Braybrook History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The Anglo-Saxon name Braybrook comes from when the family resided in the parish Braybrook, Northamptonshire.

Early Origins of the Braybrook family

The surname Braybrook was first found in Northamptonshire at Braybrook(e), a parish, in the union of Market-Harborough, hundred of Rothwell. 1 The place name derived its name from Saxon times and the term "Brada-broc" meaning "the broad brook", 2

By the time of the Domesday Book of 1086, the place name had evolved to Bradebroc, Braibroc in the Pipe Rolls of 1163, and as Brabroc in the Feet of Fines of 1197.

Robert de Braibroc was a Baron by tenure temp. King John. Also known as Robert of Braybrooke or Robert le May (1168-1210), he was a medieval landowner, justice and sheriff. He was born at Braybrooke, Northamptonshire, son of justiciar Ingebald de Braybrooke. His son Henry of Braybrooke (died 1234) was an undersheriff of Rutlandshire, Buckinghamshire, and Northamptonshire. 3

The family held Braybrook Castle, originally a manor home, but by the late 13th century, the estate has passed into the hands of the Latymer family.

Later, Sir Gerard Braybrooke I (c.1332-1403), of Colmworth, Bedfordshire and Horsenden, Buckinghamshire, was an English politician, Member of Parliament for Bedfordshire (1377-1390.) He had two sons: Sir Gerard Braybrooke (before 1354-1429), an English politician, Member of Parliament for Bedfordshire (1388-1399) and for Essex (1402-1417); and Sir Reynold Braybrooke (c.1356-1405), another English politician, Member of Parliament for Kent in 1404. He died from a battle wound on 20 September 1405.

Baron Braybrooke, of Braybrooke in the County of Northampton, is a title created in 1788 for John Griffin, 4th Baron Howard de Walden and has no relationship to this family.

Early History of the Braybrook family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Braybrook research. Another 81 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1200, 1356, 1381, 1382, 1383, 1390, 1394, 1397, 1404 and 1405 are included under the topic Early Braybrook History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Braybrook Spelling Variations

The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore,spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Braybrook has been recorded under many different variations, including Braybrook, Braybrooke, Brailbroc and others.

Early Notables of the Braybrook family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

Robert Braybrooke (d. 1404), medieval Dean of Salisbury and Bishop of London, nominated (1381) and consecrated in 1382, named Lord Chancellor of England in 1382, out of the office by 1383, accompanied...

Braybrook migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Braybrook or a variant listed above:

Braybrook Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

John Braybrook who settled in New England in 1630
William Braybrook, who landed in Lynn, Massachusetts in 1637 4
John Braybrook, who arrived in Watertown, Massachusetts in 1640 4

Contemporary Notables of the name Braybrook (post 1700) +

Siobhan A. Braybrook, American researcher at UCLA
Andrew Braybrook (b. 1960), American software engineer, and former game programmer who created video games such as Paradroid, Gribbly's Day Out, Fire and Ice, Uridium and Morpheus
John Braybrook, Australian actor, known for The Flying Doctors (1986), Rose Against the Odds (1991) and Ratbag Hero (1993)
Craig Braybrook, Australian costumer, known for his work on Leongatha: The Movie! (2013), Leongatha (2013) and Project Runway Australia (2008)
Clive Braybrook (1901-1985), Australian cricketer who played one first-class match for South Australia in the 1921-1922 season
Bramwell "Garnet" "George" Braybrook (1910-1975), Australian rugby league player for the Newtown Jets (1933-1938)

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. 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)