Boston

This is an English locational surname. It originates from the town of Boston, in the county of Lincolnshire, an area famous for the number of settlers which it contributed to the establishment of the colonies of New England from about the year 1607. The famous "Pilgrim Fathers" in their ship Mayflower, sailed from Boston via Plymouth in Devon, before making their epic voyage in 1620. The place name is first recorded in the year 1130 in the spelling of Botulestan, although the precise meaning is uncertain. One theory is that it describes "the stone church of St Botulf", although it seems that the saint was buried elsewhere. The surname is locational. This means that it describes a former inhabitant of the place who moved elsewhere, probably in medieval times. At the time it was the custom to identify strangers by the name of the place from whence they came. This often lead to the development of "sounds" like" spellings, and this is the case with this name in ancient times. Early examples of the surname recording include: Thomas de Botulfston in the Hundred Rolls of the county of Suffolk in 1273, and William de Boston, the prior of Beeston, in the county of Norfolk, in 1314. In 1615 Rebeka Boston was christened at St James church, Clerkenwell, and in 1786 James Boston married Ann Kitchen at St Georges Chapel, Hanover square, both recordings being in the city of London, England.