Show ContentsBusbee History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

In ancient Scotland, the first people to use Busbee as a surname were the Strathclyde-Britons. It was a name someone who lived in East Renfrewshire at Busby, a village "partly in the parish of East Kilbride, Middle ward of the county of Lanark." 1 Alternatively the name could have been derived from Great Busby in Yorkshire which dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 and was listed as Buschebi. 2 In either case, this place name is most likely derived from the Norman buki, meaning "bush" or "shrub."

Early Origins of the Busbee family

The surname Busbee was first found in Renfrewshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Rinn Friù), a historic county of Scotland, today encompassing the Council Areas of Renfrew, East Renfrewshire, and Iverclyde, in the Strathclyde region of southwestern Scotland. The name is derived from "the lands of Busby or Busbie in the parish of Carmunnock, Renfrewshire.

In 1330, the office of notary was conferred on David de Busby of the diocese of Glasgow. " 3 Further to the south in England, the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 list: Ricardus de Busby, and Adam de Buskeby. 4

"During the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries the Busbys of Radford and Gagingwell were well - to - do Enstone yeomen, who frequently filled the office of churchwarden and other places of trust. William Busby was one of the trustees for Lady Le Strange of Middleton in the reign of Henry VI.. William Busby, gent., was an assistant - burgess of Banbury in 1718, in which town the name still occurs. Busby is the name of a parish in the North Riding of Yorkshire." 5

Early History of the Busbee family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Busbee research. Another 132 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1408, 1411, 1488, 1491, 1526, 1606, 1635, 1644, 1648, 1695, 1755, 1769, 1786 and 1799 are included under the topic Early Busbee History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Busbee Spelling Variations

Before the printing press standardized spelling in the last few hundred years, no general rules existed in the English language. Spelling variations in Scottish names from the Middle Ages are common even within a single document. Busbee has been spelled Busby, Busbe, Busbie and others.

Early Notables of the Busbee family

Notable amongst the family at this time was The Rev. Dr. Richard Busby (1606-1695), an English clergyman, and headmaster of Westminster School, buried in Westminster Abbey.Nathaniel Bisby or Bisbie (1635-1695), was an English divine, son of the Rev. John Bisbie, of Tipton, Staffordshire, who was ejected from a rebend in Lichfield Cathedral about 1644. At the Restoration he was resented to the rectory of Long Melford, Sudbury, Suffolk. He died 14 May 1695, and was buried at Long Melford. 6Thomas Busby was born in Westminster, 1755...
Another 86 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Busbee Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Busbee migration to the United States +

For Scottish immigrants, the great expense of travel to North America did not seem such a problem in those unstable times. Acres of land awaited them and many got the chance to fight for their freedom in the American War of Independence. These Scots and their ancestors went on to play important roles in the forging of the great nations of the United States and Canada. Among them:

Busbee Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Edward Busbee, who landed in Virginia in 1623 7
Busbee Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • A. Busbee, aged 42, who immigrated to the United States, in 1892
  • Her. Busbee, aged 17, who landed in America, in 1892
  • M. Busbee, aged 19, who settled in America, in 1892
  • W. L. Busbee, aged 21, who settled in America, in 1892
Busbee Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Alice Huntington Busbee, aged 26, who landed in America, in 1907
  • Sophia Busbee, aged 33, who landed in America, in 1911
  • Isabel Busbee, aged 31, who immigrated to the United States, in 1911
  • Isabelle Busbee, aged 20, who landed in America, in 1913
  • Sophie Busbee, aged 21, who immigrated to the United States, in 1913
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Busbee (post 1700) +

  • Jay Busbee (b. 1968), American novelist and journalist
  • Shirlee Elaine Busbee (b. 1941), American novelist of romance novels
  • Perrin Busbee, American coach of the North Carolina State college football program (1892 to 1897)
  • Mike Busbee (b. 1976), American songwriter
  • Matthew Busbee, fourteen-time All-American swimmer
  • George Busbee (1927-2004), American politician, the 77th Governor of the Georgia (1975 to 1983)
  • Brigadier-General Charles Manly Busbee (1893-1970), American Professor of Military Science & Tactics, Iowa State College (1946-1949) 8


  1. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  2. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  3. Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
  4. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  5. Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
  6. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
  7. 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)
  8. Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, November 3) Charles Busbee. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Busbee/Charles_Manly/USA.html


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