This unusual name is of English locational origin, from the place so called in Shropshire. The placename is first recorded in the "Forest Charters" (Shropshire) in 1301 as "Garmundeston" and in 1327 in the "Subsidy Rolls" as "Garmeston". The derivation is from the Old English pre 7th Century personal name "Garmund", with "tun", the whole meaning "Garmund's homestead, village or town". Locational names were borne by the lord of the manor and the local inhabitants, especially those who left to live or work in another town or village and who were therefore identified as, for instance, "John of Garmston", hence the modern surname. The parish records of the district of Myddle in Shropshire show the marriage of John Garmston to Mary Jenks, on the 30th September 1788. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Robert Garmston, christened. which was dated 19th July 1548, Waters Upton, Shropshire. during the reign of King Edward VI, The Boy King, 1547 - 1553. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

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