Show ContentsSpurr History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Spurr family

The surname Spurr was first found in Devon where they held a family seat from very ancient times, as Lords of the manor of Spurway Barton. One of the first records of the name was Ricardo Greda de Spurwaye (c. 1270-1320) who held lands in the area and records show that a transfer of lands in Bears, a hamlet in Broadclyst parish, north-east of Exeter about that time. "Thurgarton Hall [in Norfolk] is the residence of W. D. Spurrell, Esq., whose family have occupied the mansion for several centuries." [1]

"Slade, [Devon] with its fine hall, once the seat of the family of that name, has long been the residence of the Spurrells, and their descendants, the Podes." [2]

Early History of the Spurr family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Spurr research. Another 55 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1200 and 1542 are included under the topic Early Spurr History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Spurr Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Spurway, Spurvey, Spurrvey, Spurways, Spurrier and others.

Early Notables of the Spurr family

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

Spurr Ranking

In the United States, the name Spurr is the 13,638th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. [3]


United States Spurr migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Spurr Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Philip Spurr, who arrived in Maryland in 1636 [4]
  • Phillip Spurr, who landed in Maryland in 1637 [4]
  • Robert Spurr, who arrived in Maryland in 1675-1680 [4]

Canada Spurr migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Spurr Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • Michael Spurr, who arrived in Anapolis (Annapolis), Nova Scotia in 1760

West Indies Spurr 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. [5]
Spurr Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • Mr. Robert Spurr, (b. 1611), aged 24, British settler traveling aboard the ship "Paul of London" arriving in St Christopher (Saint Kitts) in 1635 [6]

Contemporary Notables of the name Spurr (post 1700) +

  • J. Edwin Spurr, American politician, Candidate for U.S. Senator from Oklahoma, 1926 [7]
  • Arthur Clinton Spurr (1889-1971), American lawyer, manager, consulting engineer and business executive at the Wheeling Traction Company, President of the Monongahela Power Company
  • Laura Spurr (1945-2010), American chairwoman of the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of Potawatomi
  • Josiah Edward Spurr (1870-1950), American geologist, explorer, and author, eponym of the Spurr lunar crater and Mount Spurr, Alaska
  • Harold Spurr (1889-1962), English cricketer
  • Richard Spurr (1800-1855), English cabinet maker
  • Edward Spurr (1907-1998), English inventor who worked on the Dambusters' bouncing bomb
  • Michael Stephen Spurr (b. 1953), English Head Master of Westminster School
  • Thomas "Tommy" Spurr (b. 1987), English footballer
  • Stephen Spurr (b. 1953), British teacher, classicist, and academic, Head Master of Westminster School (2005-2014)
  • ... (Another 3 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)


  1. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  2. Worth, R.N., A History of Devonshire London: Elliot Stock, 62, Paternoster Row, E.G., 1895. Digital
  3. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  4. 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)
  5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
  6. Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's (Retrieved October 4th 2021 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
  7. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, April 29) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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