This name derives from the Medieval English "grom(e)" meaning a man-servant, but in some places was specialized to mean "shepherd" "goat herd" etc. as the following recordings prove - John Lambegrom (Cambridgeshire 1279), John Schepgrom (Essex, 1327) and Richard le Gotegrom (Suffolk, 1335). The non-specialized form of the name was first recorded at the beginning of the 12th Century, (see below). Ernald le Grom appears in the 1187 "Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire" and Roger le Groom in the 1351 "Assize Court Rolls of Essex". In the "modern" idiom the name has two spelling variations, Groom and Groome. On November 29th 1579 Margarett Gromme, an infant, was christened in St. Giles, Cripplegate, London and on December 31st 1667 Elizabetha Groom was christened in St. Martin in the Fields, Westminster. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Richard Grom, which was dated circa 1100, in the "Pipe Rolls of Norfolk", during the reign of King Henry 1, known as "The Lion of Justice", 1100 - 1135. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.