Stanmore

This interesting surname is of Anglo-Saxon origin and is a locational from any of the place so called in either Berkshire, Hampshire, Shropshire or Middlesex. The place in Middlesex is first recorded in the Saxon Charter of 793 as "Stanmere" and each place has the same derivation; from the Old English pre 7th Century "Stan", a stone or stony, with "mere", a lake or marshy patch of land. It may also be that the source of this surname is topographical for a person who lived near such a place. During the Middle Ages as it became more common for people to migrate further afield from their native villages, the custom evolved of taking the placename as a means of identification thus resulting in a wide dispersal of the name. Recorded in London are the marriage of William Stamore and Ann Greene on April 13th 1697, at St. John's Hackney and the christening John Stammore on October 3rd 1697 at St. Mary's, Whitechapel. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of An Stansmore, which was dated July 18th 1579, St. Antholin Budge Row, London, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth 1, "Good Queen Bess", 1558 - 1603. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.