Meaning of ‘Rambridge’
I’ve not found any online derivation of ‘Rambridge’.
Rambridge is a surname, as per the section below on J. Sidney Rambridge. I would guess that it’s likely that the surname is derived from a place, or more specifically from a specific bridge.
There was a Rambridge House near Andover 1, although whether this was itself named after somebody called Rambridge I don’t know.
If Rambridge was or is a specific bridge then the ‘Ram’ could refer to:
- a ram, in the sense of a male sheep
- a raven, or somebody with the nickname ‘Raven’. As discussed in regard to Ramleaze Drive, ‘ram’ can mean ‘raven’. It can be derived from a Scandinavian word for raven – ‘hrafn
- some element of the construction of the bridge, in the sense of something being rammed into place
J Sidney Rambridge
I’ve found several references to John Sidney Rambridge on the internet.
He was an early 20th Century maker of cutlery 2 and possibly of watches 3
Mr Rambridge or a namesake seems to have become ‘mayor or chief executive’ of Salisbury by 1932, leading a delegation to Salisbury in Maryland 4.
Update: John Sidney Rambridge was indeed Mayor of Salisbury in 19315.
Lord Ram’s bridge
There is also, according to Hindu mythology, a ‘Rams Bridge’ which linked India with Sri Lanka. Lord Rama had the bridge built by his army of monkey-men so that he could rescue his wife Sita who was being held prisoner in Sri Lanka.
Lord Rama’s bridge has been identified with a (mainly) undersea ridge between India and Sri Lanka. 6
Footnotes
- Northwood Lettings List – More Details [↩]
- This link is an auction of spoons made by Rambridge: Lot 112: A cased pair of silver spoons by J. Sidney Rambridge of Salisbury with cast tops and teardrop bowls Sheffield 1918 – sold with other collectable – Featured on Invaluable.com [↩]
- Another auction site item – I’m aware that the dates don’t quite work here – a 19th century watchmaker is relatively unlikely to have visited Maryland in 1932. Perhaps the watch was made by somebody else in the family: Lot 2766: A large 19th century dial timepiece with single – Featured on Artfact.com [↩]
- The Mystery NEWS: Key Unlocks Historic Mystery [↩]
- Salisbury and Stonehenge – Mayors of Salisbury [↩]
- Adam’s Bridge – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia [↩]
John Sidney Rambridge (known as Sidney)was born in Salisbury in 1868 and became a jeweller’s shop manager before acquiring his own business. Although cutlery and clocks are known with his name on he was in fact a dealer. He did go to Maryland in 1932 on council business. He retired in 1945 and died in Salisbury in 1951. Rambridge Crecent is probably named after him it being quite usual to name streets after councillors.
Hope this is of interest. He will have an entry in Wiltshire Watch and Clockmakers – Volume 3 by John Young which will be published later this year.
I have a pocket watch key with the name Sidney Rambridge on it. I think he had a shop in Catherine St.