, Derbyshire and Somerset.
Early Origins of the Fairfield family
The surname Fairfield was first found in Cumberland where they held a family seat from very early times and were granted lands by Duke William of Normandy, their liege Lord, for their distinguished assistance at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 A.D.
Early History of the Fairfield family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Fairfield research. Another 138 words (10 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Fairfield History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Fairfield Spelling Variations
Before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Sound was what guided spelling in the Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Fairfield family name include Fairfield, Farefield, Farfield and others.
Early Notables of the Fairfield family
Outstanding amongst the family at this time was
Fairfield Ranking
In the United States, the name Fairfield is the 9,975th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1
Fairfield migration to the United States +
To escape the political and religious chaos of this era, thousands of English families began to migrate to the New World in search of land and freedom from religious and political persecution. The passage was expensive and the ships were dark, crowded, and unsafe; however, those who made the voyage safely were encountered opportunities that were not available to them in their homeland. Many of the families that reached the New World at this time went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of the United States and Canada. Research into various historical records has revealed some of first members of the Fairfield family to immigrate North America:
Fairfield Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
- Daniel Fairfield, who settled in Salem, Massachusetts in 1620
- Daniel Fairfield, who arrived in America in 1620 2
- John Fairfield, who arrived in Salem, Massachusetts in 1639 2
- James Fairfield, who arrived in Maryland in 1664 2
Fairfield Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
- John Fairfield, who settled in Belfast, Maine, in 1822
- Arthur Fairfield, aged 46, who arrived in Missouri in 1845 2
- H Fairfield, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1850 2
- B L Fairfield, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1850 2
- G Fairfield, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 2
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Fairfield migration to Canada +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Fairfield Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
- Mr. Benjamin Fairfield U.E. who settled in Ernest Town [Ernestown], Ontario c. 1784 3
- Mr. Eleazer Fairfield U.E. who settled in Yonge [Toronto], Ontario c. 1784 3
- Mr. William Fairfield U.E. who settled in Canada c. 1784 3
- Mr. William Fairfield Sr., U.E. who settled in Canada c. 1786 3
- Mr. Archibald Fairfield U.E. who settled in Kingston, Ontario c. 1786 3
Fairfield migration to Australia +
Emigration to
Australia followed the
First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:
Fairfield Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
- William F. Fairfield, aged 22, a ploughman, who arrived in South Australia in 1850 aboard the ship "Trafalgar" 4
Contemporary Notables of the name Fairfield (post 1700) +
- Paula Fairfield, American two-time Primetime Emmy Award winning sound engineer, known for her work on Game of Thrones (2011), Mother! (2017) and Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan (2018)
- Patricia Fairfield, American researcher at Georgetown University
- Heather Fairfield, American actress and producer, known for The War of the Roses (1989), The Opposite of Sex (1997) and Frame Up (1991)
- William Fairfield (1662-1742), American politician, Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Deputies in 1741
- Priscilla Fairfield Bok (1896-1975), American astronomer, wife of Dutch-born astronomer Bart Bok, Director of Mount Stromlo Observatory in Australia
- John Fairfield (d. 1861), American "conductor" on the Underground Railroad, portrayed by Robert Carradine in a 1987 Disney Sunday Movie titled The Liberators
- Edmund Burke Fairfield (1821-1904), American minister, educator and politician, 12th Lieutenant Governor of Michigan (1859-1861), 2nd Chancellor of the University of Nebraska
- Donald W. Fairfield (b. 1930), American professional PGA golfer born in Kansas, who had three PGA wins
- Rosa Fairfield, English actress from Netherton, England, known for Pinafore & Braces (2018), Perspectives of the Mind (2019) and Oh Ducky Sketch Show
- Josephine Letitia Denny Fairfield CBE (1885-1978), Australian physician, lawyer, war-worker, and the first ever female Chief Medical Officer for London
Citations +
- "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)
- Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
- State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) TRAFALGAR 1850. Retrieved http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1850Trafalgar-March.htm