Guild of One-Name Studies
One-name studies, Genealogy
Study: Hembrough
Variants: Hemborough, Hembroff, Hembruff, Hemingbrough
Category: 1 - A study where research using core genealogical datasets and transcriptions is in its early stages.
DNA website: www.familytreedna.com/public/hembrough
Contact: Dr Douglas Shaw
The HEMBROUGH name is locative--named for a place. Church parish records from the village of Hemingbrough in Yorkshire have several references to the surname HEMINGBROUGH. Nearby districts of Selby, Goole and Hull carried the heaviest concentration of both HEMBROUGHs and HEMINGBROUGHs in the 1841 UK Census.
The village Hemingbrough dates from Roman times. It was a high spot on the north bank of the Humber River. The word 'brough' means fort. Heming may come from a Norse man or tribe of the Early Middle Ages.
It is possible that HEMBOROUGH has a separate origin.
Hemingbrough appears as 'Hamiburg' in the Domesday survey and book (1068, 1088). The earliest form of the surname appears to have been 'de Hemyngburgh'. The 12th Century Collegiate Church of St Mary's (pictured) has served nearby communities for 800 years. Its high spire visible for miles, the church served as a monastic training center.
-Walter Hemingburgh, 14th century author of THE CHRONICLES OF ENGLAND.
-Robert de Hemingburgh, Keeper of the Rolls and of the Chancery of Ireland under Edward III.
-John de Hemingburgh, born about 1327-28, educated at Hemingbrough Minster, professing monk for 66 years, prior of Durham, 1391-1416.
-John Hembrough, 1785-1868, early settler of Morgan County, Illinois, USA, arriving in 1829.
-Herbert Hembruff, General Secretary of YMCA (USA), 1945-52.
-Josh Hembrough, world-class hurdler for Purdue University, United States. Deaflympic World Record holder for 110-meter hurdles (14.16 sec), set at Taipei, Taiwan. Top scorer at Purdue in 60- and 110-meter hurdles. Named Academic All-Big Ten. Now a health education teacher.
-Jordan Hembrough, host of the Toy Hunter show, collector of toys and comic books.
CENSUS
The following census data show the combined occurrences of these surnames:
UNITED KINGDOM 1841 - 177; 1851 - 173; 1861 - 203; 1871 - 170; 1881 - 165; 1891 - 187; 1901 - 206; 1911 - 238
CANADA 1851 - 17; 1861 - 19; 1871 - 26; 1881 - 8; 1891 - 45; 1901 - 52; 1911 - 15
UNITED STATES 1850 - 15; 1860 - 11; 1870 - 30; 1880 - 34; 1900 - 135; 1910 - 176; 1920 - 218; 1930 - 178
BIRTH, MARRIAGE, DEATH
UNITED KINGDOM BMD
Births, 1837-2006: HEMBOROUGH, 85; HEMBROUGH, 597; HEMINGBROUGH, 176 Marriages, 1837-2005: HEMBOROUGH, 60; HEMBROUGH, 409; HEMINGBROUGH, 121 Deaths, 1837-2006: HEMBOROUGH, 86; HEMBROUGH, 473; HEMINGBROUGH, 87
AUSTRALIA BMD
HEMBROUGH: Births, 1788-1922, 10; Marriages, 1788-1949, 31; Deaths, 1787-1985, 9
HEMBROUGH is both the most widespread and the most common of the surnames. It is the only name consistently found in censuses for Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States. It also appears in Australia's indexed electoral roles. The UK's Office of National Statistics (UK ONS) counts 172 occurrences in 2002, giving it a ranking of 23492. The Frequently Occurring Surnames Study of the 1990 US Census ranks Hembrough 56754 place.
In the 1841 Census:
HEMBOROUGH: 14 of 21 total lived in Devonshire, of which 9 were in Tiverton
HEMBROUGH: 76 of 141 total lived in Yorkshire and 36 in Gloucestershire. Yorkshire residents were mostly in Hull (18), Selby (16) and Goole (12). 23 Gloucestershire residents lived in Clifton (Bristol).
HEMINGBROUGH: 11 of 15 lived in Selby, Yorkshire.
HEMINGBROUGH was found only in the United Kingdom. There were 73 occurrences of the name in the UK ONS study, yielding a ranking of 40305.
HEMBOROUGH is probably found only in the United Kingdom. The two occurrences in censuses of Canada and the US appeared anomalous. The UK ONS study found 49 occurrences, ranking it 51457.
HEMBROFF was found in Canada and the United States. All known bearers of the name were descendants of Joseph and Martha HEMBROUGH of Hemingbrough, Selby, UK, who emigrated to Canada about 1823.
HEMBRUFF, rarest of the variants, was found only in Canada, principally on Manitoulin Island, Ontario. Bearers of this name also were descendants of Joseph and Mary HEMBROUGH.
http://www.familytreedna.com/project-join-request.aspx?group=Hembrough