Harington or Harrington?

Question

I've been researching Harringtons and related families in the hopes of finding a clue to the ship that brought them to Massachusetts in the Puritan Great Migration.  In the course of things I've noticed some spell their name -- including Wikitree ID/LNAB with one "r" and others with two "r"s.  There are some duplicate profiles with the same person but 1 "r" or 2.  Before proposing any merges it would be helpful if some consensus was achieved as to whether (1) everyone will have one "r"  (2) everyone will have two "r"s, or (3) We'll try to follow what each one used, in which case we'll also have some Haryngtons.  ,

Others have been doing Harringtons longer than me, I'm happy to defer!

Comments

I have my paternal mother marked as the home person in FTM (she was the one who started the genealogy many many years ago) - she was a great-grand daughter to a Hariett Elizabeth Herrington m. Joshua Brink Davis (both of Columbia County, Pennsylvania) which leads to Hariett's elusive grandfather Jesse Herrington.

While doing research, I have also looked under the various spellings - H'a' and H'e'; double 'r' and single 'r'.

I've always used the spelling as it's been written in the record.

Answer 1

The Harington/Harrington debate is a bit of a minefield.
I try to go with whichever spelling was most used by each branch of the family. For example the Haringtons of Kelston (the branch I am personally most interested in) seem to generally favour Harington - Its what appears on the majority of the official documents and gravestones of the time.
Though in less formal circumstances they seem to choose which spelling to use almost at random!

The Harington baronets also seem to favour Harington, but there are other branches which seem to prefer Harrington.

I think it has to be dealt with on a case by case basis, though I realise thats not much of an answer!

Comments

In the 1700's and earlier 1800's, a large percentage of the population could not read or write.  The census taker would spell the names on the census rolls as best as he could.  If the person being interviewed could neither read or write, the spelling was not contested.  It is best to use the spelling as shown and note in other places where the spelling may differ.

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It's the only answer. I've done work on the family of the regicide, and they usually but not always had the name spelled with the single N.  The 1618 Visitation of Rutland has the name with the single N. But you can find siblings in the same family using the different spellings.

Answer 2

When the spelling of a last name is variable, as in this case, please put the alternative spelling in the "Other Last Name" field. That makes it more likely that people who are searching will find the profile, instead of creating a duplicate.

Answer 3

Not to confuse the issue even more but I am a cousin of both You Jack and Lucy and the spelling is Herrington in my line so?????????????

Comments

Sorry I did not mean to forget about you cousin Ellen

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Dale, I tell people I collect cousins for a hobby, and I never criticize how they spell their names!  It's looking to me like we simply stick with how individuals -- and perhaps their immediate family -- spelled the name.  Medieval Europe is of course the most complicated, because they apparently simply didn't care and so you'd have the same person spelled Haryngton, Harington and Herrington in the same document!