The Early Spences originally hailed from Scotland, from Fife, with links to the Clan MacDuff.
Some research has been done into this part of our ancestry. We hope to delve further into it and share what we discover through the pages in our website.

There is  a tartan linked to the Spens form of the name.

Little is know of the origins of this design. Details came from a fragment so named in the collection of the Highland Society of London (HSL) c.1816. The material is somewhat dirty which has led to the design being rendered incorrectly by some contemporary weavers. The quality of the weaving and the colours have all the characteristics of the weaving of Wilsons of Bannockburn and given their prominence at this period it seems likely that it was produced by them. In the last couple of years it has been possible to locate a complete kilt in this design. The kilt is in a private collection and is unnamed but the style dates it to about the same period (1820) as the HSL fragment. Fortunately, the material is in better condition and was able to verify the design details. Structually the tartan is similar to the pattern known as Drummond of Perth and was probably designed by Wilsons for someone of the name Spens. Today it is more common to find the name spelt Spence. Unfortunately for those of either spelling of the name, the tartan remains a rare one and is not available off the shelf.