Beckfart History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Beckfart has a long Anglo-Saxon heritage. The name comes from when a family lived in Gloucestershire, where they derived their name from the place named Beckford, which was located about six miles south of Tewesbury. The place-name is derived from the Old English terms becca, which means stream, and ford, which refers to a place where a river may be crossed by wading. [1]

Early Origins of the Beckfart family

The surname Beckfart was first found in Gloucestershire at Beckford, a parish, in the union of Winchcomb, partly in the hundred of Tibaldstone, and partly in the Upper division of the hundred of Tewkesbury, While technically located in Gloucestershire, the parish is on the border with Worcestershire, so some references claim the parish is located there. An ancient Saxon village, the first listing of the pace name was found in 803 as Beccanford. [2] Beckford is a "parish in Gloucestershire, in which the family first appear in connection with the Abbey of Gloucester in the XII century." [3]

"Beckford, at the foot of the Bredon Hills, is five miles from Tewkesbury. The original name of the manor was Beccanford, where was an alien Augustinian Priory, attached to Ste. Barbe-en-Auge, on the Dive." [4]

Early History of the Beckfart family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Beckfart research. Another 74 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1762, 1769, 1887, 1685, 1643, 1710, 1702, 1672, 1735, 1709, 1770, 1762 and 1769 are included under the topic Early Beckfart History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Beckfart Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate spelled their names differently as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Beckfart have been found, including Beckford, Bekford, Beckforth and others.

Early Notables of the Beckfart family (pre 1700)

Notables of this surname at this time include: Major Sir Thomas Beckford (d. 1685), a London clothworker and slopseller who became Sheriff of London; and Colonel Peter Beckford (1643-1710), Governor of Jamaica in 1702; when he died suddenly, he was the wealthiest planter in Jamaica...
Another 45 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Beckfart Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Beckfart family

Families began migrating abroad in enormous numbers because of the political and religious discontent in England. Often faced with persecution and starvation in England, the possibilities of the New World attracted many English people. Although the ocean trips took many lives, those who did get to North America were instrumental in building the necessary groundwork for what would become for new powerful nations. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America bore the name Beckfart, or a variant listed above: John Beckford who settled in Jamaica in 1774; Edward Beckford who settled in Jamaica in 1661; Elizabeth Beckford settled in Maryland in 1677; and the aforementioned Peter Beckford who arrived in Jamaica in 1690. In Newfoundland, Robert Beckford was a boat keeper of St. John's in 1681.

The Beckfart Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: De Dieu Tout
Motto Translation: From God everything.

Citations +

Hanks, Patricia and Flavia Hodges, A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988. Print. (ISBN 0-19-211592-8)
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Oliver, George, Collections Illustrating the History of the Catholic Religion in the Counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Wilts, and Gloucester London: Charles Dolman, 61, New Bond Street, 1857. Print