Hepburn
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Hepburn Surname Genealogy
The surname Hepburn is thought to have come from Hebron or Hebburn, small villages in Northumberland in the north of England. But it could alternatively have a Scottish origin, meaning something like the "house beside the water" as burn is a widely used Scots word to mean river.
Scotland. The main Hepburn branch in Scotland originated in East Lothian where Adam Hepburn was granted land for having saved the Earl of March from a horse that had lost control. Chillingham castle on the Scottish border was their family's seat until the eighteenth century. They became one of the great barons of Scotland and were ennobled as the Earls of Bothwell. They are probably best remembered for the Bothwell who married Mary Queen of Scots and then fled to the Continent with blood on his hands.
There were also Hepburn families in East Lothian at Waughton, Beanston and Athelstaneford, and branches at Keith and Smeaton. Smeaton Hall stayed with the Hepburn family until 1934. Today, Robin Hepburn runs his Waughton financial communications company in London.
Hepburns were as well at Fowlis Wester in Perthshire and, increasingly in the 19th century, in and around Aberdeen and Glasgow. One family in Biggar traces itself back to John Hepburn, a veteran of the battle of Waterloo and the town jailer in Lanark. Charles Hepburn co-founded the Hepburn and Ross whisky firm in Glasgow in 1920. The business made him exceedingly rich and he became a noted art collector and benefactor in the town.
England. Not all Hepburns were well-to-do. Thomas Hepburn was a Durham miner who tried to unionize his colliery in the 1830's, but with little success. One Hepburn account starts with a docker on the Clyde who moved south to the East End of London.
Ireland. There were also Hepburns in Ireland who had moved there from Scotland in the 1700's. A Donegal family started out n Castlefinn as farmers and masons.
America. Some Scots Hepburns migrated to America. Samuel Hepburn, a supporter of Bonnie Prince Charlie, decamped to Ireland after Culloden and then came with his family to America in 1773. He suffered the loss of his wife and a daughter on the voyage:
The family settled along the Susquehanna river in Northumberland, Pennsylvania. Samuel himself died there in 1797 at the age of 97.
An earlier arrival was James Hepborn from Scotland, transported to Maryland in 1655. His descendants were small farmers in Kent county on Maryland's eastern shore for many generations. The Rev. Sewell Hepburn changed the family name from Hepbron to Hepburn in 1879. From this line came the actress Katherine Hepburn.
Other Hepburn lines can be found in Canada and the Bahamas.
Australia. Robert Hepburn of the Royal Navy was a pioneer settler on the east coast of Tasmania, arriving with his wife and eight children in the early 1830's. His homestead there was called Swanwick. Another naval captain, John Hepburn, came to Hobart in 1835 and then moved onto Victoria. He too was a pioneer of the country, being the first European settler in the Daylesford region of Victoria. He named his homestead Smeaton House after the Smeaton back home in Scotland. Also settling in Victoria were two Hepburn brothers, Donald and Angus, who arrived from Inverness in 1851.
Select Hepburn Names
Sir John Hepburn from Athelstaneford was a distinguished soldier for Sweden and France in their wars in the early 17th century.
Katherine Hepburn was a celebrated American actress.
Audrey Hepburn, another celebrated actress, took her Hepburn name from her maternal grandmother, Kathleen Hepburn.
Select Hepburns Today
Select Index of Names
The Origin/Spread of Surnames
The surname Hepburn is thought to have come from Hebron or Hebburn, small villages in Northumberland in the north of England. But it could alternatively have a Scottish origin, meaning something like the "house beside the water" as burn is a widely used Scots word to mean river.
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Hepburn Resources on
The
Internet
- The Hepburn Clan. Hepburn clan family history.
- Hepburns of Donegal. Hepburns in Ireland - a one-name study.
Scotland. The main Hepburn branch in Scotland originated in East Lothian where Adam Hepburn was granted land for having saved the Earl of March from a horse that had lost control. Chillingham castle on the Scottish border was their family's seat until the eighteenth century. They became one of the great barons of Scotland and were ennobled as the Earls of Bothwell. They are probably best remembered for the Bothwell who married Mary Queen of Scots and then fled to the Continent with blood on his hands.
There were also Hepburn families in East Lothian at Waughton, Beanston and Athelstaneford, and branches at Keith and Smeaton. Smeaton Hall stayed with the Hepburn family until 1934. Today, Robin Hepburn runs his Waughton financial communications company in London.
Hepburns were as well at Fowlis Wester in Perthshire and, increasingly in the 19th century, in and around Aberdeen and Glasgow. One family in Biggar traces itself back to John Hepburn, a veteran of the battle of Waterloo and the town jailer in Lanark. Charles Hepburn co-founded the Hepburn and Ross whisky firm in Glasgow in 1920. The business made him exceedingly rich and he became a noted art collector and benefactor in the town.
England. Not all Hepburns were well-to-do. Thomas Hepburn was a Durham miner who tried to unionize his colliery in the 1830's, but with little success. One Hepburn account starts with a docker on the Clyde who moved south to the East End of London.
Ireland. There were also Hepburns in Ireland who had moved there from Scotland in the 1700's. A Donegal family started out n Castlefinn as farmers and masons.
America. Some Scots Hepburns migrated to America. Samuel Hepburn, a supporter of Bonnie Prince Charlie, decamped to Ireland after Culloden and then came with his family to America in 1773. He suffered the loss of his wife and a daughter on the voyage:
"The vessel, the Faithful Steward on which they
sailed, was lost somewhere on the American coast and mother and
daughter were drowned while trying to get ashore on a small boat."
The family settled along the Susquehanna river in Northumberland, Pennsylvania. Samuel himself died there in 1797 at the age of 97.
An earlier arrival was James Hepborn from Scotland, transported to Maryland in 1655. His descendants were small farmers in Kent county on Maryland's eastern shore for many generations. The Rev. Sewell Hepburn changed the family name from Hepbron to Hepburn in 1879. From this line came the actress Katherine Hepburn.
Other Hepburn lines can be found in Canada and the Bahamas.
Australia. Robert Hepburn of the Royal Navy was a pioneer settler on the east coast of Tasmania, arriving with his wife and eight children in the early 1830's. His homestead there was called Swanwick. Another naval captain, John Hepburn, came to Hobart in 1835 and then moved onto Victoria. He too was a pioneer of the country, being the first European settler in the Daylesford region of Victoria. He named his homestead Smeaton House after the Smeaton back home in Scotland. Also settling in Victoria were two Hepburn brothers, Donald and Angus, who arrived from Inverness in 1851.
Select Hepburn Names
Sir John Hepburn from Athelstaneford was a distinguished soldier for Sweden and France in their wars in the early 17th century.
Katherine Hepburn was a celebrated American actress.
Audrey Hepburn, another celebrated actress, took her Hepburn name from her maternal grandmother, Kathleen Hepburn.
Select Hepburns Today
- 8,000 in the UK (most numerous in Glasgow)
- 1,000 in America (most numerous in Florida)
- 4,000 elsewhere (most numerous in Canada)
Select Index of Names
The Origin/Spread of Surnames