Show ContentsHindley History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The lineage of the name Hindley begins with the Anglo-Saxon tribes in Britain. It is a result of when they lived at Hindley, in Lancashire, or later at Hiendley, in the West Riding of Yorkshire. Both place names are essentially are derived from the Old English words "hind," which meant "female deer," and "leah," which meant "forest clearing." The place-names as a whole mean "forest clearing where hinds are found." [1]

Of the two locals, Hiendley or South Hiendley is the oldest as it dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was known as Hindeleia. [2] Hindley in Manchester dates back to 1212 when it was known as Hindele. [1]

Early Origins of the Hindley family

The surname Hindley was first found in Lancashire, now part of Greater Manchester.

"The family of Hindley, then Hindele, held lands here as early as the reign of Henry II.: in the eighth of Richard II., Robert, of this family, married Emma, one of the heiresses of Pemberton; and the Hindleys were living at the Hall in 1613." [3]

Early rolls included Simon de Hindelay in the Assize Rolls of Yorkshire in 1219 and Robert de Hindeley in the Assize Rolls for Durham in 1243. [4]

The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 included Margareta de Hyndelay; Roger de Hyndelay; and Matilda de Hyndelay. [5]

Early History of the Hindley family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Hindley research. Another 78 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1591, 1613, 1700 and 1701 are included under the topic Early Hindley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hindley Spelling Variations

Only recently has spelling become standardized in the English language. As the English language evolved in the Middle Ages, the spelling of names changed also. The name Hindley has undergone many spelling variations, including Hindley, Hindeley, Hindle, Hyndley and others.

Early Notables of the Hindley family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

  • Robert Hindley...


United States Hindley migration to the United States +

To escape the unstable social climate in England of this time, many families boarded ships for the New World with the hope of finding land, opportunity, and greater religious and political freedom. Although the voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, those families that arrived often found greater opportunities and freedoms than they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Hindley were among those contributors:

Hindley Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • William Hindley, who settled in New England in 1747
Hindley Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Thomas Henry Hindley, who arrived in Charleston, South Carolina in 1807 [6]
  • Thomas Hindley, who settled in Charles Town [Charleston], South Carolina in 1820
  • James, John, Joseph, Michael, Peter, Richard Hindley all, who arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1868

Australia Hindley migration to Australia +

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

Hindley Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Thomas Hindley, English convict from Lancaster, who was transported aboard the "Andromeda" on October 16, 1826, settling in Van Diemen's Land, Australia [7]

New Zealand Hindley migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Hindley Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Mr. James Hindley, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Palmyra" arriving in Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 19th February 1858 [8]

Contemporary Notables of the name Hindley (post 1700) +

  • Walter Hindley, American founder of The Hindley Manufacturing Company, Cumberland, Rhode Island in 1897
  • Gary Hindley (b. 1947), American soccer coach and former goalkeeper
  • Mr. George Hindley, English coal mine blacksmith working in Clifton coal mine in Manchester on 18th June 1885, he was awarded the Albert Medal for lifesaving
  • Peter Hindley (1944-2021), English international footballer who played for England U23 (1967) and in the Football League for Nottingham Forest, Coventry City and Peterborough United
  • John Hadden Hindley (1765-1827), English Oriental scholar, son of Charles Hindley, cloth mercer of Manchester, born at that town in 1765, and educated at Manchester grammar school [9]
  • Richard James Edward Hindley (b. 1975), retired English cricketer
  • Becky Hindley, English television, stage and radio actress
  • Charles Hindley (1796-1857), English politician, Member of Parliament for Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire (1835 to 1857) who died after his doctor prescribed "Six pints of Brandy to be drunk in 72 hours"
  • Henry Hindley (1701-1771), English clockmaker, watchmaker and inventor
  • J. Roger Hindley (b. 1938), British logician, best known as co-developer of the Hindley–Milner type inference algorithm
  • ... (Another 6 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

HMS Repulse
  • Mr. William Hindley, British Able Bodied Seaman, who sailed into battle on the HMS Repulse (1941) and died in the sinking [10]


  1. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  2. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  3. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  4. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  5. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  6. 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)
  7. State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Andromeda voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1826 with 147 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/andromeda/1826
  8. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  9. Wikisource contributors. "Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900." Wikisource . Wikisource , 4 Jun. 2018. Web. 30 June 2020
  10. HMS Repulse Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listrepulsecrew.html


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