Show ContentsNotford History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Notford family

The surname Notford was first found in Cheshire at Knutsford, a town and parish in the union of Altrincham, E. division of the hundred of Bucklow. The origin of the place name is indeed interesting. One reference sites that as the place was once situated "on the banks of a small stream, across which was formerly a ford. Canute, the Dane, is said to have passed over the ford with his army for the conquest of the northern parts of the kingdom, in the reign of Ethelred I., or that of Edmund Ironside; and it may thence have been called Canute's Ford." 1 However, other references claim that the place name is originally "spelt Knotsford; according to tradition, several generations of the name of Knott had a mill on the stream, and as the working of the mill mainly regulated the depth of water at the ford, the place was called after them Knot's ford." By the time of the Domesday Book of 1086, it was listed as Cunformed, part of the barony of Halton. 2

Early History of the Notford family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Notford research. Another 171 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1455, 1487, 1510, 1558, 1562, 1600 and 1644 are included under the topic Early Notford History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Notford Spelling Variations

Only recently has spelling become standardized in the English language. As the English language evolved in the Middle Ages, the spelling of names changed also. The name Notford has undergone many spelling variations, including Knotsford, Knottsford, Knutford, Knutsford, Knottsford, Knottesford, Notsford, Nottsford, Nutsford, Nuttsford, Knotford, Knottford, Notford and many more.

Early Notables of the Notford family

More information is included under the topic Early Notford Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Notford family

To escape the unstable social climate in England of this time, many families boarded ships for the New World with the hope of finding land, opportunity, and greater religious and political freedom. Although the voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, those families that arrived often found greater opportunities and freedoms than they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Notford were among those contributors: the name represented in many forms and recorded from the mid 17th century in the great migration from Europe. Migrants settled in the eastern seaboard from Newfoundland, to Maine, to Virginia, the Carolinas, and to the islands..



  1. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  2. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)


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