Balmford History, Family Crest & Coats of ArmsThe name Balmford is of Anglo-Saxon origin and came from when a family lived in one of two places named Bamford in the counties of Derbyshire and Lancashire. 1 2 Later records show the name in Yorkshire as well. Checking further we found the name was derived from the Old English words beam, meaning tree or plank, and ford, meaning river crossing. In this case the name referred to a settlement near which there was a tree or plank laid across a river to make a dry crossing. 3 Early Origins of the Balmford familyThe surname Balmford was first found in Lancashire, where "the estate of Bamford was granted to Thomas de Bamfordby, Sir Adam de Bury, temp. Henry III, for his homage and services." 4 As noted above, Yorkshire was later a stronghold of family as noted by early rolls. The Hundredorum Rolls list Richard de Bamford there in 1273 and later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 list: Adam Bamforth and Adam de Baumford. 4 Another source notes: "In the 17th century there was an old family of Bamford of Bamford House; there was also another family of Bamford Hall. Jerome Bamford held land in the Mealegate in the manor of Manchester during the reign of Elizabeth. The name was well established in Rochdale parish in the 16th century, and still occurs there. There is a Lancashire village thus called." 5 Early History of the Balmford familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Balmford research. Another 78 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1556, 1593, 1594, 1602, 1612, 1613, 1657, 1659, 1738 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Balmford History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Balmford Spelling VariationsSound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Balmford family name include Bamford, Banford, Banforth, Balmforth and others. Early Notables of the Balmford familyDistinguished members of the family include
Migration of the Balmford family to IrelandSome of the Balmford family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. Migration of the Balmford familyFor political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Balmford surname or a spelling variation of the name include : John Bamford, who settled in Virginia in 1624; John Bamford, who settled in Jamaica in 1685.
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