Contents [hide]

Darcy History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Darcy History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The Darcy surname is a Norman habitation name, created by adding the French preposition "de" meaning "from" to the place Arcy, in La Manche. 1

Early Origins of the Darcy family

The surname Darcy was first found in Lincolnshire where the Norman Knight of the name Norman De Areci was listed as a landholder in the Domesday Book of 1086; he was granted 33 Lordships by William the Conqueror. 2

"Norman de Areci held thirty-three lordships in the county of Lincoln by the immediate gift of the Conqueror, 3 and chose Nocton, one of them, as the head of his barony. His posterity retained it as their seat for "divers after ages," and his son Robert founded an Augustine priory there." 4

Other early records of the name in Lincolnshire include William Daresci in the Pipe Rolls of 1191; Roger Arsi on record between 1173 and 1182; Osbert de Arcy in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273; and a Thomas Darcy in 1276. 5

Temple Newsom in the West Riding of Yorkshire was home to another branch of the family. "This place derives the prefix to its name from the Knights Templars, who had a preceptory here, which, at the suppression of their order in 1311, was granted to Sir John D'Arcy, whose descendant, Thomas, Lord D'Arcy, was beheaded in the reign of Henry VIII. for joining the 'Pilgrims of Grace.' The forfeited manor was bestowed on the Earl of Lenox, father of Lord Darnley, the husband of Mary, Queen of Scots." 6

D'Arcy Tolleshunt in Essex was another ancient homestead of the family. "This parish, which is bounded on the south-east by the river Blackwater and Northfleet creek, derives the adjunct to its name from the family of D'Arcy, who were anciently its lords." 6

The family held an extensive estate at Greenhow in the North Riding of Yorkshire since early times but again, this family seat was also forfeited to the crown during the reign of Henry VIII. 6

Early History of the Darcy family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Darcy research. Another 175 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1299, 1332, 1467, 1506, 1517, 1536, 1537, 1545, 1550, 1551, 1558, 1565, 1599, 1609, 1622, 1628, 1640, 1681, 1682, 1689, 1692, 1714, 1718, 1719, 1721 and 1814 are included under the topic Early Darcy History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Darcy Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: D'Arcy, Darcie, Darcy, Arcy and others.

Early Notables of the Darcy family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

Philip Darcy, Baron Darcy of Nocton, summoned to Parliament in 1299
his brother John Darcy, created Baron Darcy de Knayth in 1332
Thomas Darcy (1506-1558) created Baron Darcy of Chiche on 5 April 1551, later known as Baron Darcy of Temple Hurst, Vice-Chamberlain of the Household and Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard (1550-1551)
Baron Thomas Darcy (1467-1537) English nobleman, who served in military expeditions for Henry VII and Henry VIII, before fighting against the crown in the rebellion in the north of England known as th...
Thomas Darcy, 1st Earl Rivers (1565-1640)
Conyers Darcy (1599-1689), created 1st Earl of Holderness in 1682

Darcy Ranking

In the United States, the name Darcy is the 13,816^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 7 However, in France, the name Darcy is ranked the 5,685^th most popular surname with an estimated 1,000 - 1,500 people with that name. 8

Migration of the Darcy family to Ireland

Some of the Darcy family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 47 words (3 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Darcy migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Darcy Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Richard Darcy, who landed in Maryland in 1637 9
Eliz Darcy, who arrived in Virginia in 1658 9
Thomas Darcy, who arrived in Maryland in 1661 9
Bartho Darcy, who landed in Virginia in 1697 9

Darcy Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

John Darcy, who arrived in Virginia in 1715 9
Michael Darcy, who landed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1767 9

Darcy Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Robert Darcy, who arrived in New York in 1839 9
John Darcy, who settled in New York in 1850
Bridget D'Arcy, who was on record in Illinois in 1853
Daniel Darcy, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1871 9

Darcy migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Darcy Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

George Darcy, who was living in St. John's, Newfoundland in 1774 10

Darcy Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Anne Darcy, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1812
Edward Darcy, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1831
Honora Darcy, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1832
Mrs. Johanna Darcy, aged 40 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Scotland" departing from the port of Cork, Ireland but died on Grosse Isle in July 1847 11
Mrs. Judith Darcy, aged 50 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec but died on Grosse Isle on June 16th, 1847 11
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Darcy migration to Australia +

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

Darcy Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Patrick Darcy, Irish convict who was convicted in Dublin, Ireland, transported aboard the "Atlas" on 29th November 1801, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 12
Mr. Andrew Darcy, (b. 1749), aged 53, Irish labourer who was convicted in Wexford, Ireland for lif for murder, transported aboard the "Atlas" on 30th May 1802, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 12
Mr. John Darcy, (Gibbs, William), English convict who was convicted in London, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Eden" on 30th September 1848, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Island) 13
Margaret D'Arcy, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Eliza" in 1849 14
Patrick D'Arcy, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Eliza" in 1849 14
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Darcy (post 1700) +

Major-General Thomas Connell Darcy (1910-1998), American Deputy Chief of Staff, Plans & Programs (1957) 15
Thomas Francis Darcy (1932-2000), American Pulitzer Prize winning editorial cartoonist
Paul F. Darcy, American politician, U.S. Vice Consul in Swansea, 1922 16
P. H. D'Arcy, American politician, Mayor of Salem, Oregon, 1891-92 16
John L. D'Arcy, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for New York State Assembly from Erie County 7th District, 1936, 1937 16
Jo Anne Darcy (b. 1931), American Republican politician, Mayor of Santa Clarita, California, 1991, 1995, 1999-2000 16
James A. D'Arcy, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Pennsylvania, 1972 16
James Darcy, American politician, Member of New York State Assembly from Kings County 4th District, 1860-63 16
Brian E. Darcy, American Democratic Party politician, Member, Rules Committee, Democratic National Convention, 2008 16
Emma Zia D'Arcy (b. 1992), English Golden Glob Award nominated actress, known for their roles in the BBC drama Wanderlust (2018), the Amazon Prime series Truth Seekers (2020), and the HBO fantasy series House of the Dragon (2022–)
... (Another 13 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Darcy family +

HMS Dorsetshire

Cornelius Darcy (d. 1945), British Petty Officer Cook (S) aboard the HMS Dorsetshire when she was struck by air bombers and sunk; he died in the sinking 17

RMS Lusitania

Mr. John Darcy, English First Waiter from England, who worked aboard the RMS Lusitania (1915) and survived the sinking 18

Victoria steamboat disaster

James Darcy, Canadian passenger who was killed in the Victoria steamboat disaster when the boat capsized in 1881

Citations +

The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Burke, John Bernard, The Roll of Battle Abbey. London: Edward Churton, 26, Holles Street, 1848, Print.
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Cleveland, Dutchess of The Battle Abbey Roll with some Account of the Norman Lineages. London: John Murray, Abermarle Street, 1889. Print. Volume 1 of 3
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
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)
Seary E.R., Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland, Montreal: McGill's-Queen's Universtity Press 1998 ISBN 0-7735-1782-0
Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 23)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 14th July 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/atlas
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 15th November 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eden
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) ELIZA 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Eliza.htm
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2012, January 10) Thomas Darcy. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Darcy/Thomas_Connell/USA.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 27) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Force Z Survivors HMS Dorsetshire Crew List, (Retrieved 2018, February 13th), https://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listdorsetshirecrew.html
Lusitania Passenger List - The Lusitania Resource. (Retrieved 2014, March 6) . Retrieved from http://www.rmslusitania.info/lusitania-passenger-list/