EnglandThe name Strowbridge reached English shores for the first time with the ancestors of the Strowbridge family as they migrated following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Strowbridge family lived in Devon, at Trowbridge. Further research showed the name was derived from the Old English word for a wooden bridge.
The surname Strowbridge was first found in Devon where conjecturally they are believed to be descended from two Norman knights Richard and Reginald who held the lands of Modbury from the Count of Mortaine as shown in the Domesday Book which was surveyed in 1086 A.D. The land was shown to have 30 goats. [1]
Trowbridge is also a market-town and parish, in the union and hundred of Melksham, Westbury and N. divisions, and Trowbridge and Bradford subdivisions, of Wiltshire. "It was anciently a royal manor, forming part of the duchy of Lancaster, having been granted by the crown to John of Gaunt. The estate afterwards reverted to the crown, and was given by Henry VIII., in the 28th year of his reign, to Sir Edward Seymour, Knt., Viscount Beauchamp." [2] So, while one would presume that this market-town was the place of origin of the surname, it was indeed not.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Strowbridge research. Another 42 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Strowbridge History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, Norman French and other languages became incorporated into English throughout the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Strowbridge include Trowbridge, Troubridge, Trobridge and others.
More information is included under the topic Early Strowbridge Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
In Newfoundland, Canada, the name Strowbridge is the 486th most popular surname with an estimated 97 people with that name. [3]
Strowbridge migration to Canada +In England at this time, the uncertainty of the political and religious environment of the time caused many families to board ships for distant British colonies in the hopes of finding land and opportunity, and escaping persecution. The voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, though, and many arrived in North America sick, starved, and destitute. Those who did make it, however, were greeted with greater opportunities and freedoms that they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Early immigration records have shown some of the first Strowbridges to arrive on North American shores:
