Gardener History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain were the first to use the name of Gardener. The name had a practical origin since it came from when its initial bearer worked as a gardener. The surname Gardener originally derived from the Old French word gardinier. 1
It was later adopted in England after the Norman Conquest of 1066. Occupational names that were derived from the common trades of the medieval era transcended European cultural and linguistic boundaries. Occupational names have remained fairly common in the modern period. This is attested to by the continuing appearance of occupational suffixes at the end of many English surnames. Some of these suffixes include: herd, monger, maker, hewer, smith, and wright. Similarly, surnames of office, which include military, judicial, papal and other positions of authority, are widespread throughout Europe. Those who were involved in the military, or feudal armies, were given names such as the English surname Archer, the French name Chevalier and the German name Jeger, which means hunter. Names that were derived from judicial and papal titles, such asBailiffe, Squire and Abbott, are still commonly seen with the same surname spelling today.
Early Origins of the Gardener family
The surname Gardener was first found in Oxfordshire where they held a family seat from very early times. Early records show William le Gardinier in county Rutland in 1199; William Gardin, listed in the Curia Regis Rolls of Huntingdon in 1218, John atte Gardyne, listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1296; and Walter le Gardiner listed in the Subsidy Rolls for London in 1292. 2
The name is "most characteristic of the midland counties, and of the eastern counties south of the Wash. Singularly rare in the south - west, and in the north of England, excepting Lancashire. At present best represented in Essex, Lancashire, and Warwickshire." 3
The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 has the following entries for the family: Geoffrey le Gardiner, Oxfordshire; Richard le Gardiner, Cambridgeshire; Ralph le Gardener, Huntingdonshire; and William le Gardiner, or Gardener, Lincolnshire. 4
The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 had only two entries:Thomas Gardiner; and Thomas Garchiner as holding lands there at that time.
In Scotland, the name was rendered in Latin charters as ortolanus and under that spelling the first Scottish record was found: Rogerus Ortolanus, who was juror on an inquest in 1296. "In 1329 there is record of meal delivered to Nicholas Gerdener who is again referred to as Nicholas ortolanus. Gilbert ortolanus is also referred to in the same source. Robert Gardnar was a notary public in the diocese of Dunblane in 1426." 5
Early History of the Gardener family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gardener research. Another 301 words (22 lines of text) covering the years 1273, 1300, 1370, 1452, 1454, 1458, 1478, 1486, 1493, 1503, 1531, 1535, 1545, 1555, 1589, 1591, 1592, 1599, 1604, 1624, 1635, 1636, 1637, 1640, 1662, 1663, 1668, 1674, 1688, 1695, 1705, 1726, 1732, 1745 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Gardener History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Gardener Spelling Variations
Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Gardener include Gardiner, Gardner and others.
Early Notables of the Gardener family
Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Stephen Gardiner (c.1493-1555), English prelate, who was made Bishop of Winchester (1531); Richard Gardyner, Lord Mayor of London in 1478; Thomas Gardiner (1591-1662), an English lawyer and politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1640, supporter of the Royalist cause in the English Civil War; Thomas Gardner (c. 1592-1674), English settler to Massachusetts, Overseer of...
Another 64 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Gardener Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Gardener Ranking
In the United States, the name Gardener is the 9,966th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 6
Migration of the Gardener family to Ireland
Some of the Gardener family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 100 words (7 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Gardener migration to the United States +
Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Gardener or a variant listed above:
Gardener Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
- Richard Gardener, who arrived in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1620 7
- William Gardener, aged 15, who arrived in Virginia in 1635 aboard the ship "Thomas & John" 7
- Susanna Gardener, who landed in Maryland in 1675 7
Gardener Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
- Jean Gardener, who landed in Baltimore, Maryland in 1792 7
Gardener Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
- William Gardener, who arrived in Savanna(h), Georgia in 1805 7
- William Gardener, who landed in America in 1823 7
- James Gardener, who arrived in America in 1823 7
- Stephen Gardener, who arrived in America in 1836 7
- D L Gardener, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1851 7
Gardener migration to Canada +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Gardener Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
- Alan Hyde Gardener was a JP in the Ferryland District, Newfoundland in 1792 8
Gardener migration to Australia +
Emigration to
Australia followed the
First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:
Gardener Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
- John Gardener, English convict from London, who was transported aboard the "Albion" on September 21, 1826, settling in New South Wales, Australia 9
- Miss Jane Gardener who was convicted in Surrey, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Edward" on 23rd April 1834, arriving in Tasmania, (Van Diemen's Land) 10
- Triphena Gardener, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Moffatt" in 1839 11
- Eliza Gardener, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Fairlee" in 1840 12
- Mr. William Gardener, English convict who was convicted in Hertford, Hertfordshire, England for 10 years, transported aboard the "Eden" on 30th September 1848, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Island) 13
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Gardener migration to New Zealand +
Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:
Gardener Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
- Thomas Gardener, aged 28, a farmer, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "New Zealand" in 1842
- Ann Gardener, aged 28, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "New Zealand" in 1842
- William Slater Gardener, aged 8, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "New Zealand" in 1842
- George Gardener, who landed in Auckland, New Zealand in 1843
- Florence Gardener, who landed in Auckland, New Zealand in 1843
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Contemporary Notables of the name Gardener (post 1700) +
- Daryl Ronald Gardener (b. 1973), former American football defensive tackle
- John H. Gardener, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Tennessee, 1876 14
- Mark Stephen Gardener (b. 1969), English rock musician
- Nico Gardener (1908-1989), British international bridge player
- Jason Carl Gardener (b. 1975), retired British six-time gold medalist sprint athlete
Historic Events for the Gardener family +
- Mr. Allan Gardener, British Musician, who sailed into battle on the HMS Prince of Wales (1941) and survived the sinking 15
Citations +
- Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
- Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
- Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
- Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
- Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
- "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)
- Seary E.R., Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland, Montreal: McGill's-Queen's Universtity Press 1998 ISBN 0-7735-1782-0
- State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Albion voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1826 with 192 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/albion/1826
- Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 25th January 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/edward
- State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) MOFFATT 1839. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1839Moffatt.htm
- State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) FAIRLIE/FAIRLEE 1840. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1840Fairlie.htm
- Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 15th November 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eden
- The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 23) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
- HMS Prince of Wales Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listprincecrew.html