Ancestry of The Longhurst Family
The Longhurst Coat-of-Arms...
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According to Burke's General Armoury, described as being black with five silver narrow bands, and a red chevron over all. On the helmet is a gold ducal crown, and a griffin's head holding a key in its beak.
The English word "hurst" - a wood, thicket or grove - is a word used in the composition of many names. In olde England, the name Longhurst meant "dweller at, or near, the long wood".
(I drew this myself using CorelDraw back in the very early 2000's, using published guidelines as to the heraldic elements. Copyright reserved.)
Longhurst origins...
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This map shows the different geographical regions in Great Britain that are mentioned in this website. Surrey is just southwest of London.
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The villages the Longhursts came from lie in a cluster southwest of densely-wooded Leith Hill, the highest hill in the southeast of England, and a landmark that would have been well known to them. There are records of Longhursts appearing in court cases in this area dating at least as far back as the reign of King Edward III (1327-1377 AD).
In this modern map of Dorking Capel Surrey England, each grid section is 10 km. square...
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This map shows Longhurst Hill to be just southwest of Ewhurst Green (which can be found on the larger map).
In the 1500's and 1600's, Longhursts often appear as churchwardens and as witnesses or executors to the wills of other farming families. From these records, one gets the impression that the Longhursts were relatively well off, or were at least contributing members of their communities.
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This map shows Longhurst Farm - just southwest of Ewhurst Green (which can be found on the larger map).
(From a book called "Old Cottage and Domestic Architecture in South West Surrey" by Ralph Nevill.)
Click on the map to view a larger version of it, showing a greater area.
For some pertinent information on the history of England, try here...
In 1832, Joseph Longhurst and his family left this area for life in the new world of Canada.
This ancestral line...
While earlier Longhursts are believed to be known, this is as far back as I trust is unambiguous.
Follow this link to a page that explains the situation.
John LONGHURST (born c1515, lived in Surrey) / Amy ________
-1- -2- -3- -4- -5-
John LONGHURST (Jr., born c1745, lived in Surrey) / Mary WHEELER
Joseph LONGHURST (born 1787, lived in Surrey until 1832, moved to Ontario, Canada) / Sarah HAYSMAN
James LONGHURST (born 1816, lived in Surrey, England until 1832, moved to Ontario) / Flora MACDONALD
Archibald John LONGHURST (born 1848, lived in Ontario) / Mary Martha LOOKER
Archibald Walter LONGHURST (born 1877, lived in Ontario) / Fannie Esther BURTON
Archibald Thomas LONGHURST (born 1902, lived in Ontario) / Alice Violet (Lulu) SQUIRES
Alfred Thomas Burton Longhurst (born 1925, lived in Ontario / Theresa Mary BURKE
(Follow the links in this section to see more information on the families that married into the Longhurst family.)
The chart (below) helps give an overview of this particular ancestral line of the Longhurst family going back to, and through, Joseph Longhurst and Sarah Haysman. Joseph and Sarah emigrated to the New World with their children in 1832 making them the first in this particular line of Longhursts to settle in the New World.
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This Longhurst line in England can be followed back to at least 1515 (with written mentions of the Longhurst name going back to 1221). The chart starts with John Longhurst and wife Amy, then indicates perhaps five subsequent generations before being followed by Alfred Thomas Burton Longhurst's 5x grandfather, 4x grandfather, 3x grandfather, 2x grandfather, grandfather, and father.
Archibald Thomas Longhurst (Alfred's father) had six children, all represented in this chart. Younger generations follow elsewhere in this site.
The chart has been made in two versions - one with a background and one without. Both will print out on 8.5 x 11 paper oriented as portrait. The one without the background may yield a better result when using textured or coloured paper.