20
ORIGIN AND CHANGES OF SURNAMES.
of which Riddle is a corruption; and the Riddells of Glen-Riddell might have
traced their descent to a common stock with the Ridleys of Willimoteswick."
John Ridley, a brother-in-law of Bishop Ridley, was buried in the Haltwhistle
Church, Northumberland, England; and his name in the inscription on his
tomb is spelled "Redle" or "Ridle," exactly the same as the name of one of
the Norman ancestors of the Riddells, as found in the Domesday Book. One
ancient author calls Ridley a "gentile name,” and another, writing in 1649,
mentions Ridley among thirty-seven families of Northumberland "dating back to
the Conquest." I have not found any mention of the name dating prior to the
settlement of the Norman Ridels and de Ridales in England and Scotland, but
the appearance of the surname de Ridleigh or Ridley, in the north, is contem-
porary with that of Ridale on the border, across the Tyne. In ancient doc-
uments, now extant, in the College of Arms, London, and in the British Museum,
the surname is spelled Riddley and Ridlea.
The Ridlers of England and America descended from a family in Gloucester-
shire, are an offshoot of the Ridleys of Willimoteswick, and assumed the same
arms and crest.
The Ridlands and Ridlons are descended from an ancient Norman, Robert de
Rhuddlan, or de Ryddland, who settled in Wales, and was resident at Rhudd-
lan Castle on the river Clwyd, in the County of Flint. (See "Rhuddlans and
Ridlands," in this book.) The Ridlands descended from one Adam Ridland
from the Orkney Islands, were early settled in Shetland, and seem to have
spelt their surname uniformly.
Magnus Ridland, or Readlan, came from Shetland to New England in 1718,
and after changing his name from Ridland to Readlan and Redlan, finally
adopted the form Redlon, and continued it through life. His seven sons spelt
their own names Redlon, and so did nearly all of the third generation, although
town-clerks and Justices of the Peace frequently wrote their names Ridlon, Red-
lone, and Ridley. The Buxton branch and the Damariscotta branch of Maine,
have always retained their ancestors name of Redlon. The Hollis branch changed
to Ridlon first, but the families at Saco, and in other towns, soon adopted the
same form. Families in the west, originally from Maine, spell the surname
Ridlen, Ridlin, and Redley. Some of the fathers changed the spelling at the
request of an old Scotch school-master, under whose instruction they were
early placed.
The descendants of Matthias Redlon, who went to Kennebec County, from Saco,
Me., nearly all changed their names to Ridley, a very unwise action, that has
resulted in great confusion and embarrassment ever since. There were families
named Ridley, descended from the Cape Cod branch, early settled in eastern
Maine, and almost every one addressed the Redlons by that name; they became
weary of correcting the mistake, and supposing these Ridleys to be a branch
of the same family, adopted their name. Samuel Ridlon and his descendants of
Hollis, Me., however, and John his brother, who settled in Vermont, continued
to spell their surname Ridlon, while their brothers in the east changed to
Ridley.
It is a matter of surprise to many who are unacquainted with family history,
that any surname should be changed; but the causes are numerous and trace-
able. It is well known by all antiquarians, that in early times there was no
established rule for spelling in the Old World, and surnames are found in a
variety of forms on ancient documents and monumental inscriptions. Few sur-
