Bocking History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The Anglo-Saxon name Bocking comes from when the family resided in a village of Bocking, in the county of Essex near Braintree

Early Origins of the Bocking family

The surname Bocking was first found in Essex, at Bocking, a parish, in the union of Braintree, hundred of Hinckford. 1

However, one of the first records of the family was Ralph Bocking (d. 1270), a Dominican friar, stated to have been a native of Chichester. "He was the private confessor of Richard Wych, who held the see of Chichester from 1245 till his death in 1253. " 2

Early History of the Bocking family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bocking research. Another 269 words (19 lines of text) covering the years 1203, 1273, 1337, 1500, 1533 and 1534 are included under the topic Early Bocking History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bocking Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, French and other languages became incorporated into English through the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Bocking include Bocking, Boking, Bokings, Bockyng, Bockinges and others.

Early Notables of the Bocking family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

Edward Bocking, (d. 1534) a Benedictine monk famous for his opposition to King Henry VIII...
Bocking and her other associates shared her fate...

Bocking migration to the United States +

A great wave of immigration to the New World was the result of the enormous political and religious disarray that struck England at that time. Families left for the New World in extremely large numbers. The long journey was the end of many immigrants and many more arrived sick and starving. Still, those who made it were rewarded with an opportunity far greater than they had known at home in England. These emigrant families went on to make significant contributions to these emerging colonies in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants:

Bocking Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Richard Bocking, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1741
Richard Bocking, aged 38, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1741 3

Bocking Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Bemh Bocking, who arrived in America in 1844 3
Adolph Hopes Bocking, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1849 3
R C Bocking, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1854 3
Wilh Bocking, who landed in America in 1857 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Bocking (post 1700) +

James H Bocking (1947-1999), Canadian lawyer, Assistant Deputy Director of Investigation and Research at the Competition Bureau of the Canadian Bar Association
Dr. Stephen Bocking, Professor in the Environmental & Resource Studies Program, Trent University, Ontario, Canada

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
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)