About the Dunsford

If your surname is Dunsford, it is almost certain that some of your ancestors lived in the small Devon town of Bradninch. Its parish registers record their baptisms and marriages and burials in the Church of St. Disens as far back as 1561. A stained glass window in the church hall commemorates the family. So, if you want to know more, read on.

My grandfather, who died before I was born, claimed he was from Bradninch in Devon. Curious to discover if I had Devon origins I tracked down a copy of his birth certificate, which confirmed Bradninch as his birth place. I then traced my great, and great, great grandfathers, also in Bradninch. I had been warned that family history can be compulsive, and so it proved. After several interesting and very productive visits to Devon Record Office I had traced my ancestors back to the 1560's, still in Bradninch. I had also found half a dozen or so family trees, pedigrees and a set of 18th century memoirs, all relating to different branches of the family, and all going back to Bradninch. This set me wondering if all people with the Dunsford surname originated from Bradninch, which led me to start the one name study.

The earliest British census in 1841 records some 50 families of Dunsfords in England and Wales. I have traced 47 of these back to Bradninch. The remaining 3 have all hit the proverbial brick wall, but have produced no evidence of a different place of origin. I have recently been in touch with a number of people who have independently traced their Dunsford ancestry back to Bradninch. I believe that all this, together with the family trees and pedigrees makes it highly likely that all Dunsfords can trace their ancestry back to Bradninch.

Information contained in almost a dozen legal cases fought in the late 1500's and early 1600's shows that up to the mid seventeenth century most, if not all the Dunsfords in and around Bradninch were farmers. By 1650 almost all of them had left the land and most of the extended family had left Bradninch and settled in Tiverton, some 8 miles away. Their early years in Tiverton were marred by persecution for their Puritan beliefs, two of them being imprisoned for an entire winter. Their treatment in Tiverton may give a clue as to why so many left their ancestral home of Bradninch. By 1642 Civil War had broken out between the King and Parliament, led by Puritans. Most of the land in the Manor of Bradninch was owned by the King's eldest son, who probably did not not want Puritans farming his land. (The current Prince of Wales still owns over 3,000 acres on 13 farms in Bradninch.) Exactly when they left the land is not known. They were still farming well after the start of the Civil War in 1642 because the 'Memoirs of the Family of Dunsford' by Martin Dunsford (see below) recount ' During the civil wars the children almost constantly attended the cattle and were obliged to use many stratagems to prevent them being seized and driven away by the numerous parts of soldiers, royalists and republicans, as each in their turns succeeded and scoured the country for provisions and forage.'

Whatever the reasons for this exodus from the land, the impact on later generations of our ancestors was profound. They were forced to find other ways to earn a living, and many were remarkably successful. The trades and professions on which they made their mark include:- cloth makers, cloth merchants, wine merchants, cutlers, bankers (the former Dunsford Bank in Fore Street, Tiverton is now a branch of the Royal Bank of Scotland. A framed document in the assistant manager's office records the origins of the branch as 'Dunsford and Company'.), sea captains,a lieutenant in the Royal Navy, (Midshipman George Dunsford, later Lieutenant, served aboard H.M.S. Leviathan at the Battle of Trafalgar), pilots in the Royal Air Force, coastguards, lighthouse keepers, (George Henry Dunsford served as assistant lightkeeper in the famous Bishop Rock Lighthouse, the most south westerly bastion of the British Isles), surgeons, nurses, vets, jewellers, innkeepers, carpenters, woolcombers, cordwainers, blacksmiths, accountants, printers, chemists, florists, tailors, miners (owners and hewers), railway policemen, journalists, barristers; and at least one master dredger; and a general in the Bengal Army. The efforts of some at least did not go entirely unnoticed. Decorations include the D.S.O.; C.B.;V.O.; and M.B.E.

One branch of the family living in the neighbouring parish of Broadclyst appeared to escape the persecution and continued farming through the 18th and 19th centuries and some of their descendants are still farming in South Australia to this day. Other descendants of this branch were amongst the earliest settlers farming in Upper Canada (now the Province of Ontario). Family stories from the Canadian branch suggest that some of them ventured on to the 'Oregon Trail', but I have yet to trace any of them.

Bradninch has a long and unusual history. The Domesday Book records it as the largest of all the 46 manors in Devon. A castle was built on Castle Hill by the Saxons in the seventh century. Its town charter was granted by Reginald, Earl of Cornwall in 1141. During medieval times its market became one of the most important in Devon, particularly for trade in wool and woollen products. There is some evidence that some of the earliest Dunsfords were involved in this trade. In 1337 King Edward III made his eldest son, also called Edward, ( and who later became famous as 'The Black Prince'), the Duke of Cornwall, and Baron of Bradninch. Since that time, up to the present day, the Monarch's eldest son has been the Lord of the Manor of Bradninch. Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, currently holds the title. A number of royal visits have been made to the town, and photographs of some of the more recent can be seen in the town's Guild Hall. A commemorative stone above the door of the Guild Hall, records that it was laid on May 17 1921 by Edward Prince of Wales, who later achieved fame and some notoriety as the uncrowned King Edward VIII, who abdicated the throne in 1936.

With the help of other people researching the surname, I have traced branches of the family in the U.K., U.S.A., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. I would be interested to hear from anyone trying to trace their Dunsford ancestry. There is a good chance I may have information leading back as far as the sixteenth century.

My ultimate aim is to produce a history of the Dunsfords of Bradninch.

Variants

The registered variants of the name are Dunsford and Dunsforde. The name Dunford which occurs in Dorset and the North of England is not considered to be a variant. A number of families and individuals with the surname Dunford appear to have changed their surname to Dunsford. It is not clear why. I have found no instances of Dunsfords changing their name to Dunford or any other variant.

Origin of the surname

There is overwhelmong evidence that the name originates in Devon. The IGI ( International Genealogical Index compiled by the Church of Jesus Christ and Latter Day Saints, the 'Mormons') records over 600 Dunsfords in Devon, 22 in Cornwall and 59 in London. No other county has more than 8. The parish registers for Bradninch have not been transcribed on to the IGI. If they were, the number of entries for Devon would double.

Lists of taxpayers in the Devon Lay Subsidy Returns for 1524 and 1543, and the Devon Protestation Return for 1641 show the name to be concentrated exclusively in and around Bradninch.

The name almost certainly originates from the picturesque village of Dunsford which lies in the Teign valley, where it descends from Dartmoor, some 15 miles south west of Bradninch. Professor David Hey, formerly of Sheffield University, in his book 'Family Names and Family History' states that surnames which originate from place names, even to this day display a concentration within a 20 mile radius of the place of origin. Distribution of the name certainly falls within this pattern.

Historical occurrences

The earliest record of the surname found to date is in 'A Biographical Register of the University of Cambridge to 1500' by A.B. Emden, which records the admission of Robert Dunsford to King's Hall (now part of Trinity College) on 8 January 1398. He gained a B.A. in 1409 and an M.A. in 1414-15. King's Hall was founded by King Edward II in 1317 to provide chancery clerks for his administration.

The author Martin Dunsford (1744 - 1807) in his 'Memoirs of the Family of Dunsford' describes the family as 'remarkable for a long mediocrity of station in the useful employments of life'. The only exceptions I have found are:

Thomas Dunsford (1635 - 1719) and his brother Martin Dunsford (1632 - 1710) spent an entire winter in Tiverton gaol as punishment for their non conformist beliefs. There are records of informers rushing into their houses on Sunday mornings and emptying pots of cooking food onto the floor and carrying them away to pay fines for non - conformity.

Thomas Dunsford (1666 - 1735) was amongst the first to greet William Prince of Orange at Exeter in 1688 at the start of the Glorious Revolution.

The following were at various times, part owners of the Dunsford Bank in Fore Street, Tiverton:- Henry Dunsford (1768 - 1856); Henry Dunsford (1802 - 1858); Captain William Dunsford (1771 - 1849); William Henry Dunsford (1813 - 1892); and Francis Dunsford (1818 - ?). The first three were also Mayors of Tiverton.

Harris Dunsford (1808 - 1847), surgeon, was called to attend both Queen Adelaide and the King of Prussia.

John Dunsford (1807 - 1853) was one of the earliest members of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.

George Lichigaray Dunsford (1843 - 1909) published a 'Pedigree of the family of Dunsford' in 1886. A copy can be seen in the Tiverton Museum.

Frederick Aubrey Dunsford, born 1856 was elected Mayor of Southampton in 1901.

Frequency of the name

The name is uncommon. The earliest records going back to the sixteenth century suggest there were no more than a couple of dozen Dunsfords living in and around Bradninch. 236 Dunsfords were recorded in the 1841 U.K. census. By 1881 the number had increased to 447. The Canadian census for 1881 has 62 records of the name, and the U.S. census for 1880 has 85. There are currently about 700 Dunsfords across the U.K. with concentrations in Devon, London, and Greater Manchester.

Distribution of the name

From its origins around Bradninch the distribution of the name has expanded steadily over the centuries to populate much of the English speaking world. Even in the late 18th century the name was still heavily concentrated in East Devon, principally in Tiverton, Bradninch and Exeter. Britain's expansion as a seagoing power in the eighteenth century attracted branches of the family to ports in Devon and Cornwall, including Bristol, Barnstaple, Saltash, East Budleigh, Exeter, and Plymouth. The growing industrialisation of the nineteenth century drew many Dunsfords to the north of England, especially Manchester and Liverpool, and also to London. Opportunities in the Empire and U.S.A. encouraged emigration during the 19th and 20th centuries. Some of the more adventurous went to Uruguay, Mexico, India and Burma, but I am not aware of any still living in these countries. Today there are about 1500 Dunsfords worldwide, half of them living in the U.K., and the rest in the U.S.A., Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

The U.S. census for 1880 lists 85 Dunsfords, of whom 12 state that both their parents were born in the U.S.A. Based on the ages of the people in the 1881 census, I estimate that their parents were born in the U.S.A. between 1780 and 1830. This almost certainly means that some of their ancestors emigrated to America before the War of Independence, and must make them some of the earlier settlers.

Data

I have obtained all the Dunsford entries in the G.R.O. for births and marriages between 1837 and 1911. Data gathering is now being concentrated on collecting entries in Devon parish registers. Devon Family History Society have been very helpful in this respect. A growing number of branches of the family with descendants in the U.K., U.S.A., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand have been traced back to the 16th century.

The National Archives hold legal papers concerning cases fought by Dunsfords in the Courts of Exchequer, Chancery, and Star Chamber, going as far back as the sixteenth century. They give a fascinating insight into some aspects of the way of life in those distant times. The fact that a small extended family of Devon farmers had the knowledge and capabilty to bring such actions suggests they were no ordinary farmers. Quite where they acquired such knowledge is, for the moment lost in the mists of time.

The Burnet Morris card index in the West Country Studies Library in Exeter is a treasure trove of references to Devon family and place names.

Despite the Luftwaffe's destruction of most Devon wills in an air raid on Exeter in 1942, a few have survived, mainly via the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, and they provide valuable evidence of family relationships, and give some idea of their wealth and status. Further glimpses into otherwise vanished lives are to be found in the British Library's website of old newspapers.

I have amassed a growing database of information on Dunsfords throughout the world, including old family photos. Some of the information is almost impossible to access independently, as it has been given to me by other family history researchers, and has been obtained from family stories handed down the generations, diaries, old family trees, family bibles, and photo albums.

Source:http://www.one-name.org/profiles/dunsford.html
This page last updated 31 July 2010. For further information, contact:
Mr Robert Dunsford, 37 Stephen Drive, Sheffield, S10 5NX, UNITED KINGDOM
E-mail: dunsford@one-name.org

Generation of New Zealand Dunsford line

1. Robert Dunsford of B[e]gmore, Bradnich buried 8 April 1631

2. Martin Dunsford died August 1662.

3. Martin Dunsford (b?). Buried at Tiverton 17 April 1716

4. Thomas Dunsford born 22 March 1666 at Tiverton.

5. Martin Dunsford born Tiverton 8 March 1710-11

6. George Dunsford born 21 Jan 1751. Died, aged 71/72, on 2 March 1822.

7. Mathew Dunsford born at Tiverton on 5 Nov 1772

8. George William Dunsford (b 18 Sept 1806 in Peckham, Surrey, England)

9. Henry Owen Dunsford was born in 1838 in Tiverton and immigrated to New Zealand.

11. Cyril Owen Macintosh Dunsford (b. 26 Apr. 1888. d. 20/21 Dec 1946, age 58. Probate 30 Jan 1947).

12. Noel Ames Dunsford, twin, born 10 Dec 1920 and Neville Owen Dunsford.

13. Kevin Noel Dunsford born 1 March 1951.

Note: Only brief details are presented on the earlier Dunsfords because these are well presented by Trevena Whitbread’s Dunsford family tree on www.amsestry.co.uk.

Robert Dunsford of B[e]gmore, Bradnich buried 8 April 1631 in Bradnich. Administration granted same month to his son Martin.

Married ?

Children of Robert &?

1. Martin Dunsford died August 1662.

Martin Dunsford died August 1662.

Married ?

Children of Martin & ?

1. Martin Dunsford (b?). Burried at Tiverton 17 April 1716. Will Proved 19 July 1716

2. Thomas Dunsford

3. Robert Dunsford

4. Henry Dunsford

Martin Dunsford (b?). Burried at Tiverton 17 April 1716. Will Proved 19 July 1716

First Wife Marie Squyer of Caverleigh

Children of Martin and Marie

1. John Dunsford

2. Marie Dunsford

3. Martin Dunsford

4. Ann Dunsford

5. Lydia Dunsford

6. Thomas Dunsford born 22 March 1666 at Tiverton.

Second wife

Thomas Dunsford born 22 March 1666 at Tiverton.

Thomas went to Exetor to welcome the Prince of Orange. He died 31 Jan 1736 at Tiverton. The will was proved 22 July 1736 at Exeter.

On 30 Sept 1690, at Tiverton, Thomas married Elizabeth Manly born ~ 15 March 1667 at Parish Church Tiverton (father Edward Manly). Elizabeth died 6 Nov 1740 was buried at St Peters, Tiverton on 10 November 1740.

Children of Thomas and Elizabeth

1. Thomas Dunsford born 31 October 1702. Thomas died at age 52. His will was proved 17 Sept 1754. married in 1724 to Rebecca Jackson of Morton Hampstead. Her will was proved 8 Aug 1759 in London.
(Possibly Thomas Henry Dunsford)

2. Elizabeth Dunsford born 26 July 1700. Died at 29 Jan 1887 at Moretonhampstead. Married at Tiverton 28 Jan 1724 to William French of Moretonhampstead. They had a child Elizabeth French who died in 1770 and was married to Samuel Tawman Violl, surgeon. They had a child Anne Voill who married Martin Dunsford (see below) the author of a History of Tiverton.

3. Lydia Dunsford died at the age of 18.

4. James Dunsford died before he was 17 years old.

5. Joan Dunsford born 14 October 1808. Marrie Francis Raddon of Prose. Stockland, Dorsetshire. They had children Francis Raddon who died at Pilton and married Margaret Richards of Pilton; and Elizabeth Raddon who married and lived in London.

6. Martin Dunsford born born Tiverton 8 March 1710-11

Martin Dunsford born Tiverton 8 March 1710-11.

On 2 Sept 1736 married at St Mary Magdalen, Taunton to Ann Stone born 1713, Died aged 90 on 21 July 1804. Daughter of George and Ann Stone (nee Webb).

“Martin Dunsford, serge maker, (the father of the author Martin Dunsford,) an ingenious manufacturer, superintended this department for many years and dyed all the colors, except the vat blue and green, in his own house. He was the first who dyed scarlet woollen cloth in Tiverton.”

From The history of Tiverton by William Harding.

Children of Martin and Ann

1. Martin Dunsford born Tiverton 2 Feb 1744. Died 13 March 1807 aged 63. In 1870 Martin married Anne Violl (father Samuel Tawman Violl, a surgeon of Moretonhampstead). Anne died 17 Oct 1872. They had a daughter Eliza Dunsford who died 20 Dec 1782 aged 4 months.
   
   Martin authored “Historical Memoirs of Tiverton”, published in 1790 and other works. This is referred to by many historical books and documents. First George Boyce updated it, then William Harding considered it needed extending and some things corrected so he authored The History of Tiverton, published in 1845.
   
   
   

http://books.google.co.nz/books?id=t8sHAAAAQAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=Dunsford&hl=en&ei=O72ETKKZEIv0tgPm6uj2Bw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q&f=false

2. Anne Dunsford born 1776, died 13 Feb 1771, aged 25 unmarried.
   
   
3. Sarah Dunsford born 11 Nov 1748, died, aged 60 on 13 July 1809 at Tiverton. Married 11 Nov 1767 to Gideon Ackland (Father also Gideon Acklnd), born 23 July 1744, Died aged 55 on 17 March 1759 at Tiverton.
   
   
4. George Dunsford born 21 Jan 1751.

George Dunsford born 21 Jan 1751. Died, aged 71/72, on 2 March 1822.

On 6 Nov 1771, at Tiverton, George married Margaret Lichigaray.

Margaret’s father was Samuel Peter Lichigaray of Ester (a native of Orthis, Bearne, France). Niece of Mathew Lichigaray of Orthis, Bearne, France).

An obituary for George appeared in the ‘Monthly repository for theology and general literature – 1882” printed in Hackney England.

Children of George and Margaret

1. Matthew Dunsford born 25 Nov 1772.

2. Timothy Lichigaray Dunsford born 15 Jan 1775. Died unmarried.

3. George Dunsford born 27 Feb 1778 at Tiverton. George was married at West Teignmouth on 17 July 1805 to Suzannah Parry. Father Henry Parry, purser RN Suzannah baptised St Marys, Lamberth 16 march 1779 and died 24 Nov 1864.

4. Samuel Lichigaray Dunsford born 16 Nov 1779

5. Mary Folett Dunsford born 17 feb 1782. Died unmarried, will dated 30 Apr 1824.

6. Elizabeth Ann Dunsford born 7 March 1784. Died 1855.Married 1874 to Bernard Besly b 14 Dec 1777, d June 1821 at Tiverton.

7. Martin Dunsford born 29 June 1785. Died 27 July 1810 aged 25. In 1808 Married Elisabeth Styron, Father Thomas Styron of Manchester.

8. John Dunsford born 6 mar 1787.

9. William Besly Dunsford born 20 Jan 1790.

Matthew Dunsford born at Tiverton on 5 Nov 1772

Mathew lived in Peckham, Surrey. He died at Lausanne 5 April 1834.

On 14 Nov 1798, Mathew married Elizabeth Nathaniel Harris

Children of Mathew and Elizabeth

1. George William Dunsford Born 18 Sept 1806, christened 26 Jan 1807 at St Gilles, Bamberwell, Surrey, England.

George’s son Henry Dunsford emigrated to New Zealand, so to give a bit of background to Henry’s life George’s story is continued in the Dunsford Family – New Zealand.