Fairbanks Fairbank | |
---|---|
Political, mercantile | |
![]() Coat of Arms of Jonathan Fairbanks | |
Country | United Kingdom United States Canada |
Current region | United States Canada |
Place of origin | Heptonstall, Halifax, West Yorkshire, England |
Founded | 1633 |
Founder | Jonathan Fairbanks |
Seat | Fairbanks House |
The Fairbanks (Fairbank) family is a noted American and Canadian family of English origin. The family descends from colonist Jonathan Fairbanks, who emigrated to Boston, Massachusetts in 1633 with his family, settling at Dedham, Massachusetts three years later. [1] There he built the Fairbanks House, today the oldest surviving verified timber-frame house in the United States.
The Fairbanks family later became one of the Second Families of the United States with the election of Charles W. Fairbanks as the twent-sixth vice president of the United States in 1905. The Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska; Fairbanks, Alaska; Fairbanks, Minnesota; Fairbanks, Oregon; and Fairbanks Township, Michigan all take their names from him.
The Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies at Harvard University is named after a member of the family, John King Fairbank. The American manufacturing company Fairbanks-Morse was founded by another member of the family, Thaddeus Fairbanks.
The following genealogical tree illustrates the links between the more notable family members: [1]