The name Seamer reached England in the great wave of migration following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Seamer family lived in Monmouthshire. Their name, however, is a reference to St. Maur, near Avranches, Normandy. [1]
"The baronial family of St. Maur, founded by the warrior of Hastings, became extinct in the chief male line at the decease in 1499 of Richard, 6th Lord St. Maur, whose only daughter and heiress, Alice, wedded William, 6th Lord Zouche of Haryngworth. The Seymours, Dukes of Somerset, whose historic greatness needs little of ancestral aid to augment its glory, claim to be a scion of the baronial house, and their pretensions may be sustained by the valuable authority of Camden." [2]
The surname Seamer was first found in Monmouthshire. However, records differ on who was the progenitor of the family. One reference claims that Wido de St. Maur came to England in 1066 but was deceased before 1086 and would have therefore not appeared in the Domesday Book. His son William Fits-Wido held a barony in Somerset, Wiltshire and Gloucester and ten manors in Somerset. [3]
"A Gilbertine priory, in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary, was founded [in Poulton, Gloucestershire] about 1347, by Sir Thomas de Sancto Mauro, or Seymor." [4]
Another reference claims they were descended from Roger Sancto Maure who lived during the reign of Henry I and was Lord of Seymour Castle. [5]
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Seamer research. Another 105 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1458, 1509, 1537, 1474, 1536, 1547, 1549, 1528, 1593, 1563, 1613, 1599, 1674, 1663, 1646, 1648, 1632, 1708 and are included under the topic Early Seamer History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Sound was what guided spelling in the Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Seamer family name include St. Maur, Seymour, Seymer, Seymar, Seamor, Seamour, Seemour and many more.
Outstanding amongst the family at this time was John Seymor, High Sheriff of Herefordshire in 1458.
Jane Seymour (1509?-1537), was "third queen of Henry VIII, was eldest of the eight children of Sir John Seymour of Wolf Hall, Savernake, Wiltshire, by Margaret, daughter of Sir John Wentworth of Nettlestead, Suffolk. Her mother's family claimed a distant relationship to the royal family." [6]
Sir John Seymour, of Wiltshire, KB (c.1474-1536), was English gentry, courtier to King Henry VIII, father of the king's wife Jane Seymour; Edward Seymour...
Another 83 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Seamer Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Some of the Seamer family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 64 words (5 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
To escape the political and religious chaos of this era, thousands of English families began to migrate to the New World in search of land and freedom from religious and political persecution. The passage was expensive and the ships were dark, crowded, and unsafe; however, those who made the voyage safely were encountered opportunities that were not available to them in their homeland. Many of the families that reached the New World at this time went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of the United States and Canada. Research into various historical records has revealed some of first members of the Seamer family to immigrate North America: