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Ashford History Etymology Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Canada Australia West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Ashford History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Etymology of Ashford

What does the name Ashford mean?

Cornwall, one of the original six "Celtic nations" is the homeland to the surname Ashford. A revival of the Cornish language which began in the 9th century AD has begun. No doubt this was the language spoken by distant forebears of the Ashford family. Though surnames became common during medieval times, English people were formerly known only by a single name. The way in which hereditary surnames were adopted in medieval England is fascinating. Many Cornish surnames appear to be topographic surnames, which were given to people who resided near physical features such as hills, streams, churches, or types of trees, many are actually habitation surnames. The name Ashford is a local type of surname and the Ashford family lived at Ayshford, in Cornwall. The Ashford surname was also derived from the Old English words aesc and ford which meant a ford where ash trees grew. 1

Early Origins of the Ashford family

The surname Ashford was first found in Ayshford, in the county of Cornwall, and in the County of Devon, from earliest times, and in later years a branch of the family migrated eastward to Kent. There are at least two references to the name in the Domesday Book: Aisseford and Aiseforda. Both were listed in Devon.

However we must look to Oxfordshire for the first listing of the family with a very old spelling. The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, list John de Esseford, Oxfordshire as holding lands there at that time. 2

Early History of the Ashford family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ashford research. Another 63 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1594, 1626 and 1698 are included under the topic Early Ashford History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ashford Spelling Variations

Cornish surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. The frequent changes in surnames are due to the fact that the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The official court languages, which were Latin and French, were also influential on the spelling of a surname. Since the spelling of surnames was rarely consistent in medieval times, and scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings of their surname in the ancient chronicles. Moreover, a large number of foreign names were brought into England, which accelerated and accentuated the alterations to the spelling of various surnames. Lastly, spelling variations often resulted from the linguistic differences between the people of Cornwall and the rest of England. The Cornish spoke a unique Brythonic Celtic language which was first recorded in written documents during the 10th century. However, they became increasingly Anglicized, and Cornish became extinct as a spoken language in 1777, although it has been revived by Cornish patriots in the modern era. The name has been spelled Aishford, Ashford, Ayshford, Aysford, Asford, Asseford and many more.

Early Notables of the Ashford family

Notable amongst the family at this time was

John Ashford, who died in 1698, the last male heir to the senior line...

Ashford Ranking

In the United States, the name Ashford is the 3,151^st most popular surname with an estimated 9,948 people with that name. 3

Ashford migration to the United States +

Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Ashford were

Ashford Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Ino Ashford, who landed in Virginia in 1665 4

Ashford Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Michael Ashford, who arrived in Virginia in 1700 4
John Ashford, who arrived in Virginia in 1701 4
Elizabeth Ashford, who landed in Annapolis, Maryland in 1726

Ashford Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Thomas Francis Ashford, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1871 4
Frederick Ashford, who settled in Philadelphia in 1872
Chas. Ashford, aged 31, who settled in America from London, in 1892
H. Ashford, aged 38, who immigrated to the United States, in 1893
Arthur A. Ashford, aged 58, who settled in America, in 1896

Ashford Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Blanch Rosa Ashford, aged 77, who immigrated to the United States, in 1907
Ethel B. Ashford, aged 27, who landed in America from Putney, England, in 1910
Ethel Bright Ashford, aged 27, who settled in America from Putney, England, in 1910
Bailey Kelly Ashford, who landed in America, in 1910
George Ashford, aged 59, who immigrated to the United States from Brighton, England, in 1911
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Ashford migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Ashford Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Mr. Nathan Ashford, U.E., United Empire Loyalist, who settled in Canada c. 1783 orer in council July 06, 1798 5
Mr. Nathaniel Ashford, U.E., United Empire Loyalist, who settled in Canada c. 1783 upon petition of Ann Ashford, order in council July 06, 1798 5
Mr. Nathaniel Ashford, U.E., United Empire Loyalist, who settled in Canada c. 1783 5
Mr. William Ashford, U.E., United Empire Loyalist, who settled in Saint John, New Brunswick c. 1783 5

Ashford migration to Australia +

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

Ashford Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Thomas Ashford, British Convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for life, transported aboard the "Coromandel" on 4th December 1803, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6
Mr. Edward Ashford, British Convict who was convicted in Warwick, Warwickshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Batavia" in October 1817, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 7
Mr. William Ashford, British Convict who was convicted in Warwick, Warwickshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Batavia" in October 1817, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 7
Joseph Ashford, English convict from Middlesex, who was transported aboard the "Asia" on October 22nd, 1824, settling in New South Wales, Australia 8
Miss Jane Ashford, English convict who was convicted in Warwickshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Fanny" on 14th July 1832, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 9
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Ashford 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. 10

Ashford Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Ambrose Ashford, who landed in Barbados in 1685, followed by his brother John a year later, they both transshipped to Virginia

Contemporary Notables of the name Ashford (post 1700) +

John Bradley "Brad" Ashford (1949-2022), American politician, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Nebraska (2015-2017)
Rob Ashford (b. 1959), American seven-time Tony award nominated, Emmy Award winning choreographer and director
Annaleigh Ashford (b. 1985), American actress known for her Broadway credits in Wicked and Legally Blonde
Evelyn Ashford (b. 1957), American Olympic four-time gold medalist runner
Matthew Nile Ashford (b. 1960), American actor
Nickolas Ashford (1942-2011), American songwriter and recording artist
George H. Ashford, American politician, Mayor of Gainesville, Georgia, 1951 11
Mrs. George Ashford, American Democratic Party politician, Member of Nebraska Democratic State Executive Committee, 1940 11
Frederick C. Ashford, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Alabama, 1892, 1896 (alternate) 11
Charlie R. Ashford, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Tennessee, 1972 11
... (Another 13 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Ashford family +

USS Indianapolis

Chester Wendell Ashford (1925-1945), American crew member on board the ship "USS Indianapolis" when she was on a top secret trip for the first nuclear weapon, she was sunk by Japanese Navy on 30th July 1945, he was one of the many who were killed in the sinking due to exposure, dehydration, saltwater poisoning and shark attacks 12
John Thomas Ashford Jr. (1924-1988), American crew member on board the ship "USS Indianapolis" when she was on a top secret trip for the first nuclear weapon, she was sunk by Japanese Navy on 30th July 1945, he survived the sinking 12

Citations +

Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 22nd March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/coromandel-and-experiment
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/batavia
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Asia 1 voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1824 with 9 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1824
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 29th September 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/fanny
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 5) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Final Crew List, retrieved 2021, October 30th Retrieved from https://www.ussindianapolis.com/final-crew