Contents [hide]

Moseley History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Suggested Reading Citations

Moseley History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The Anglo-Saxon name Moseley comes from when the family resided in one of the places called Moseley in Staffordshire and Worcestershire (both in the West Midlands region), in Moseley in West Dean in Gloucestershire, or in Mowsley in Leicestershire. There is also a Mossley in Greater Manchester.

Early Origins of the Moseley family

The surname Moseley was first found in Moseley, now a suburb of Birmingham in the West Midlands or in Moseley in Herefordshire and Worcestershire or in Mowsley, a small village in Lancashire. All four locations are listed in the Domesday Book. 1

The West Midlands village was originally called Moleshi and literally meant "woodland clearing of a man called Moll," from the Old English personal name + leah. The latter three locations were listed as Museleie and in these cases, the place names literally meant "woodland clearing infested with mice." 2

Mossely, a small town and civil parish in Greater Manchester was first listed as Moselegh in 1319 and literally meant "woodland clearing by a swamp or bog." 2

The first record of the family was found in London where Robert de Molseleye was listed in 1325. A few years later in Staffordshire, John de Mollesley was found in the Subsidy Rolls for 1332, and later gain, Thomas Mollesseley was listed in Cambridgeshire in 1340. 3

Early History of the Moseley family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Moseley research. Another 113 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1200, 1527, 1599, 1609, 1610, 1612, 1639, 1647, 1660, 1661, 1665, 1674, 1705, 1720, 1751, 1757 and 1779 are included under the topic Early Moseley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Moseley 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 Moseley include Moseley, Mosely, Mosley, Mossley and others.

Early Notables of the Moseley family

Notables of the family at this time include

Sir Nicholas Moseley
Humphrey Moseley (died 1661), a prominent London publisher and bookseller, best known for the first Beaumont and Fletcher folio of 1647

Moseley Ranking

In the United States, the name Moseley is the 1,632^nd most popular surname with an estimated 19,896 people with that name. 4

Moseley 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:

Moseley Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Jos Moseley, who arrived in Virginia in 1634 5
Eliz Moseley, who arrived in Virginia in 1650 5
Fra Moseley, who landed in Virginia in 1650 5
Anne Moseley, who settled in Virginia in 1652 along with Elizabeth, Francis, Joseph, Richard, Samuel, and William
Anne Moseley, who landed in Virginia in 1652 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Moseley migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Moseley Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Fras Moseley, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749
John Moseley, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1749

Moseley migration to Australia +

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

Moseley Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Cornelius Moseley, English convict who was convicted in London, England for life, transported aboard the "Canada" on 23rd April 1819, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6
Mr. John Moseley, (b. 1803), aged 25, English convict who was convicted in Stafford, Staffordshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Eliza" on 25th June 1828, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, he died in 1850 7
Mr. Thomas Moseley, English convict who was convicted in Chester, Cheshire, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Fairlie" on 14th October 1833, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
George Moseley, who arrived in Kangaroo Island aboard the ship "Tam O'Shanter" in 1836 9
Henry Jackson Moseley, who arrived in Kangaroo Island aboard the ship "Tam O'Shanter" in 1836 9
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Moseley 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:

Moseley Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

William Moseley, aged 26, who arrived in Otago aboard the ship "John Wickliffe" in 1848 10
Mary Moseley, aged 26, who arrived in Otago aboard the ship "John Wickliffe" in 1848 10
Mary Anne Moseley, aged 4, who arrived in Otago aboard the ship "John Wickliffe" in 1848 10
Elizabeth Moseley, aged 3, who arrived in Otago aboard the ship "John Wickliffe" in 1848 10
Hannah Moseley, aged 8 months, who arrived in Otago aboard the ship "John Wickliffe" in 1848 10
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Moseley (post 1700) +

Moses J. Moseley (1990-2022), American actor, writer and model, best known for his work on the series The Walking Dead (2012-2015)
Douglas Dewayne "Doug" Moseley (1928-2017), American author, United Methodist minister and politician, Member of the Kentucky Senate (1974-1986)
Thomas William Henry Harrison Moseley (1813-1880), American builder and designer of wrought-iron arch bridges, best known for his "Wrought-Iron Lattice Girder Bridge" patent
Keith Moseley (b. 1965), American musician and songwriter
William "Bill" Moseley (b. 1951), American film actor and musician
Dustin Aaron Moseley (b. 1981), American Major League Baseball pitcher for the San Diego Padres from Texarkana, Arkansas
Jonathan Moseley (b. 1975), Puerto Rico-born, American championship skier
H. L. Moseley, American politician, Mayor of Weatherford, Texas, 1908-10 11
Florence Moseley, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Nebraska, 1940 11
Edward S. Moseley, American Democratic Party politician, Connecticut State Treasurer, 1867-68 11
... (Another 36 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Moseley family +

HMS Repulse

Mr. M Moseley, British Able Bodied Seaman, who sailed into battle on the HMS Repulse (1941) and survived the sinking 12

Citations +

Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 9th December 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/canada
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th February 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eliza
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 21st September 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/fairlie
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) TAM O'SHANTER - 1836. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1836TamOShanter.htm
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 1) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
HMS Repulse Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listrepulsecrew.html