Tanfield History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Early Origins of the Tanfield family

The surname Tanfield was first found in Essex where they held a family seat from very ancient times, before and after the Norman Conquest in 1066.

Early History of the Tanfield family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Tanfield research. Another 80 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1607 and 1625 are included under the topic Early Tanfield History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Tanfield Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Tanfield include Tanfield, Tansfield and others.

Early Notables of the Tanfield family

Notables of the family at this time include

Sir Lawrence Tanfield (d. 1625), English judge, born at Burford in Oxfordshire, the son of Robert Tanfield of Burford...
His father was the second son of William Tanfield of Gayton in Northamptonshire1...

Tanfield migration to the United States +

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Tanfield or a variant listed above:

Tanfield Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Richard Tanfield who arrived in America in 1754

Tanfield migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Tanfield Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Thomas Tanfield, English convict who was convicted in Coventry, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "China" on 186th January 1846, arriving in Norfolk Island, Australia 2

Citations +

Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
Convict Records of Australia. Retrieved 5th February 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/china