| ![Show Contents]() Smee Surname History
The Atlantic Ocean to the north and west and the English Channel to the south borders Cornwall, the homeland to the Smee family name. Even though the usage of surnames was common during the Middle Ages, all English people were known only by a single name in early times. The manner in which hereditary surnames arose is interesting. Local surnames are derived from where the original bearer lived, was born, or held land. The Smee family originally lived at the village of Smeeth, in the county of Kent. Early Origins of the Smee familyThe surname Smee was first found in Cornwall, where they held a family seat during the Middle Ages. Early History of the Smee familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Smee research. Another 110 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1202, 1275, 1279, 1573 and 1746 are included under the topic Early Smee History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Smee Spelling VariationsCornish surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. The frequent changes in surnames are due to the fact that the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The official court languages, which were Latin and French, were also influential on the spelling of a surname. Since the spelling of surnames was rarely consistent in medieval times, and scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings of their surname in the ancient chronicles. Moreover, a large number of foreign names were brought into England, which accelerated and accentuated the alterations to the spelling of various surnames. Lastly, spelling variations often resulted from the linguistic differences between the people of Cornwall and the rest of England. The Cornish spoke a unique Brythonic Celtic language which was first recorded in written documents during the 10th century. However, they became increasingly Anglicized, and Cornish became extinct as a spoken language in 1777, although it has been revived by Cornish patriots in the modern era. The name has been spelled Smeed, Smead, Smee, Smeeth, Smethe, Smeath, Smye and many more. Early Notables of the Smee familyMore information is included under the topic Early Smee Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.  Migration of the Smee family to Ireland
Some of the Smee family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 33 words (2 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
| Smee migration to the United States | + |
The records on immigrants and ships' passengers show a number of people bearing the name Smee:
Smee Settlers in United States in the 17th Century- George Smee, who sailed to Virginia in 1665
Smee Settlers in United States in the 19th Century- George Smee moved to Mobile Alabama in 1879
- George Smee, who arrived in Mobile, Ala in 1879 1
Smee Settlers in United States in the 20th Century- Sydney Partridge Smee, aged 40, who settled in America from Bromley, England, in 1908
- Frederick William Smee, aged 37, who immigrated to America from Woodford, England, in 1911
- Marie L. Smee, aged 22, who immigrated to the United States from Woodford, England, in 1911
- Lucy Smee, aged 24, who landed in America from Ipswich, England, in 1914
- Ernest Norman Smee, aged 36, who landed in America from Ipswich, England, in 1914
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
| Smee migration to Australia | + |
Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include: Smee Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century- Mr. Thomas Smee, (b. 1813), aged 23, English brick maker who was convicted in Essex, England for 14 years for larceny, transported aboard the "Eden" on 27th August 1836, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 2
| Contemporary Notables of the name Smee (post 1700) | + |
- Sebastian Smee, Australian winner of the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Criticism
- Alfred Smee (1818-1877), British surgeon, born in Camberwell, second son of William Smee, accountant-general to the Bank of England
- Acton Smee Ayrton (1816-1886), British Liberal politician, First Commissioner of Works (1869 to 1873)
| Historic Events for the Smee family | + |
- Master Martin Willie Smee (1908-1917), Canadian resident from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada who died in the Halifax Explosion (1917) 3
- 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 20th October 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eden
- Halifax Explosion Book of Remembrance | Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. (Retrieved 2014, June 23) . Retrieved from https://maritimemuseum.novascotia.ca/what-see-do/halifax-explosion/halifax-explosion-book-remembrance
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Smee migration to the United States 
Smee migration to Australia 
England
Ireland
