The Gedneys were among the original settlers of Salem, Massachusetts. The family patriarch, John Gedney (originally of Norwich), sailed in 1636 out of Yarmouth, England on the Mary Anne. One of his sons, Bartholomew, was one of the judges who presided over the infamous witch trials. Bartholomew's brother, Eleazor (Eleazar) built the Gedney House. which still stands in Salem, around 1665.