Benbridge History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Of all the Anglo-Saxon names to come from Britain, Benbridge is one of the most ancient. The name is a result of the original family having lived in the parish of Aysgarth in North Yorkshire. 1 2 3

The family originated in Bainbridge, which derives from the Old Norse words Beinn which literally means straight, and from the Old English word "Brycg" which means bridge. 4 According to tradition, a Saxon by the name of Bayn defended a bridge against the enemy.

Early Origins of the Benbridge family

The surname Benbridge was first found in North Yorkshire where Bainbridge is a village and civil parish in the Richmondshire district. This township holds about 14,210 acres, and takes its name from the river Bain. The Roman name for Bainbridge was Virosidum and the remains of a Roman Fort are located just outside the village. 5

"Bainbridge is a name that is also well represented in one form or another in the neighbouring counties of Yorkshire and Westmorland. The old family of Bainbrigg of the county of Durham dates back to the 15th century; and last century several mayors of the city of Durham bore the name of Bainbridge (S.), which is yet represented there. At present the name is mostly established in the Darlington district. In fact Bainbridge has been a Darlington name since the time of Elizabeth (Long.). It has also been established in Stocliton - on - Tees since the middle of the 16th century, when John Baynbridge was mayor. Bainbrigg, or Bainbrige, was the name of a High Sheriff of York in the time of Henry V., and of an archbishop of York and a primate of England in the time of Henry VIII. The Bainbrigge family of Derbyshire came from Wheatley, in the West Riding, in the 16th century; they represented Derby in the parliament during that century." 6

One of the first records of the family was that of Matilda de Baynbrigg who was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire in 1301. Later Robert Baynbryg was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379. 7

Bembridge is a village and civil parish on the easternmost point of the Isle of Wight where the Bembridge Windmill is the only remaining windmill on the Isle of Wight and dates from around 1700.

Early History of the Benbridge family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Benbridge research. Another 84 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1301, 1462, 1511, 1514, 1545, 1556, 1582, 1583, 1606, 1636, 1643, 1646, 1703 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Benbridge History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Benbridge Spelling Variations

One relatively recent invention that did much to standardize English spelling was the printing press. However, before its invention even the most literate people recorded their names according to sound rather than spelling. The spelling variations under which the name Benbridge has appeared include Bainbridge, Bainebridge, Banbridge, Bainbrigg, Baynbrigg and many more.

Early Notables of the Benbridge family

Distinguished members of the family include Christopher Bainbridge (1462-1514), Archbishop of York, who was made a Cardinal by Pope Julius II on 10 March, 1511. "He was born of a good family at Hilton, near Appleby, in Westmorland. He is said to have been fifty years old at his death. He was poisoned in 1514 by one of his stewards, an Italian priest named Rinaldo de Modena. The man was taken and thrown into the castle of St. Angelo, where he not only confessed his crime, but stated that he had done it at the instigation of Silvester de Giglis, bishop...
Another 135 words (10 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Benbridge Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Benbridge migration to the United States +

At this time, the shores of the New World beckoned many English families that felt that the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. Thousands left England at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. A great portion of these settlers never survived the journey and even a greater number arrived sick, starving, and without a penny. The survivors, however, were often greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. These English settlers made significant contributions to those colonies that would eventually become the United States and Canada. An examination of early immigration records and passenger ship lists revealed that people bearing the name Benbridge arrived in North America very early:

Benbridge Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Christopher Benbridge, who arrived in Maryland in 1664 8

Benbridge Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Constant Benbridge, who landed in Virginia in 1702 8
Thomas Benbridge, who landed in Virginia in 1702 8

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Barber, Henry, British Family Names London: Elliot Stock, 62 Paternoster Row, 1894. Print.
Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
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.
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
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)