| ![Show Contents]() Bignall History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The name Bignall is part of the ancient legacy of the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. It is a product of when the family lived in one of two places. Some bearers of the surname Bignall derive their name from the parish of Bickenhill, which lies seven miles from Birmingham in the county of Warwickshire. 1 Bickenhill Church is a parish, in the union of Meriden, Solihull division of the hundred of Hemlingford, N. division of Warwickshire. "This place is of considerable antiquity, and included Kington, or Kingsford, now partly in this parish and partly in that of Solihull." 2 Other members of the family come from the parish of Bickenhall, otherwise known as Bicknell, which is near Taunton in the county of Somerset. 2 Early Origins of the Bignall familyThe surname Bignall was first found in Somerset and Warwickshire, where Thomas de Bikenhulle was the first on record in the Curia Regis Rolls of 1214. Later, John de Bikenhull and Walter Bykenhulle were listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Somerset in 1327. 3 Early History of the Bignall familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bignall research. Another 100 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1310, 1318, 1349, 1611, 1629, 1645, 1660, 1695, 1723, 1788, 1796, 1861 and 1948 are included under the topic Early Bignall History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Bignall Spelling VariationsThe first dictionaries that appeared in the last few hundred years did much to standardize the English language. Before that time, spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. The language was changing, incorporating pieces of other languages, and the spelling of names changed with it. Bignall has been spelled many different ways, including Bicknell, Bicknall, Bickenell, Bickenall, Bickenhall, Bickwell, Bignell, Bignall, Bignold, Bicknoll, Bignal, Bignel, Bignoll and many more. Early Notables of the Bignall familyNotables of the family at this time include Henry Bignell (1611-1660?), English divine, born in the parish of St. Mary, Oxford, in July 161, son of Foulk Bignell of Souldern, Oxfordshire. In 1629 he became a servitor of Brasenose College, and subsequently entered at St. Mary's Hall. After taking the degree of B.A. he was ordained and set up as a schoolmaster. In 1645 he was made rector of St. Peter-le-Bayly, Oxford, but was ejected from his benefice for scandalous conduct...
Another 80 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Bignall Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.  Migration of the Bignall family to Ireland
Some of the Bignall family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 67 words (5 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
| Bignall migration to the United States | + |
Thousands of English families in this era began to emigrate the New World in search of land and freedom from religious and political persecution. Although the passage was expensive and the ships were dark, crowded, and unsafe, those who made the voyage safely were rewarded with opportunities unavailable to them in their homeland. Research into passenger and immigration lists has revealed some of the very first Bignalls to arrive in North America:
Bignall Settlers in United States in the 17th Century- Rebecca Bignall, aged 29, who arrived in Virginia in 1683 4
Bignall Settlers in United States in the 18th Century- Thomas Bignall, who landed in Virginia in 1702 4
- Thomas Bignall, who arrived in Virginia in 1714 4
- George Bignall, who settled in New England in 1768
| Bignall migration to Canada | + |
Some of the first settlers of this family name were: Bignall Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century- Charles Bignall, a fisherman of Change Islands, Newfoundland, in 1847 5
| Bignall migration to Australia | + |
Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include: Bignall Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century- James Bignall, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Phoebe" in 1846 6
- George Bignall, aged 24, who arrived in South Australia in 1857 aboard the ship "Carnatic"
| Bignall migration to West Indies | + |
The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 7Bignall Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century- John Bignall, who settled in Barbados in 1680 with his servants
| Contemporary Notables of the name Bignall (post 1700) | + |
- S. L. Bignall, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Michigan, 1896 8
- Burnett B. Bignall, American politician, Member of New York State Assembly from Tioga County, 1871
- Thomas Bignall (1842-1898), English cricketer who played first-class matches for Nottinghamshire
- Nicholas Colin Bignall (b. 1990), English footballer
- Bob "Choc" Bignall (b. 1922), Australian football captain at the 1956 Olympic Games
- 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.
- Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
- 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)
- Seary E.R., Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland, Montreal: McGill's-Queen's Universtity Press 1998 ISBN 0-7735-1782-0
- State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) PHEOBE/PHOEBE 1845. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1846Phoebe.htm
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
- The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, March 17) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
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Bignall migration to the United States 
Bignall migration to Canada 
Bignall migration to Australia 
Bignall migration to West Indies 
England
Ireland
