Chairwood History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Etymology of Chairwood

What does the name Chairwood mean?

The name Chairwood is of Anglo-Saxon origin and came from when a family lived in Sherwood found in various locations in Nottingham and Derbyshire. The surname is probably best known in reference to the fabled Sherwood Forest which has been immortalized by the legendary Robin Hood, who according to legend was the Earl of Huntingdon, Robert Fitzooth. William of Sherwood (1190-1249) was a medieval English logician and teacher.

Early Origins of the Chairwood family

The surname Chairwood was first found in Durham, but one of the earliest records of the name was found in the Assize Rolls of Yorkshire of 1219 where Williame de Shirewude was listed. 1

William Shirwood (fl. 1260), was an English schoolman who held the prebend of Ailesbury, Lincoln, in 1245, and was later Treasurer of that church in 1258 and 1267. 2

A few years later, Ralph de Scirewode was listed in Lincolnshire in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. Alan de Shirewod was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1327. The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 list the following: Margareta de Shyrwode; Alexander de Shyrwode; and Willelmus de Schiwode. 3

Early History of the Chairwood family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Chairwood research. Another 104 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1460, 1464, 1468, 1482, 1494, 1520, 1552, 1579, 1622, 1626, 1632, 1660, 1706, 1740 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Chairwood History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Chairwood Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Chairwood family name include Sherwood, Sherward and others.

Early Notables of the Chairwood family

Distinguished members of the family include Blessed Thomas Sherwood (c. 1552-1579) an English Catholic layman and martyr.John Shirwood (died 1494), was an English divine, educated at University College, Oxford, Bishop of Durham and Robert Shirwood (fl. 1520), was an English hebraist, was born at Coventry in Warwickshire.Robert Sherwood (fl. 1632), was an English lexicographer, born in Norfolk, entered Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, on 4 July 1622, and graduated B.A. in 1626.Grace Sherwood (1660-1740), called...
Another 73 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Chairwood Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Chairwood family to Ireland

Some of the Chairwood family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 146 words (10 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Chairwood family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Chairwood surname or a spelling variation of the name include : Peter Sherwood settled in Virginia in 1621; followed by Susan in 1635; John in 1639; Humphrey in 1648; Jane in 1653; Mary in 1656; Thomas, Alice, Rebecca, John, Anna and Rose Sherwood, all settled in Boston in 1634..

Sources +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. 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)