Lancashire, England · 1559 — North America · Present Day
Journey of the Blaisdells
From a Lancashire hamlet to the shores of colonial Maine — and across a continent. The four-century migration of one of America's oldest family lines.
Colonial New England — the Blaisdells' first home in America
The Blaisdell story begins not in America, but in a small hamlet in the north of England. The village of Bleasdale, nestled in Lancashire's Bowland Fells, gave its name to a family that would eventually cross an ocean, survive a hurricane, and spread across an entire continent.
The journey spans nearly five centuries: from the first parish record in 1559, through the Puritan migration of the 1630s, across the colonial frontier, and into the modern era. It is a story of faith, hardship, resilience, and the enduring bonds of family — told through genealogical records, parish registers, ship manifests, town histories, and the living memory of thousands of descendants.
What follows is a chronicle of that journey — from the Lancashire wool country where the name was born, to the rocky shores of Pemaquid Point where it took root in America, and onward across the generations.
"All in all, he must have been a man in whom the family should take abundant pride as, let us hope, he might, in turn, take pride in the family which he founded."
A Chronicle
The Blaisdell Timeline
The First Written Record
The earliest known mention of the Blaisdell name appears in the Parish Church of Chipping, Lancashire: "John Bleasdale" on October 15, 1559, with a baptism of "Henry Bleasdell" on the same date. The hamlet of Bleasdale — from which the family name derives — lies five miles west of Chipping and ten miles north of Preston. Over the following decades, the Chipping and Goosnargh parish records would accumulate more than 260 Blaisdell-variant entries, making Lancashire the undisputed cradle of the family name.
Ralph Bleasdale Is Born
Ralph Bleasdale was born on March 11, 1593, in Hawkshead, Lancashire. He grew up amid the strong Puritan influences of Bolton — "The Geneva of England" — and entered the wool trading business, a major industry in the region. His education was above average for the era; he was literate, commercially capable, and deeply shaped by the Calvinist convictions that would ultimately drive him to seek a new life across the Atlantic. He married Elizabeth Parker of Chipping on September 3, 1629. Before departing England, they had one son, Henry, then three years old.
The Voyage of the Angel Gabriel
The Angel Gabriel, a Bristol merchantman, departed Bristol on June 4, 1635. Ralph and his family boarded at Milford Haven, Wales, on June 9 — a deliberate choice to avoid the scrutiny of the more closely watched Bristol docks. After more than two months at sea, the ship arrived at Pemaquid Point, Maine on August 14, 1635. The very next morning, August 15, the Great Colonial Hurricane — one of the most powerful storms to strike New England in the seventeenth century — destroyed the vessel where she lay at anchor. The Blaisdells had arrived with their lives and little else.
The Frontier Years
Pemaquid sat at the northern edge of English land claims, bordering French territory — a frontier position that brought constant friction and instability. Ralph and his family did not remain long. They moved south to York, then called Agamenticus, where Ralph owned land and established himself in the community. Rev. Thompson, who preached in York during this period, was a fellow traveler in the same Puritan circles Ralph had known in England. These early Maine years were formative — a period of adaptation, hardship, and the slow building of a new life in an unfamiliar land.
A Founding Father of Salisbury
In 1640, Ralph moved his family to Salisbury, Massachusetts, where he became the 64th of 69 founding fathers who held the town's land "in common" — earning the title of "Commoner." Salisbury records reveal the remarkable breadth of Ralph's civic life: he served as a Prudential Man, constable, farmer, tailor, attorney, and keeper of the ordinary (tavern), which also functioned as the town hall. He was addressed as "Goodman Ralph Blasdel," his wife as "Goody Blasdel." Ralph was among the select founders granted the honorific title of "Mr." — the town's highest civic distinction.
The Patriarch Passes
Ralph Bleasdale died in Salisbury in 1681, having lived 88 years — a remarkable lifespan for the seventeenth century. By then, his son Henry's five sons had already begun perpetuating the family name across New England. Within four generations, Ralph's progeny numbered 410 descendants. The name had already begun its long transformation: Bleasdale in England, Blaisdell in New England, Blasdell in Canada — and eventually 37 documented spelling variants across the continent.
Spreading Across a Continent
Through the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Blaisdell descendants fanned out from their New England roots. Some followed the frontier westward into New York, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. Others moved south into the Carolinas and Georgia. By the mid-1800s, Blaisdell families could be found from Maine to California, from Wisconsin to Florida. Each branch carried its own spelling of the name — Blasdell, Blaisdale, Blesdell, and dozens more — but all traced their lineage back to Ralph's arrival at Pemaquid Point in 1635.
The Family Reunites: BFNA Founded
Exactly 300 years after Ralph Bleasdale stepped ashore at Pemaquid Point, the Blaisdell Family National Association was founded in York, Maine in 1935. The founding vision was simple but profound: to gather the scattered descendants of Ralph Bleasdale, preserve the family's genealogical records, and ensure that the story of the Blaisdells would not be lost to time. The BFNA has held Grand Reunions, published the Blaisdell Papers, and maintained genealogical archives ever since — a living continuation of a journey that began in Lancashire nearly five centuries ago.
Dig Deeper
Related Stories & Resources
Who Was Ralph Bleasdale?
A full portrait of the Blaisdell patriarch — his origins, faith, trade, and life in colonial New England.
The Angel Gabriel
The Bristol merchantman that carried Ralph and his family to America — and was wrecked the very next morning.
Pemaquid Point
The rocky Maine shore where the Blaisdell story in America began on August 14, 1635.
The Family Patriarch
R. Carter Blaisdell's account of Ralph's life, from Lancashire wool country to Salisbury founding father.
The Blaisdell 37
Explore all 37 documented spelling variants of the Blaisdell name across four centuries and two continents.
Notable Blaisdells
Sixteen distinguished descendants who shaped American history — from medicine to literature to public service.
Continue the Journey
Your Branch of the Family Tree
The journey continues with you. Join the Blaisdell Family National Association to access genealogical records, receive the Blaisdell Papers, and connect with thousands of Ralph Bleasdale's living descendants.