Treffry

This is a Cornish locational surname, although the original place would now seem to be a 'lost' site. The surname is well recorded in Cornwall and all the early recordings are from the St Tudy region. The derivation is from the elements 'Tre' from the Olde Gaelic for a farmhouse or sometimes a church, and a suffix element which is probably 'fryh'- a woodland. The ancient heraldic arms of Cornwall describe a grant of arms to the 'Treffry's of Treffry in Fowey and Landydrock'. This grant has the blazon of a black field, a chevron between three trees, erased in silver. This would appear to confirm the meaning of Treffry as being 'a farmhouse in the trees'. Examples of the early church recordings include Humphry Treffry, the son of Nycolas Treffry, who was christened at St Tudy on June 17th 1589, and Mary, a daughter of Nycolas, christened at the same church on June 19th 1593. In London Brigetta Treffry married Robertus Morris at St Martins in the Field, Westminster on June 30th 1645, whilst later Lucy Jefry married John Jones at the same church on March 7th 1760. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Nycolas Treffry, which was dated February 1st 1562, who was christened at St Tudy, Cornwall, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth 1, known as '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.