| Coffin | |
|---|---|
&sq=american_constitution_society&lang=en&file=File:CoffinOfMonkleighArms.PNG) Arms of Coffin of Portledge, Alwington, Devon: Azure, three bezants between eight crosses crosslet or | |
| Current region | South West England New England Eastern Canada |
| Earlier spellings | Coffyn |
| Place of origin | Devon, England |
| Estate(s) | Portledge |
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Coffin is an English and French surname.
The House of Coffin is an ancient English family which originated in Devonshire. The Coffins have held a number of manors, the most notable of which is Portledge in Devon, England, which they held for over nine centuries. The progenitor of most of the American Coffins was Tristram Coffin, a Royalist, who came to Massachusetts from the Coffin family farm at Brixton, Devonshire in 1642. He was one of the original proprietors of Nantucket. Tristram Coffin's descendants include the Boston Brahmin, a group of elite families based in and around Boston. Many American Coffins are or were Quakers.