Ferris was born at Barnstaple, the son of Philip Ferris by his wife Thomasyn Cade. The armorials displayed on his monument in St Peter's Church, Barnstaple are the canting arms of the ancient Ferrers family seated from the 12th century at Bere Ferrers in Devon, where they had their castle, which also held the manors of Churston Ferrers and Newton Ferrers with many others in Devon. The Devonshire historian Pole, stated: Beere Ferrers, which takes his name of ye famyly of Ferrers, th'ancient inhabitants, from whence all the Ferrers in Devon & Cornwall issued, and states that Raph de Ferrarys was Lord of the manor. However the senior male line of this family is known to have died out on the death of Martin Ferrers, who left three daughters and co-heiresses, who married into the families of Champernowne, Poynings and Fleming. The name Ferrers was Latinized as de Ferariis, from the Latin nounferrarius, meaning an iron-worker or blacksmith, alluded to by the horse-shoes in the canting arms. The Cade family seated at Fremington were prominent merchants at nearby Barnstaple. Roger Cade of Barnstaple was Mayor of Barnstaple in 1591.
Career
The records of the Borough of Barnstaple record in 1630 that a payment was made by the Borough to Alexander Horwood and Richard Ferris "for riding to Exon about the Spanish Company". Barnstaple is particularly associated with this Company, and the Company's arms are shown on several monuments in St Peter's Church and also sculpted in relief on the plaster ceiling of the grand townhouse at 62 Boutport Street, Barnstaple. In November 1640 Ferris was elected as one of the two Members of Parliament for Barnstaple in the Long Parliament. During the Civil war he was a "fervent Parliamentarian" and when the town of Barnstaple was "without stocke of money" he was one of those, who made personal financial contributions. He served twice as Mayor of Barnstaple in 1632 and for another year from September 1646, immediately after the Civil War, Sir Allen Apsley having surrendered the town to Parliamentarian forces on 14 April 1646. His second election was conducted in open air, to reduce the risk of catching the plague then ravaging the town, as is recorded in the Journal of Rev. Richard Wood, Vicar of Fremington: "Mr Ferris was elected Mayor in the marsh on the higher side of Kony Bridge by ballets". Ferris founded the grammar school at Barnstaple.
Death, burial and monument
He died in 1649 aged 67 and was buried in St Peter'sChurch in Barnstaple. His large mural monument with recumbent effigy survives in that church.
