| ![Show Contents]() Medforth History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
 England The name Medforth belongs to the early history of Britain, it's origins lie with the Anglo-Saxons. It is a product of their having lived in Mitford, Northumberland where the name is "descended from Matthew, brother of John, who is said to have held the castle of Mitford soon after the Conquest. The ancestors of the present family appear to have been for many ages resident at Mitford, though the castle was not in their possession till it was granted with the manor by Charles II to Robert Litford, Esq." 1 Early Origins of the Medforth familyThe surname Medforth was first found in Northumberland at Mitford, a village and parish in the union of Morpeth. The earliest record of the place name was found in 1196 when it was listed as Midford. The place name literally meant "ford where two streams join." 2 "The manor in the time of the Saxons belonged to the family of Mitford, and at the Conquest was part of the possessions of John, Lord of Mitford, whose only daughter, Sybil, was married by the Conqueror to Sir Richard Bertram, son of the lord of Dignam, in Normandy." 3 Nearby is Mitford Castle which dates from the end of the 11th century. The Norman motte and bailey castle stands above the River Wansbeck and was the first of three seats for the main line of the Mitford family. It's in ruins today but Mitford Old Manor House built in the 1600s remains nearby. Mitford Hall is a Georgian mansion house built in 1828 by the Mitford family. Early History of the Medforth familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Medforth research. Another 109 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1066, 1389, 1390, 1395, 1407, 1612, 1659 and 1674 are included under the topic Early Medforth History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Medforth Spelling VariationsUntil the dictionary, an invention of only the last few hundred years, the English language lacked any comprehensive system of spelling rules. Consequently, spelling variations in names are frequently found in early Anglo-Saxon and later Anglo-Norman documents. One person's name was often spelled several different ways over a lifetime. The recorded variations of Medforth include Mitford, Medford, Midford and others. Early Notables of the Medforth familyAnother 48 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Medforth Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Medforth familyThousands of English families boarded ships sailing to the New World in the hope of escaping the unrest found in England at this time. Although the search for opportunity and freedom from persecution abroad took the lives of many because of the cramped conditions and unsanitary nature of the vessels, the opportunity perceived in the growing colonies of North America beckoned. Many of the settlers who survived the journey went on to make important contributions to the transplanted cultures of their adopted countries. The Medforth were among these contributors, for they have been located in early North American records: William Mitford settled in Boston in 1767; Thomas Medford, who settled in Mississippi in 1820; as well as E. and T. Medford, who both settled in Baltimore in 1822..
- Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. 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.
 |
