Balloon History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

In ancient Anglo-Saxon England, the ancestors of the Balloon surname lived in Suffolk, where they held a family seat in the village of Baylham, from which they took their name.

Early Origins of the Balloon family

The surname Balloon was first found in Suffolk, in the village and civil parish of Baylham. The village dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was first listed as Beleham and probably meant "homestead or enclosure at a river-bend" from the Old English words "begel" + "ham" or "hamm." 1

The parish, in the union and hundred of Bosmere and Claydon, East division of Suffolk, 3 miles from Needham-Market was small but contained about 275 inhabitants in the late 1890s. 2

Early History of the Balloon family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Balloon research. Another 287 words (20 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1212, 1275, 1500, 1568, 1577, 1600, 1635, 1642, 1684 and 1830 are included under the topic Early Balloon History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Balloon Spelling Variations

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, early Anglo-Saxon surnames like Balloon are characterized by many spelling variations. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages, even literate people changed the spelling of their names. The variations of the name Balloon include: Baalham, Balan, Baylham, Balum, Balam, Ballam, Balaam and many more.

Early Notables of the Balloon family

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

Migration of the Balloon family to Ireland

Some of the Balloon family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Balloon migration to the United States +

Many English families tired of political and religious strife left Britain for the new colonies in North America. Although the trip itself offered no relief - conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and many travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute - these immigrants believed the opportunities that awaited them were worth the risks. Once in the colonies, many of the families did indeed prosper and, in turn, made significant contributions to the culture and economies of the growing colonies. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families has revealed a number of immigrants bearing the name Balloon or a variant listed above:

Balloon Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Martin Balloon, who arrived in Arkansas in 1884 3

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
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)