Jessop

Name Meaning - Jessup, Jessop

There are many theories as to the origin of the name Jessop. What is accepted is that it is of patronymic origin, derived from Joseph or the Italian equivalent Giuseppe. In fact Lower's Dictionary of Family Names, 1860. notes it as a corruption or variation, or rather Anglicizing of the Italian Christian name, Giuseppe [joo-sep-pa] = Joseph. On the pronunciation and spelling issues, the combination of letters as "-ph-" did not occur in the Norman English alphabet. Where it was found was in words borrowed from the Greek. Scholars of course took it in their stride but ordinary folk it is likely that they just stopped at the p, disregarding the h.

Of course the name Joseph itself is of Hebrew origin and means "may god add/give increase". If this derivation is accepted, it means the name is certainly not of Anglo-Saxon origin, and in its present form or derivations, cannot be recognised or assoicated with continental surnames.

The earliest noted records of Jessops in England were in Yorkshire. The scribes who compiled the Domesday Book (1086) were familiar with the name "Joseph" in its Latinised form and seem regularly to have entered it up as "Josephus". This was still in use a century later as in the case of a man designated as "Joseph of Holme" (Norfolk: 1187). Another century elapses and then we encounter Richard filius Josep in Cambridge (1273) and yet another century passes and we meet up with Willelmus Josop in York (1379).

English Parish Registers between 1600 and 1700 contain the following derivative spellings: Gissop, Jeseph [very like Joseph!], Gisup, Gizup, Jessop, Jessep, Jessapp, Jessap, Gissope, Jessoppe, Jesupp, Jesope, Jesoppe, Jessupp, Jessup, Jesup, Jessope, Jesop, Jesoope, Jessoope, Jeshup, Jesopp, Jesupp, Jessipp, Jesepe.

Interestingly in England in the early 1500s and through the 1600s there are a number of wills wherein the testators call themselves 'Joseph alias Jessop. Burke's Encyclopedia of Heraldry notes that there are currently four forms of the name that are used among 'the best' English families of this name Jessopp, Jessope, Jessup and Jessop.

The origins of the name or the progenitors of the use of the name in England is shrouded in mystery, however there are a number of different theories worth noting:

When and how it came into England may be questions that are never answered. The last explanation is the most likely - that Italians and Spaniards found their way to England and settled there, is shown by history. It is very possible that when the spoken English language was the only language of the many, it was much easier for the Italian name, Giuseppe (joo-sep-pa), with its softer initial sounds to have become in colloquial usage "Jessup," than in the case of other forms of the same name (records indicate that the names was seen to be spelt Gisup in the 1500s - perhaps pointing to the Italian original). That christian names were a major source of surnames can also not be debates - look at the number of Johns or Williamsons around. What is interesting is that the use of the surname Joseph is quite rare - maybe it was because it became Jessup.

Brief History - Major Lines 
Whatever the origins of the family in England, a family whose name was spelled in a dozen different ways was domiciled in the south of Yorkshire from early times. In the 15th century they seem to have been land-owners and of the gentry class in the neighborhood of the important towns of Rotherham, Doncaster, and Sheffield. They were already important people in this district when the 16th century opened, and had allied themselves by marriage with the ancient family of De Vesci a branch of which still have lingered about that part Yorkshire. 

One branch of the Jessopps had settled in the county of Nottingham before this; and there were some of the name in Lincolnshire, and Derby, during the reign of Henry VIII., descendants of which branch are by far the most flourishing and wealthy bearers of the name.

Some time during the first half of the 16th century, Richard Jessoppe of Rotherham, gent., married Anne, eldest daughter of Robert Swift, of Broom Hall, near Sheffield, and obtained with her this estate and a large fortune besides. This marriage was what is popularly described as the foundation of the Jessopp family, - that is to say, it gave them a chance at showing what stuff they were made of. The family line proved itself worthy and the estate of Broom Hall was handed down from father to son for seven generations, and only passed to possessors of another name at the death of William Jessop of Broom Hall, without male heirs, on the 15th Nov., 1734.

Meanwhile from the parent stock in the Rotherham region grew up offshoots of the same family, descended from the younger branches; and these established themselves all over Britian including:

Famous Jessops

Thomas Jessop Sheffield's Jessop Hospital for Women, which dates from 1878, is named after city magnate Thomas Jessop who footed the �30,000 building costs. Jessop's fortune came from steel; his father was a steel smelter and a partner in a steel firm. Thomas worked his way up through the family business and when his brother died in 1872, Thomas became the owner. The Jessop works at Brightside became one of the biggest steelworks in the country and in 1875 the firm became a limited company with a share capital of �400,000. Jessops specialised in Crucible steel for cutlery, edge tools, and engineering and also gained a reputation in America, particularly for cutlery steel. Jessop was a well known public figure and held many important civic posts including Master Cutler (1863), Mayor (1863-4), Alderman

(1864), Town Trustee (1862) and JP (1863). As Mayor in 1864 Jessop had to deal with the aftermath of the great Sheffield flood. He became treasurer of a compensation fund of around �50,000. Jessop was also a member of Sheffield's first town council when the town became a corporate borough in 1843. 

Judge William Jessup 
Judge William Jessop was 'principal law adviser of the ministry in the reign of Queen Anne, in which the Duke of Newcastle held the office of Lord Privy Seal. Many of his communications at this period may be found in the Harleian MSS. 2262.' He represented Aldborough in Parliament at the time of his death, as he had done for many years, having been elected 9 times. In 1764 he became Commissioner of the Alienation Office, and in 1728, second Judge of Chester. He also obtained an Irish peerage for his son, who died before him, as already noticed in the pedigree.