Barksdale History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Barksdale is of Anglo-Saxon origin and came from when a family lived in Lancashire. The name is derived from the term Brigdale which meant the bridge-valley. The prefix brig often becomes brick.

The family were originally "from Briquedale, Normandy, held by Sire Robert de Piessi, t. Philip Augustus. The English family is said to take its name from Brickdale, Lancashire, but I have been unable to ascertain the existence of such a place in England. " 1

Early Origins of the Barksdale family

The surname Barksdale was first found in Lancashire where they held a family seat temp. Edward I. 2 3

Birkdale is a small township, in the parish of North Meols, union of Ormskirk, hundred of West Derby in Lancashire. "The manor, in the reign of Henry IV., was held by the Halsalls; and the Gerards of Bromley became possessed of the estate by purchase in the 17th century. " 4

Early History of the Barksdale family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Barksdale research. Another 99 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1609, 1625 and 1687 are included under the topic Early Barksdale History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Barksdale Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Barksdale family name include Brickdale, Birkdale and others.

Early Notables of the Barksdale family

More information is included under the topic Early Barksdale Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Barksdale Ranking

In the United States, the name Barksdale is the 2,316^th most popular surname with an estimated 12,435 people with that name. 5

Barksdale migration to the United States +

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Barksdale surname or a spelling variation of the name include :

Barksdale Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Barksdale, who arrived in Virginia in 1662 6
John Barksdale, who landed in Charles Town, South Carolina in 1694 6

Barksdale Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

James Allan Barksdale, who immigrated to the United States, in 1905
Mary Deane Barksdale, aged 40, who landed in America, in 1907
Randolph Hunter Barksdale, aged 15, who settled in America, in 1907
George Barksdale, aged 44, who landed in America, in 1910
Austin Barksdale, aged 22, who landed in America, in 1918
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Barksdale (post 1700) +

Rhesa Hawkins Barksdale (b. 1944), United States federal judge on the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals
Everett Barksdale (1910-1986), American jazz guitarist
Joseph Brennen Barksdale (b. 1989), American football offensive tackle for the Oakland Raiders
Donald Angelo "Don" Barksdale (1923-1993), American professional basketball player
William Barksdale (1821-1863), American lawyer, newspaper editor, U.S. Congressman, and a Confederate general in the American Civil War who was mortally wounded during the Battle of Gettysburg
Jerry R. Barksdale, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Alabama, 1972 7
Ethelbert Barksdale (1824-1893), American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Mississippi, 1860, 1868, 1872, 1880 7
Allen Arnold Barksdale (1878-1924), American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Louisiana, 1912 7
Alfred Dickinson Barksdale (1892-1972), American Democratic Party politician, Member of Virginia State Senate, 1924-27; Circuit Judge in Virginia 6th Circuit, 1938-39; U.S. District Judge for the Western District of Virginia, 1939-57 7
Alan F. Barksdale, American Libertarian politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Alabama, 1988 (7th District), 1996 (4th District), 2000 (5th District), 2002 (5th District); Candidate for Presidential Elector for Alabama, 2000 7
... (Another 7 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Barksdale Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Fide et fortitudine
Motto Translation: By fidelity and fortitude.

Citations +

The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Barber, Henry, British Family Names London: Elliot Stock, 62 Paternoster Row, 1894. Print.
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 21) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html