origin
The Garners in America came around 1635 from the town of Shrewsbury in Shropshire county England, in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Wales to the west. Richard Garner brought his young son, John Garner to Virginia from Shrewsbury, England in 1637. John had been baptized in St. Chad’s Church on September 2, 1633. The father and son first landed on Farrar’s Island in the James River very near modern Richmond. (Early Virginia Families along the James River, Foley, Vol.1, p. 6).
other content from Thomas Lee Garner JD
I believe that through my DNA tests that I am descended from this English Family. John Garner had many children and those children had many children, which in those times was a common occurrence, due to the need of farm labor. Black slaves were first imported into the British Colony around 1619, but became much more intense when Eli Whitney's invention of the cotton gin greatly increases the demand for slave labor.
Members of the Garner family went both North to Illinois and beyond and South to North, South Carolina, Georgia, and west to Texas. There were approximately 4 people with the last name Garner involved the battle of Texas Independence. One John Garner helped Deaf Smith (Sam Houston's right hand man) to blow up the bridge at the Battle of San Jacinto April 21, 1836,
John Nance Garner (Catus Jack) the first Vice President under FDR is a member of the Garner Family Group. To this day the State that has the most people with the last name Garner is Texas.
Yes, there were other people with the last name Garner that came to the United States during that period, but many changed their names from the french name of Gaines, Gainer to Garner or the German version of Gartner or BumGarner etc.
I have more info on this group if one is interested contact me at: tgarn703@earthlink.net