Show ContentsDesser History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The prestigious surname Desser comes from the region of Provence, in France. The surname Desser is of local origin, and is therefore a type of hereditary surname. Local surnames are derived either from an already existing place-name or from a local feature of the geography.

Early Origins of the Desser family

The surname Desser was first found in Provence, where this distinguished family held a family seat from ancient times.

In 1552, Antoine Sardo became the Deputy of Mons at Draguignan. Antoine Sarde was a clerk and deputy of Mons at Fayence and Tourettes in 1554 and at Barjols in 1574. Distinctive members of the family were Jean, Father Superior of Saint-Marcelin in 1614, and Antoine Sardi, Treasurer in 1620.

Throughout the centuries, this renowned family expanded, prospered and branched to various regions where they became prominent members of their respective communities. In Savoie for instance, Balthazard became the Chief Auditor in the Audit Office on October 19, 1622, and two noble members mentioned were, César on June 4, 1645 and Jean Antoine in 1665.

In recognition of their invaluable contributions in defending their country, several members of the family were granted titles, lands and letters patent certifying their nobility. Among those honored were the Lord Vincent Sarde of Candie in 1728 and the Count J. Sarde in 1731.

Etienne Lessard, born in 1623, travelled from Normandy (French: Normandie) to the New World in 1646. After settling in Quebec he was an ensign in the military at the Hill of Beaupré and he became co-lord of Lanoraie in 1668. He married Marguerite Sevestre on 8th April 1652 and they had 8 children, six sons and two daughters. Etienne passed away at the age of 80 and was buried at Sainte-Anne on 21st April 1703. His wife, Marguerite, passed away on 27th June 1720 and was buried at the same location as her husband. 1

Early History of the Desser family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Desser research. Another 49 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1384, 1406, 1580, 1598, 1617, 1622, 1634, 1655, 1658 and 1668 are included under the topic Early Desser History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Desser Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Lessard, Lessart, Lessar, Lessarde, Lesart, Lesard, Lesser, Lesseir, Leser, Lezer, Lesarde, Lesar, Lezard, Lezzard, Lezart, Lezar, Lezarde, Lisart, Lizart, Sarde, Sardo and many more.

Early Notables of the Desser family

Notable amongst the names at this time was Hubert Le Sueur (c.1580-1658), a French sculptor with the contemporaneous reputation of having trained in Giambologna's Florentine workshop; Balthazard Sarde, Chief Auditor in the Audit Office in 1622; Jean Le...
Another 37 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Desser Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Desser migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Desser Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Peter Desser, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1751 2


  1. Olivier, Reginald L. Your Ancient Canadian Family Ties. Logan: The Everton Publishers, Inc., P.O. Box 368, 1972. Print
  2. 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)


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