Buckminster History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Etymology of Buckminster

What does the name Buckminster mean?

The ancestors of the Buckminster family brought their name to England in the wave of migration after the Norman Conquest of 1066. They lived in the settlement of Buckminster, Leicestershire. The surname's derived from residence at location. The place name itself is derived from the Old English elements, Bucca, which was a nickname for a person with a supposed resemblance to a goat, and mynster, meaning monastery. 1

Early Origins of the Buckminster family

The surname Buckminster was first found in Leicestershire at Buckminster, a parish, in the union of Melton-Mowbray, hundred of Framland. Buckminster Park, the family seat of the Earl of Dysart, is a noble mansion situated in a park well stocked with deer and embellished with timber. 2

The parish dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it was recorded as Bucheminstre 3

The Pipe Rolls of 1180 record Adam de Bucemenistre in Leicestershire as the first record of the family in early rolls. 4 The Writs of Parliament record Simon de Bokminstre, 1295 and Simon de Bukminstre, 1297 which are presumably entries for the same person. 5

The source Testa de Nevill, sive Liber Feodorum, temp. Henry III-Edward I. includes an entry for Roger de Bukeminstre, Lincolnshire, Henry III-Edward I (during the reigns of Henry II and Edward I. 6

Early History of the Buckminster family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Buckminster research. Another 97 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1513, 1514, 1530, 1532, 1539, 1541, 1545, 1546, 1566, 1618, 1623, 1629 and 1769 are included under the topic Early Buckminster History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Buckminster Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years the English language had no fixed system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations occurred commonly in Anglo Norman surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Buckminster were recorded, including Buckminster, Buckmaster, Buckmasters, Buckminsters, Buckmisters, Buckmuster and many more.

Early Notables of the Buckminster family

Thomas Buckmaster (fl. 1566), English divine and astronomer, described in one of his works as a professor of physics, of what university has not been ascertained. William Buckmaster (d. 1545), was Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University, graduating at Peterhouse, Cambridge, B.A. in 1513-1514. "He became rector of Barchester, Warwickshire (23...
Another 49 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Buckminster Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Buckminster migration to the United States +

The unstable environment in England at this time caused numerous families to board ships and leave in search of opportunity and freedom from persecution abroad in places like Ireland, Australia, and particularly the New World. The voyage was extremely difficult, however, and only taken at great expense. The cramped conditions and unsanitary nature of the vessels caused many to arrive diseased and starving, not to mention destitute from the enormous cost. Still opportunity in the emerging nations of Canada and the United States was far greater than at home and many went on to make important contributions to the cultures of their adopted countries. An examination of many early immigration records reveals that people bearing the name Buckminster arrived in North America very early:

Buckminster Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

James Buckminster, who landed in New England in 1640 7
Thomas Buckminster, who arrived in New England in 1646 7

Buckminster Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

William Buckminster, who settled in Boston, Massachusetts in 1850

Contemporary Notables of the name Buckminster (post 1700) +

Joseph Stevens Buckminster (1784-1812), American preacher, and bible scholar

Sources +

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.
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Testa de Nevill or "Liber Feodorum" or "Book of Fees," thought to have been written by Ralph de Nevill, for King John (1199–1216)
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)