First found in Hertfordshire where Gosfrid le Beche was sometimes known as Geoffrey de Bec, one of the principal holders and tenant-in-chief of land in that shire as recorded by the Domesday Book in the year 1086. He was from Beche in Normandy and accompanied William the Conqueror into England at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Amongst other villages he also owned Aldenham, Cokenach, Eastwick, Hailey, Lilley, Langley and many others in Hertfordshire.

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More about the Beche History...

Please remember that this page is only a small extract of our complete history that includes:

• Ancient origin of the name (usually pre-1100)
• Known spelling variations
• Early movement of the family name during the Middle Ages
• Noteworthy bearers from the 1500-1600s
• First settlers to North America
• Notable contemporary bearers of the name
• A description and/or full color picture of the Coat of Arms, Crest, and Motto (where available)

Many English families left England, to avoid the chaos of their homeland and migrated to the many British colonies abroad. Although the conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and some travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute, once in the colonies, many of the families prospered and made valuable contributions to the cultures of what would become the United States and Canada. Research into the Origins of individual families in North America has revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Beche or a variant listed above: Henry Beck of St. Lawrence, Newfoundland, who captured a French banker, in 1814; Thomas Beck was residing in St. John's Newfoundland in 1821. There is a Beck Bay in Newfoundland. Early settlers in the United States were: Richard Beach who settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1637.

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