Bennington Family Homepage

(and Benington and Binnington)

Table of Contents:

  1. Introduction
  2. Early history of the Bennington family
  3. Newsletter information
  4. Projects in progress
  5. Queries and comments
  6. Links to other web pages
  7. Index to past newsletters

I. Introduction

For over fifty years, Will Hall and Janna Larson have been collecting information on Bennington, Benington, and Binnington families in the United States. Will Hall published the first Bennington Genealogy in the 1940's. Janna Larson indexed, compiled and published Will Hall's second edition in 1991. Collection of materials is ongoing for a third edition. Janna currently has information on over 12,000 individuals in her Bennington family database. She will be glad to check her files and share information with you.

II. Early History of the Family

The surname Bennington, and its variations, Benington and Binnington, derive from the English place name Bennington which is the name of two villages in Lincolnshire, England. The earliest reference to Bennington is in the Domesday Book (1086 A.D.): "In Benictun had Radult 14 carucates of land..."

Most of the Benningtons in the United States today go back to the family of Henry and Sarah (Harris) Bennington. They lived in the early 1700's in what is now Harford County, Maryland. There are records of various Bennington immigrants coming to Virginia, Georgia, Massachusetts and elsewhere in America in the seventeenth century. It has not been established that any of them is the ancestor of Henry Bennington. New sources are surfacing all the time, however. Please let us know if you run across any. Every little piece helps complete the picture.

There are many Bennington, Benington, and Binnington families which immigrated later in America's history. We are following all these lines. Many of them came from known villages in Lincolnshire, Yorkshire and Norfolk, England.

For more information on Early Benningtons and the Origin of the Bennington Surname, please refer to Volume I, Number 1 of the "Bennington Bulletin."

III. Newsletter Information

A newsletter can be a wonderful forum for sharing discoveries, exchanging ideas, and solving research questions. The "Bennington Bulletin" is a quarterly newsletter for Bennington, Benington and Binnington genealogists. The first issue came out in February 1995. Each issue has 12 pages jam-packed with articles, data, queries and answers. Publication dates are the first of February, May, August and November. The cost is $15.00 a year. Back issues are available for $4.00 each. An index to the articles in the newsletter is in Item VII of this web page. If you would like to subscribe, please send a check to Janna Larson, 14623 N. 49th Place, Scottsdale, AZ 85254-2207.

IV. Projects in Progress

  1. Mystery B's
    1. Janna Larson has created a database which contains over 400 Benningtons who as yet cannot be fitted into the Bennington family history. Some of these will turn out to be Pennington, Berrington, Bevington or other surnames which were mistakenly indexed as Bennington. Others are real Benningtons whose parentage needs to be discovered. One of these "Mystery B's" is featured in each "Bennington Bulletin." The prize for the first person to solve one is a free year's subscription to the newsletter.
  2. Extraction of Records from Canada and England
    1. This project is just beginning, but will pick up speed when the number of "Mystery B's" is reduced. If you would like to participate, please let me know.

V. Queries and Comments

Janna will be glad to answer your queries and read your comments. Please write to Janna.Larson@cox.net or mail a letter to 14623 N. 49th Place, Scottsdale, AZ 85254-2207.

VI. Links to Other Web Pages You May Wish to Visit

VII. Index to Past Newsletter Articles

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