Show ContentsBickle History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The ancient history of the Bickle name begins with the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from when the family resided in the town of Bickleigh in the county of Devon. This place-name is derived from the Anglo Saxon personal name Bicca meaning pickaxe, and the Old English word leigh, meaning wooded area.

Early Origins of the Bickle family

The surname Bickle was first found in Devon, at Bickleigh, a parish, in the union of Tiverton, hundred of Hayridge, 4 miles from Tiverton. [1] Bickleigh is also a parish, in the union of Plympton St. Mary, hundred of Roborough in Devon. [2]

Bickley is a township, in the parish of Malpas, union of Nantwich, Higher division of the hundred of Broxton, S. division of the county of Chester. [3]

Early History of the Bickle family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bickle research. Another 103 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1400, 1415, 1426, 1518, 1529, 1569, 1582, 1585, 1586, 1596, 1623, 1644, 1661, 1667, 1670, 1681, 1687, 1746 and 1754 are included under the topic Early Bickle History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bickle Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Bickle include Bickley, Bickle, Bickler, Bickleigh, Bigley, Bigly, Biglay and many more.

Early Notables of the Bickle family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

  • John Bickley, Member of the Parliament for Huntingdon in 1415 and 1426; John Bickley, Member of the Parliament for Stafford in 1529; Sir Francis Bickley, 1st Baronet (c. 1582-1670); Sir Francis Bickle...
  • Thomas Bickley (1518-1596) was an English churchman, a Marian exile who became Warden of Merton College, Oxford (1569-1585) and Bishop of Chichester (1586-1596.) "He acquired considerable reputation a...


United States Bickle migration to the United States +

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Bickle or a variant listed above:

Bickle Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Adam Bickle, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1751 with wife and children
  • Francis Bickle, who landed in New Jersey in 1755 [4]

Australia Bickle migration to Australia +

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

Bickle Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. William Bickle, British Convict who was convicted in Devon, England for 7 years for stealing a watch, transported aboard the "Asia" on 5th November 1835, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land)1836 [5]
  • Richard Bickle, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Success" in 1848 [6]
  • George Bickle, aged 20, who arrived in South Australia in 1855 aboard the ship "Thomas Arbuthnot"

Contemporary Notables of the name Bickle (post 1700) +

  • Mike Bickle (b. 1955), American Evangelical Christian leader
  • Richard "Rich" Bickle Jr. (b. 1961), American former NASCAR driver
  • Michael John "Mike" Bickle (1944-2023), English professional footballer, as a striker, he played for Plymouth Argyle and Gillingham between 1965 and 1973
  • Berry Bickle (b. 1959), Zimbabwean artist
  • Trevor Bickle (b. 1943), Australian Commonwealth pole vault champion inducted into the Western Australian Hall of Champions (1989)
  • Michael James Bickle FRS, British geophysicist, and professor at University of Cambridge


  1. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  2. Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
  3. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  4. 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)
  5. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 28th January 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1835
  6. State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) SUCCESS 1848. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1848Success.htm


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