The English Perry families (ca.1300-1650)
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The surname Perry appears to originate in England, although there would also seem to be Welsh and French derivatives (Parry and Pierray respectively). The surname Perry and its many variants is found across southern England from the late medieval period until the present day. The name is thought to come from the middle-English word [Perry], meaning pear-tree and it is likely that it is a name that was given to multiple families, i.e there is no single common male Perry ancestor. Nevertheless, connections have been found between various branches of the families. The name is spelled in many different ways in the records, including: Pery, Pury, Purye, Pyrie, Perys, Pirry, Pyrry, Peres, Pyrye and Perrie. In fact the modern spelling of Perry is virtually unheard of before the 17th century.
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The Limerick Perys and the Woodrooffe Perrys descend from the same Devon family. Roger Pery was a freeman of Exeter in 1532 and had 2 sons: William and Richard. William was a bailiff of Exeter in 1578 and his son, also William, settled in Limerick around 1608. His grandson, Edmund joined his uncle in Limerick in 1613 and founded the Limerick branch of the Pery family. | |
Roger's 2nd son, Richard was also a freeman of Exeter and merchant trader. His son and grandson were also named Richard and it is Richard the grandson who founded the Tipperary branch of the Perry family in Ireland. Richard III was born around 1615 and had a very eventful life. He participated in the founding of the New Haven Colony in America with his father in law Richard Malbon, before returning to England, then moving to Glasgow where he was appointed as collector of customs and excise under Oliver Cromwell and finally settling in Clonmel, Tipperary with his son John where he died sometime after 1666. | |
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This branch of the Perry family, however, appear not to have originally come from Devon. Though they claimed descent through their arms of the Perry family of Water, near Membury, Devon, a connection has not been found. They are, however, connected to both the Wiltshire and Hampshire branches of the family. | |
| The Perry family of Water, Devon are to be found in the Herald's Visitation Records of that county from 1564. This gives details of 4 generations of William Peryes who lived in the small village. The arms are described as Quarterly gules and or, on a bend argent three lions passant sable. Micajah Perry, a descendant of the Exeter Perrys and Lord Mayor of London was granted similar arms to these, as he thought he was related to this family, but was unsure as to how. The Woodrooffe Perrys similarly use these arms, but there is no evidence for them having descended from anyone who was granted them. |
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The first William Perry mentioned in the Visitation was married to Emma Hale, the daughter and heir of Thomas Hele, who was son and heir of Nicholas Hele and Isabella, who was daughter and heir of William Walter, son of Simon Walter of Walter. William and Emma had a son, also William, who married a daughter of John Frye. Their son, also William, married Joane, daughter of Roger Holcombe and the final William, who would have been alive at the time of the visitation, was married firstly to Barbara Dawney and secondly to Thomazine Chafe, with whom he had 4 daughters: Bridget, Jane, Emerence and Elizabeth. The Visitation names no sons and so it seems possible that the Water (or Walter) family died out in the male line. However, as the Exeter Perrys (and therefore the Limerick Perys and the Woodrooffe Perrys) claim descent from this family, work is still undergoing into this branch. |
In 1547, William Purye died in Breamore, Hampshire, also leaving a will. In it, he refers extensively to his 'cosen John Pury at Warmyster', confirming the connection with the Wiltshire Perrys. At this time the term 'cousin' was used rather loosely and it doesn't necessarily mean that the two men were first cousins. However, they certainly had a common ancestor and their similar ages means that them being first cousins is likely. William left property at Bremer to John, probably the same property that John left to William Pyry the son of Roger Pury eight years later. William also left property to 'William Pury my brother's sonne', which leads us to believe that his brother could be Roger of Exeter. William also held property at Csyyiche Saint Mighell (Gussage St Michael) in nearby Dorset to John of Warminster.
William Pury's will also gives us the greatest clue as to the deeper origins of the Pury family. In his will he says that I will and bequeath all my lands in Brokehampton and in Warmyster aforesaid to the children of my cosyn John Purye of Warmyster and to their heires forever . The lands at Brockhampton are the clue. Brockhampton is a small manor near Havant, the other side of Hampshire. Early chancery proceedings held at the National Archives (1529-32) record a toft, gardens and land in Brockhampton as being in the tenure of the Pury family. The subject of the proceedings is Thomas Pury, but they also record his father (John Pury of Bristol, dyer), grandparents (William and Agnes Pury) and great grandparents (Nicholas and Isabel Pury). Nicholas is a name often used in the Warminster line and surely here we must have the common ancestor of Richard, William and Roger. The record may also provide a link between the Hampshire/Devon/Dorset Perrys and the Gloucestershire Perrys, with Thomas' father being recorded as 'of Bristol' but this is unconfirmed.
John Piry of Waminster, Wiltshire, died in 1555 leaving a will, a copy of which has been preserved at the National Archives in London. In this will he leaves "the right and title that I have in Over Brember in the county of Hampshire.....to Willyam Pyry the sonne of Roger Pury, merchant of Exeter." Roger, of course, is the ancestor of the Irish Perrys who we know lived in Exeter in 1532. John also names his sons, William, Nicholas and Henry in his will, whose descendants lived in the county for many years afterwards.
The Wiltshire Perrys are linked to a branch of the Dorset Perrys thorugh John Piry's father, Richard Pyrary of Dorset, who is shown as such on the Herald's visitation of Wiltshire. The visitation names four sons of Richard: Thomas, Robert, Peter and John. So we know that Richard Pyray of Dorset, William Pury of Hampshire and Roger Pery of Exeter had a common ancestor, but as yet we do not know who that common ancestor was.
William Purye of Breamore (pronounced and often spelled as 'Bremer') in Hampshire held land in Gussage St Michael in Dorset. Breamore itself is only a mile or two away from the Dorset border. The land in Breamore was left by William to his cousin, John Piry of Warminster (Warminster is around 20 miles away from Breamore). We know that John Piry's father is described as 'of Pyray, Dorset' in the Herald's Visitations and it therefore seems likely that the family that spread its wings to Devon, Hampshire, Wiltshire and ultimately to Ireland, had its origins in Dorset. 'Pyray' is most likely Perry Farm, which lies between Fordingbridge and Alderholt, near the Dorset border with Hampshire and only five miles away from Breamore. Whether earlier Perrys originated from around this area or from Havant in Hampshire is as yet unconfirmed, but the origins of the family must certainly be in the Dorset and Hampshire area.
There are at least two families by the name of Perry living in Gloucestershire in the early modern period. We know that a George Perry of Gloucestershire, son of John Perry settled in County Clare, Ireland in 1639, but as yet we have not located him in the English records.
It is likely that George came from the Hunter/Pery family from Wotton Under Edge in Gloucestershire. John Hunter was born in Yorkshire and went into Gloucestershire. The Herald's Visitation of Gloucestershire says that he was also known as Pery. His son and grandsons were certainly known as Hunter alias Pery. John's son was called Thomas and also lived in Wotton. He was married to Jane Plumer alias Seborne, who is more than likely the daughter of John Plumer alias Seaborne referred to in the early Wotton parish registers. Thomas and Jane had two sons, and it is the younger of the two who has made a greater mark in the historical record. Hugh Pery was baptised in the parish church of Wotton on 11th September 1580. He appears to have moved to London in the first quarter of the 16th century, where he is found as a member of the Committee of the East of India Company (1627-32) and 1633-35). He also became Sheriff of the City of London and Master of the Mercers Company in 1633. He was married to a daughter of Sir Richard Fenn, who also went to London via Gloucestershire. He died in January 1635 and is buried at the Church of St Bartholemew by the Exchange. In his will, amongst other bequests, he left money for the building of almshouses, which are still standing today and are known as the Perry and Dawes Almshouses. Hugh had a large family of daughters, all of whom married a Knight or a Baronet. One of his granddaughters married Sir Christopher Wren, the famous architect.
The other Perry family that has been located in Gloucestershire descends from the Berkshire family. These are known as the Pury family of Gloucester.
The Purye family of Chamberhouse, near Thatcham in Berkshire are referred to extensively in the historical record. John Pury or Pirie was Lord of the Manor of Chamberhouse and built Chamberhouse Castle around the year 1446. His Royal Licence to Crenellate the manor was granted in 1446. He died around the year 1480 and the manor formed part of the dowry of his daughter, Ann Pury when she married William Danvers, whose maternal grandmother was a Quartermain.
John Pury's family appear to have come from 'Sipnam' (Cippenham, now part of Slough) before this. The earliest record of the name in the area is John Pury of Sipman, who was born in the early 14th century.
A Perry family held land in Middlesex in the 13th and 14th centuries and although not much is known about this branch of the family, it is probably one of the earliest mentiones of the family in the historical record. Christine atte Pyrye held a cottage in Kingsbury in the 1330s and the family held land in the area before this.
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