There are several dozen ways to spell the surname that our family knows as AYERS. Some of these are just true variations of spelling like AYRES, AIRES, AERS, etc., mostly caused by illiteracy in early times. Still other spelling variations are actually changes to different names like the German HERR. Regardless, the prominent spelling where our ancestors came from in England was EYRE, but even that had changed over the centuries.
Our first AYERS ancestor who adventured to America in 1635 was John AYRE. However, when he still lived in England, he spelled his name as EYRE. Other researchers, from England and elsewhere, believe they have successfully traced John EYRE’s ancestry back 16 generations to about 1040 AD in France. I have shown a common version of his lineage on the Family Tree website (see link on right column of this page).
Before that time, surnames were not commonly in use, as people in small villages went by their given names with perhaps a description added like John the Baker. There is one belief that the EYRE surname originated from the old French term “(h)eir” which referred to a person who was well-known to be the heir to a title or land. There is also the amusing legend that is told concerning Truelove a follower of the Norman, William the Conqueror, who aided him during the Battle of Hastings in 1066 AD. During the battle, William was unhorsed and his helmet beaten into his face. Truelove, observing the incident, pulled the helmet off and horsed him again. The grateful King then said to his rescuer, “Thou shalt hereafter be called EYRE (or Air) for thou hast given me the air that I breathe.” The legend ends with the new King after the battle granting extensive lands to the man as reward for his services.
Early records show the existence of a Truelove LeHEYR born about 1044 and the spelling suggests he may have indeed come over from France with the Normans. One of Truelove’s descendants, Humphrey LeHEYR, was born about 1160, and it is known that a Humphredus LeEYR (or HEYR) accompanied King Richard on the Third Crusade to the Holy Lands. There is another legend that he rescued King Richard at the Battle of Acre in 1190.
The spelling LeHEYR lasted about 8 generations until it became LeEYRE and finally EYRE for the next 7 generations up to our John EYRE. EYRE is still a common name in England today. Note: The famous novel Jane Eyre authored by Charlotte Bronte was published in London in 1847.
So, where did our EYRE ancestors live in England? The records indicate for the most part they lived in the county of Wiltshire which is located in the South Central part of the country about 100 miles west of London. (see Map) As a coincidence, I’ve been in Wiltshire before in 1978 when I visited the famous prehistoric Stonehenge monument on the Salisbury Plains. So, I once set foot in the general area where our Ayers ancestors lived without knowing it.
The Wiltshire area at that time was known for textile manufacturing. John EYRE’s father Robert EYRE of Bromham was a fairly prosperous woolen manufacturer (clothier), however, he died in 1603 when John was still very young. John’s mother, Cicely EYRE struggled to maintain the business especially as the textile industry waned during two economic depressions and she too died in 1619.
Besides the economic hard times, this period in history also brought religious and political strife to Wiltshire and other parts of England. There was dissension and mistrust amongst all parties. Caught in this upheaval, many Wiltshire citizens, including John EYRE, felt the new world might offer greater opportunities and security, so they loaded their families into ships and sailed to America.
