Alsford Family Page
This is the family of my mother-in-law Madge Lyne ms Alsford. Her family origins goes back to Buckinghamshire. The Alsford variant is most common in Buckinghamshire, within London and also in Hampshire. The Buckinghamshire and London families are most likely of the same origin, although the common ancestor is further back in the mid 18th Century. Although a few later Alsfords from London and Buckinghamshire has migrated down to Hampshire it is likely that this group have different origins.
The surname dates back to the late 13th Century, (see below). Variations in the idiom of the spelling include Alsford, Allsford, Alesford, Alsforde, etc.. John, son of John Alsforde was christened on April 30th 1602, at St. Botolph without Aldgate, London, and Elizabeth Alsford was christened at St. Dunstan Stepney, London on October 17th 1669. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of John de Aldeforde, which was dated 1273, "The Hundred Rolls of Herefordshire", during the reign of King Edward 1, "The Hammer of the Scots", 1272 - 1307.
The most likely origin of the name for the London and Buckinghamshire Alsfords is the village of Aylesford, a name variously written by our antient historians. The Saxon Chronicle, supposed to be written about the time of Bede, names it Ægelesford; Nennius, the Bri tish historian, who flourished about the year 620, says, the Saxons called it Episford, and the Britons, Sathenegabail, from the overthrow of the Saxons here; Asserius, who lived in the time of king Alfred, calls it Ægelsthrep, as does the Saxon historian, Æthelwerd. In the record of Domesday it is written, Elesford, by later writers, Aillesford, and now, most commonly, Aylesford.
Originally a small riverside settlement, the old village comprises around 60 houses, many of which were formerly shops. Two pubs, a Post Office and four small independent shops remain. Aylesford has expanded rapidly over the past thirty years to gain a population of around 5,000.
The Parish of Aylesford covers more than seven square miles, stretching north to Rochester Airport estate and south to Barming and has a total population of over 10,000, with the main settlements at Aylesford, Eccles, Blue Bell Hill Village and part of Walderslade.
The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records the Battle of Aylesford taking place nearby 455, where Hengest fought Vortigern, although his brother Horsa is said to have fallen in this battle; Alfred the Great defeated the Danes in 893; as did Edmund II Ironside in 1016. The manor of Aylesford was first owned by William the Conqueror: the church of St Peter and St Paul is of Norman origin. Here there is a memorial to the Culpeper family, who owned the nearby Preston Hall Estate.
The origin of The Hampshire Alsfords is most likely the village of Alresford (pronounced Allsford) said to be a beautiful Georgian Town which for many centuries was a prosperous wool town. Old Alresford is mentioned in the Domesday Book but the present town of New Alresford did not come into existence much before 1200 at the time when the Great Weir was being built to create Old Alresford Pond as a reservoir for the Mills along the Itchen. The colour-washed Georgian houses you see today rose from the ashes of great fires in the 17th Century.
