Robert Roger Bland, of Orton

The oldest known Bland was identified by Thoresby as Roger Bland, but Thoresby may misheard the name , which might have been Robert. He was born about the turn of the 16th Century and was the father of Adam Bland (c.1528-1594) who, in about 1551, married Jane or Joan Atkyns. By 1559 Adam was a high-ranking member of the Skinner’s Company of London and in 1560 was chosen Skinner to Queen Elizabeth I, a post he held until his death. He was succeeded by his son Peter, who held the position until 1618 when he was named Master Warden. At about the same time, Peter appears to have gone insane and the post devolved to his son-in-law, Thomas Lanhghorne.

This family originated near the western border of Scotland and England, in what is now known as Cumbria, but, in older texts, will be called Westmorland,Cumberland or West Riding of York. The earliest villages associated with this family are Orton and Sedbergh. This family is sometimes confused with a family from Essex that emigrated to Massachusetts. They are a different Bland family, and often have the surname Smith. This site - http://boards.ancestry.com/localities.northam.usa.states.massachuse... - refers to the New England Blands and not the Virginia Blands.

See also

• http://www.blandheritage.org/GENEALOGY/Family_Lines/familylines1.htm
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orton,_Eden
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sedbergh