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Show ContentsGerrard History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
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Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

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The historic kingdom of Bohemia, enclosed by mountains and the celebrated Bohemian forest, is the noble birthplace of the name Gerrard.German surnames developed at a time when most of Bohemia, and most of the German provinces, were states of the Holy Roman Empire. Fairly general principles guided the development of hereditary surnames in Bohemia. Two of the common types of family names found in the Prussia are patronymic surnames, which are derived from the father's given name, and metronymic surnames, which are derived from the mother's given name. The surname Gerrard derived from the Old German personal name Gerhard, which means spear-brave.

Early Origins of the Gerrard family

The surname Gerrard was first found in Bohemia, where the name came from humble beginnings but gained a significant reputation for its contribution to the emerging mediaeval society. It later became more prominent as many branches of the same house acquired distant estates, some in foreign countries, always elevating their social status by their great contributions to society.

Early History of the Gerrard family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gerrard research. Another 101 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1582, 1607, 1629, 1637, 1676, 1698, 1726, 1736 and 1765 are included under the topic Early Gerrard History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gerrard Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Gerhardt, Gearhart, Gearhardt, Gerhart, Gearhard, Gerhard, Gerheart, Gearheart, Gerard and many more.

Early Notables of the Gerrard family

During this early period, notable bearers of the name Gerrard included Johann Gerhard (1582-1637), the most famous Lutheran theologian of the time; Daniel Gerdes (1698-1765), German Calvinist theologian and historian...
Another 30 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Gerrard Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gerrard Ranking

In the United States, the name Gerrard is the 17,336th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1

United States Gerrard migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Gerrard Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Richard Gerrard, who landed in Maryland in 1634 2
  • Thomas Gerrard, who arrived in Maryland in 1635 2
  • John Gerrard, who landed in Maryland in 1640 2
  • Gilbert Gerrard, who landed in Virginia in 1642 2
  • Gilbert Gerrard, who settled in Virginia in 1643
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Gerrard Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Geo Gerrard, who landed in Virginia in 1717 2
  • Gerrard Gerrard, who arrived in Virginia in 1720 2
  • Nichols Gerrard, aged 30, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1736 2
  • Peter Gerrard, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1765 2
  • Abraham Gerrard, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1765 2
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Gerrard Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Samuel Gerrard, who settled in Rhode Island in 1812 with his wife and their five children
  • Samuel Gerrard, aged 35, who landed in Rhode Island in 1812 2

Canada Gerrard migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Gerrard Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • Mr. William Gerrard U.E. who settled in Saint John, New Brunswick c. 1784 3
  • Mr. William Gerrard U.E. who settled in Carleton [Saint John City], New Brunswick c. 1784 3

Australia Gerrard migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Gerrard Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. George Gerrard, (b. 1781), aged 34, English convict who was convicted in Chester, Cheshire, England for life, transported aboard the "Fanny" on 25th August 1815, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, he died in 1819 4
  • Thomas Gerrard, English convict from Lancaster, who was transported aboard the "Asia" on September 3rd, 1820, settling in New South Wales, Australia 5
  • Mr. John Gerrard, (b. 1796), aged 37, English convict who was convicted in Somerset, England for life for house breaking, transported aboard the "Atlas" on 27th April 1833, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 6
  • Mr. James Gerrard, English convict who was convicted in Lancashire, England for 10 years, transported aboard the "David Clarke" on 3rd June 1841, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 7
  • David Gerrard, English convict from London, who was transported aboard the "Anson" on September 23, 1843, settling in Van Diemen's Land, Australia 8
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

New Zealand Gerrard migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Gerrard Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Mr. James Gerrard, Cornish settler travelling from Launceston aboard the ship "Thomas Lord" arriving in New Zealand in 1849 9
  • Miss Mary Gerrard, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship 'Merchantman' arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand and Auckland New Zealand on 6th September 1855 10
  • Mrs. Gerrard, Scottish settler travelling from Greenock aboard the ship "Robert Henderson" arriving in Port Chalmers, Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 9th February 1858 9
  • A. Gerrard, Scottish settler travelling from Greenock aboard the ship "Robert Henderson" arriving in Port Chalmers, Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 9th February 1858 9
  • Mr. Maurice L. Gerrard, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Joseph Fletcher" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 18th August 1859 10
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

West Indies Gerrard migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 11
Gerrard Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • Susan Gerrard, who arrived in Barbados in 1686

Contemporary Notables of the name Gerrard (post 1700) +

  • Donny Gerrard (1946-2022), Canadian singer, member of the band Skylark in the early 1970s, lead singer on their hit single, "Wildflower"
  • Steven George Gerrard MBE (b. 1980), English former footballer and now manager. He was the UEFA Club Footballer of the Year and won the Ballon d'Or Bronze Award in 2005. Appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire in 2007. He was nominated in 2005 for BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award and came 3rd
  • Air Commodore Eugene Louis Gerrard CMG, DSO, RAF (1881-1963), English officer in the Royal Marines and Royal Air Force
  • Matthew Gerrard, Canadian record producer and songwriter
  • Anthony Gerrard (b. 1986), English-born Irish footballer
  • Mark Gerrard (b. 1982), Australian rugby player
  • Wes Paul Gerrard (b. 1943), Liverpool musician who worked at the Liverpool Cavern Club
  • Lisa Gerrard (b. 1961), the vocalist for the band Dead Can Dance
  • Paul Gerrard (b. 1973), former English goalkeeper football player
  • James Gerrard McCue (b. 1975), Scottish former professional footballer
Empress of Ireland
  • Mr. Thomas Joseph Gerrard (d. 1914), British Smoke Room Steward from United Kingdom who worked aboard the Empress of Ireland and died in the sinking 12
HMS Dorsetshire
  • Eric Nicholas Gerrard (d. 1945), British Leading Cook (O) aboard the HMS Dorsetshire when she was struck by air bombers and sunk; he died in the sinking 13
  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  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)
  3. Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
  4. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 28th September 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/fairlie
  5. State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Asia 1 voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1820 with 192 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1820
  6. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 14th July 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/atlas
  7. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 3rd June 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/david-clarke
  8. State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2015, January 8) Anson voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1843 with 499 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/anson/1843
  9. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  10. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  11. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
  12. Commemoration Empress of Ireland 2014. (Retrieved 2014, June 17) . Retrieved from http://www.empress2014.ca/seclangen/listepsc1.html
  13. Force Z Survivors HMS Dorsetshire Crew List, (Retrieved 2018, February 13th), https://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listdorsetshirecrew.html
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