Show ContentsBarwise History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Barwise family

The surname Barwise was first found in Cumberland, where they held a family seat on the English/Scottish border. After the Norman Conquest of England many of Duke William's rebellious Barons moved north. The border became a convenient but turbulent no-man's land where the persecuted Many were given land by King Malcolm Canmore and later by King David of Scotland. Some were native Scots. In the 16th century they became known as the 'unruly clans'.

Early History of the Barwise family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Barwise research. Another 137 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1234, 1374, 1510, 1580, 1600, 1601, 1616, 1621, 1628, 1635, 1648, 1649, 1652 and 1662 are included under the topic Early Barwise History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Barwise Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Barwise, Barwis, Barwese, Barwize, Barwiss and many more.

Early Notables of the Barwise family

Notable amongst the family at this time was Anthony Barwis (1580-1616), and his son, Richard Barwis (1601-1648), an English politician, Member of Parliament for Carlisle in 1628, High Sheriff of Cumberland in 1635, known as "Great Richard" Barwis because...
Another 39 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Barwise Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Barwise migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Barwise Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • C. A. Barwise, aged 56, who immigrated to the United States from Southampton, in 1897
Barwise Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Joseph Barwise, aged 24, who immigrated to the United States from Hensingham, in 1904
  • Mr. Weston Barwise, (b. 1878), aged 26, Cornish mining engineer travelling aboard the ship "Etruria" arriving in New York, USA on 8th October 1904 [1]
  • Walter Barwise, aged 25, who settled in America from Farnworth, England, in 1907
  • George Barwise, aged 20, who settled in America from Workington, England, in 1912
  • Arthur Barwise, aged 35, who immigrated to the United States, in 1919
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Australia Barwise migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Barwise Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. Robert Barwise, British convict who was convicted in Cumbria (Westmoreland), England for 7 years for theft, transported aboard the "Calcutta" in February 1803, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, the settlement was listed as abandoned and most of the convicts transported to Tasmania on the "Queen" in 1804 [2]
  • Mr. John Barwise, British Convict who was convicted in Carlisle, Cumbria (Cumberland), England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Eden" on 12th March 1842, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Island) [3]

Contemporary Notables of the name Barwise (post 1700) +

  • Mark Alton Barwise (b. 1881), American politician from Chester, Maine, the only American publicly practicing member of the Spiritualist religion known to have been elected to a state office in the United States
  • Kenneth Jon Barwise (1942-2000), American mathematician, philosopher and logician, eponym of the Barwise Prize and the Barwise compactness theorem
  • Patrick Barwise (b. 1946), English emeritus professor of management and marketing at London Business School


  1. Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retreived 3rd May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_ellis_island_1892_on.pdf
  2. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 25th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/calcutta
  3. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 15th December 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eden


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