The name Lomas is very well established in Derbyshire, especially in the Chapel-en-le-Frith area, where there have been Lomas families recorded since 1432. In nearby Lancashire, in the area near Bury, the name was recorded even earlier, starting in 1210. Apart from these Lancashire and Derbyshire Lomases, there are no other examples of the name anywhere in England before 1496.

So what does the name mean and where did it originate?

Click here for an analysis of the Origins of the Lomas Name

"My" branch of the Lomas family first appeared in Hellidon, Northamptonshire in 1644. There is no solid connection between this family and those in Chapel-en-le-Frith and Bury except for the name (variously Lummas and Lomas). It is though entirely feasible that the Northants branch originated in either Lancashire or Derbyshire between 1496 (when the Lomas name started to appear outside of Lancashire and Derbyshire) and 1644 (when the Lomas family first appeared in Hellidon).

Click here for an analysis of the Origins of the Lomas Family in Northamptonshire

In 1644, Thomas Lummas and his wife Anne started having children in Hellidon, Northants and I am descended from them. We do not know where they came from. In 1676 the family moved to Brington, where they worked on the lands of the Spencer family in Althorp. Subsequently they moved to Staverton in 1724, then back to Hellidon in 1798, before settling in Grandborough, Warwickshire around 1823. With the development of the railways, my great-grandfather John Lomas moved to Derby in 1876.

The family name was Lummas until the marriage of John Lummas in 1823, when it became Lomas. Previously, it had been variously Lummas, Lumas, Lomas, Lommas, Lomes and Lummos!

Click here for more details on the Names of my Lomas Ancestors

Up to today, 13 generations, each carrying the Lomas / Lummas name, have been documented, starting from Thomas Lummas born in the 1620s, my 9th great-grandfather. Starting instead with Mary Ann Turner, my great-grandmother born in 1853, we can go back to the year 1550, to Henrici Motteram, my 11th great-grandfather.

The table below shows approximately where this part of the Lomas family have lived over the years. Most of the links are clickable, and link to my Webtrees representation of the Lomas family.

John Lomas
1 February 2024