The Alabaster Society

The Family History Society
of the Alabaster Family

 

Friday, 15th May 2026
Good evening,
If you are interested in the Alabaster family name, you’ve come to the right place. Our site offers information on over 3,000 Alabasters, spanning from the 15th century to the present day, which we are happy to share. We have more than 150 member households from England, Scotland, Wales, Germany, France, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Australia, the USA, Canada, Thailand, Argentina, and Hong Kong.
The Alabaster Society was established in 1993, following gatherings in 1990 and 1992 in Hadleigh, Suffolk, attended by more than 100 descendants of Thomas Alabaster (c.1522–1592), a prominent figure in the Hadleigh community. Remarkably, all Alabasters in the UK trace their lineage back to Thomas, his son John, grandson Thomas, and great-grandson John. You can find more about them below.

Note for Editors: if you wish to quote from these pages you are welcome to do so, but please include our web address www.alabaster.org.uk for the further information of your readers.Friday,

15th May, 2026
Good evening,
If you have an interest in the family name of Alabaster, this is the site for you. We have information on more than 3,000 Alabasters, from the present day back to the 15th century, which we are willing to share. We have more than 150 members (households) from England, Scotland, Wales, Germany, France, Netherlands, New Zealand, Australia, USA, Canada, Thailand, Argentina, and Hong Kong.
The Alabaster Society was formed in 1993, following Gatherings held in 1990 and 1992 in Hadleigh, Suffolk, of more than 100 of the descendants of Thomas Alabaster (c1522-1592): he was a leading member of the community in Hadleigh. Indeed, our family is unusual in that all Alabasters in the UK are descended from Thomas, his son John, grandson Thomas, and great-grandson also called John. There is more about them below.

A brass (pictured right), dedicated to Thomas Alabaster, can be seen in St. Mary`s Church, Hadleigh, where there is also a brass of his son John, pictured below. A closer view of the inscriptions can be seen on the Hadleigh page.

Every three years a Gathering of members is held, usually during April, either in the Guildhall or the Old School House in Hadleigh. The Old School was built in 1853 on the site of the former Alabaster School, which was, according to the local historian, the late W.A.B. Jones, the first effective elementary or non-grammar school. It was established under the will of John Alabaster, 1637. There are eight major branches of the Alabaster family, and so far all have been represented at each Gathering. Details of the last Gathering are here on this site. The next one (probably in 2014) will be announced at a later date.

Each time we have been able to welcome members from far flung parts of the world, such as Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and the USA, who have been able to join in for the first time.

The Society`s journal, The Alabaster Chronicle, is sent to members approximately twice a year. Nearly all of the back numbers, except the most recent, can be accessed through the Chronicles link.

The Society is a member of the Federation of Family History Societies (FFHS), whose website is at http://www.ffhs.org.uk/  Should your enquiries ever take you away from the Alabaster family, we can heartily recommend this site as a useful port of call.

The Society is also a member of the Guild of One Name Studies http://www.one-name.org/