 yrrell County is named for Lords Proprietor Sir John
Tyrrell (1685–1729). Sir John bought a share in Carolina, part of the
the original proprietary grant to Sir Anthony Ashley Cooper, the third
Earl of Shaftesbury, sometime before May 28, 1725.
Sir John never visited Carolina. He chose to stay in England at
one of his two estates, Heron and Woodham Mortimer, both in Essex. He was
married twice with four daughters from the first marriage and three sons
from the second. When he died in 1729, he was succeeded by his sons, as
was the custom at that time. When the sons died, the title of the family
became extinct (January 5, 1766).
Tyrrell was an old name in England and the family achieved some
importance there. The chief of the Tyrrells of Springfield, as they were
known, was always a knight. Sir Walter, the original Tyrrell, received his
lands in Essex from William the Conqueror but the family was not granted a
seal until October 22, 1666, when another Sir John was created a
Baronet. In 1378, Sir Hugh defended his castle from the French. Jet, a third
Sir John, was a Sheriff in 1423, a captain of Carpenters serving in France,
and a treasurer for Henry VI.
The name been written at least two ways:: Tyrrell, as it is spelled
here today, as well as Tirrell. The
Tyrrell seal is simple but colorful. Two cheveronels are silver
in a azure field surrounded by a red engrailed border.
The most notorious of the Tyrrells allegedly smothered the
children of Edward IV at the command of Richard III. This villain, Sir
James Tyrrell, is not one of the Springfields, however. |
