Clan Steverson
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article or section includes a list of references or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. You can improve this article by introducing more precise citations. |
The name Steverson occurred in many references, and from time to time, it was spelt Stevenson, Stephenson, Stephinson, Stevenston, Steenson, Stenson, Steinson, Stinson, as well as other ways. scribe and church officials spelt the name as it sounded, and frequently the spelling changed even during the person's own lifetime.
Through diligent research among some of the most ancient manuscripts, such as, the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland, the Inquisitio, the Ragman Rolls, the Domesday Book, baptismals, parish records, tax records and cartularies researchers have found the first record of the name Steverson, in Northumberland where they were seated from very ancient times, some say before the Norman Conquest in 1066 of William the Conqueror.
The family name Steverson is believed to be descended from the Boernicians, an ancient founding race of the English/Scottish border dating from about the year 400 A.D..
The surname Steverson was found in Northumberland, where they were anciently seated at Knaresdale Hall, and at Newcastle on Tyne. By 1150 they had moved north to Scotland in the parish of Newlands in Peebleshire, where Stevene Steverson rendered homage, along with his kinsman, John, to King Edward I of England on his brief conquest of Scotland in 1296. The name north and south of the border at this time was spelled with a "ph" and "v", alternately. Branches of the name appeared in Scotland in Brechin, Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Irvine, and south of the border in Middlesex, Lincoln, Derbyshire, and Cumberland.
Contents |
[edit] Motto
Sub libertate quietum. {Rest under liberty}
[edit] Clan location
By 1150 they had moved north to Scotland in the parish of Newlands in Peebleshire, where Stevene Steverson rendered homage, along with his kinsman, John, to King Edward I of England on his brief conquest of Scotland in 1296. The main stem of the family remained in the north east of England and southern Scotland. In Scotland there was a small group in the Glasgow and Pestwick area which evolved their versions of the name to Stenson and Steenson and Steinson from about the year 1455 onwards. Their present family seats are at Bolton Old Hall, Westow, Hassop, Hall, Park Grange, Playford Mount, and Braidwood.
[edit] Clan wars
Clan wars became so intense that in 1246 A.D., six Chiefs from the Scottish side and six from the English side met at Carlisle and created a set of laws acceptable to the border territory and its people. These were unlike any laws prevailing in England or Scotland or, for that matter, anywhere else in the world. For refusal of assistance when called,a person could be hanged on the instant, without a trial. When clans were on the "hot trod" to recover stolen property (from which we get the modern expression "hot to trot"), they were protected from almost all eventualities.
When the Crown of England and Scotland were united under James VI of Scotland in 1603 the Border Clans were dispersed to England, northern Scotland and to Ireland. Some were banished directly to the (American) Colonies.
In Ireland they were granted lands previously held the Catholic Irish. They signed as "Undertaking" to remain Protestant and faith to the Crown. In Ireland the name assumed the variance of Steenson and Stinson, and they settled in County Limerick, and were prominent patrons of Gaelic literature.
[edit] Migration to the New World
The New World beckoned settlers from Ireland (who would come to be known as the Scots-Irish or Scotch-Irish), as well as from the Old Country. The sailed aboard the armada of sailing ships known as the "White Sails" which plied the stormy Atlantic. Some called them, less romantically, the "coffin ships". Among the early settlers bearing the STEVERSON surname who came to North America were: Joseph Stephenson, who settled in Argentia, Newfoundland, in 1730; William and Mathew Stevenson, who settled in Harbour Grace, Newfoundland, in 1760; Andrew Stevenson, who settled in Charlestown, Massachusetts, in 1630; Richard Stevenson, who settled in the Barbados in 1654; Robert Stevenson, who settled in Boston, Mass., in 1763; Christian and Anne Stephenson, who settled in Virginia, in 1637; Thomas Stephenson, who settled in Maryland, in 1774; John Steenson, who settled in Charles Town, South Carolina in 1767; David, Hugh, James, John, Robert, Thomas, and William Stinson, who all arrived in Pennsylvania from 1844 to 1857. In America these pioneers were part of the nucleus of the first settlements from Maine to the Cumberland Gap, and from Nova Scotia to the Prairies.
[edit] Clan Steverson from 19th century to present
Perhaps most notable among the family name during the modern era was Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson, distinguished author, born in Edinborough, whose works include "Treasure Island", "Kidnapped", and many more, 1850-1894.
In more recent times, many of the family named Steverson have achieved prominence: among them were; George Stephenson, Robert Stephenson, Sir Francis Stephenson; Edgar Stephenson, Archdeacon; Professor Gordon Stephenson, Architect; Colonel Sir Henry Stephenson; Jim Stephenson, Recorder; Sir Percy Stephenson; Robert Stevenson; Sir William Stephenson, Canadian Author; Dr. Alan Stevenson, Researcher; Sir Aubrey Stevenson; Dr. Derek Stevenson; Dame Hilda Stevenson; Air Marshall Leigh Stevenson; Sir Matthew Stevenson; Sir Ralph Stevenson; and Adlai E. Stevenson, U.S. Presidential candidate.[1]
