Dugmore

This habitational name is chiefly found in the West Midlands region of England. The origin is certainly Old English pre 7th Century and may be Ancient British i.e. pre Roman 55 A.D. The origins are lost but are believed to develop from "Dubh" meaning "black" and "mor" a morass or swamp. Villages of Blackmore or Blachmoor are widely found in the United Kingdom but not "Dubmoor or Dugmore", suggesting that the original "site" is now one of the seven thousand or so "lost" medieval villages. Examples of the recordings include John Dugmore, christened on October 15th 1626, also at Redmarley D'Abitot, which appears to be the village most associated with the name. Other recordings are Phoebe Dugmore of Halesowen in 1813, and Samuel Dugmore of St. Thomas, Dudley in 1850. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of John Dugmore, which was dated July 15th 1620, a witness at Redmarley D'Abitot, Westminster, during the reign of King James 1 of England and V1 of Scotland, 1603 - 1625. 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.