Find Ancestors

Greengrass is derived from Grengres (dwellers by the lush green grass) - who were first recorded at Fakenham Magna, Suffolk in the middle of the 13th Century. According to Reaney 'Suffolk Surnames' the spelling denotes Norse ancestry. There is no other record of the name outside of Fakenham until the 1460's. The name developed to Grengresse, Grenegresse, Greengrasse until the modern spelling which was uniform by the early 18th Century. From the 1300's up to the end of the 17th Century the family prospered as Yeoman Farmers. The land and money (for my branch anyway) disappeared at the end of the 17th Century. In the 1891 Census some 430 Greengrass households were identified in England and Wales around 80% concentrated in Suffolk, Norfolk and London. There were also sizeable communities in Essex and Kent. I have an unbroken line from a Walter Grengresse who died in 1540 at Troston, Suffolk. Many earlier family members have been identified, which I am trying to link in to the tree - plus I have over a thousand Greengrass descendants of Walter. I would be very grateful to receive any further details of family members and, of course, more than happy to share the info I have.

Chris Green(grass)