Show ContentsBrinley History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The lineage of the name Brinley begins with the Anglo-Saxon tribes in Britain. It is a result of when they lived in or near the settlement of Brindle in Lancashire.

Early Origins of the Brinley family

The surname Brinley was first found in Lancashire at Brindle, a small village and civil parish of the borough of Chorley that dates back to at least 1206 when it was first listed as Burnhill. The place name probably means "hill by a stream," from the Old English words "burna" + "hyll." [1] "This place appears to have been granted, by the superior tenant of the crown, soon after the Conquest, to a family who were designated from their possessions. The manor passed by the marriage of the heiress of 'Sir Peter de Bryn, of Brynhill,' to the Gerards, with whom it continued till the reign of Henry VIII." [2]

Early History of the Brinley family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Brinley research. Another 50 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Brinley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Brinley 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 Brinley has undergone many spelling variations, including Brindley, Brinley, Brindely and others.

Early Notables of the Brinley family

More information is included under the topic Early Brinley Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Brinley 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 Brinley were among those contributors:

Brinley Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Francis Brinley, who settled in Newport Rhode Island in 1630
  • Luke Brinley, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1682 [3]
Brinley Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Francis Brinley, who landed in New England in 1710 [3]
  • Lawrence Brinley, who settled in Newport Rhode Island in 1730
Brinley Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Christian Brinley, aged 22, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1807 [3]
  • Jonathon Brinley, who settled in Annapolis Maryland
  • C R Brinley, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1850 [3]
  • J W Brinley, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1851 [3]

Contemporary Notables of the name Brinley (post 1700) +

  • Godfrey M. Brinley, American tennis player
  • Bertrand R. Brinley (1917-1994), American writer of short stories and children's tales, best known for his Mad Scientists' Club stories [4]
  • Charles Brinley (1880-1946), American actor of the silent era [5]
  • Francis W. Brinley, American politician, Mayor of Perth Amboy, New Jersey, 1845, 1847 [6]
  • Henry Brinley Richards (1819-1885), Welsh pianist and composer, son of Henry Richards, organist of St. Peter's, Carmarthen
  • Brinley "Bryn" Victor Meredith (b. 1930), Welsh rugby union international player
  • Brinley Roderick Rees (1919-2004), Welsh academic who wrote extensively on the Classics


  1. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  2. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  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)
  4. Bertrand Brinley. (Retrieved 2010, September 27) Bertrand Brinley. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bertrand_R._Brinley
  5. Charles Brinley. (Retrieved 2010, September 27) Charles Brinley. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Brinley
  6. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 11) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


Houseofnames.com on Facebook