Gattenbay is a name that first reached England following the Norman Conquest in 1066. It is a name for a watchman. The watchman was responsible for keeping guard over the gates of a castle or manor.
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Early Origins of the Gattenbay family
The surname Gattenbay was first found in the North Riding of Yorkshire at Gatenby. One of the first records of the family was Stephen de Gaitenbi (c. 1190-1212) who was listed in Early Yorkshire Charters.
In 1327, the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire listed Thomas de Gaytenby and later Peter de Gaytenby was listed in the Calendar of Inquisitiones post mortem of Yorkshire (1405-1406.) 1
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Early History of the Gattenbay family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gattenbay research. Another 137 words (10 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Gattenbay History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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Gattenbay Spelling Variations
Anglo-Norman names tend to be marked by an enormous number of spelling variations. This is largely due to the fact that Old and Middle English lacked any spelling rules when Norman French was introduced in the 11th century. The languages of the English courts at that time were French and Latin. These various languages mixed quite freely in the evolving social milieu. The final element of this mix is that medieval scribes spelled words according to their sounds rather than any definite rules, so a name was often spelled in as many different ways as the number of documents it appeared in. The name was spelled Gattonsby, Gatensby, Gatonby, Gattenby, Gatenby and many more.
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Early Notables of the Gattenbay family
More information is included under the topic Early Gattenbay Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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Migration of the Gattenbay family
Because of the political and religious discontent in England, families began to migrate abroad in enormous numbers. Faced with persecution and starvation at home, the open frontiers and generally less oppressive social environment of the New World seemed tantalizing indeed to many English people. The trip was difficult, and not all made it unscathed, but many of those who did get to Canada and the United States made important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers with Gattenbay name or one of its variants: George Gaton settled in Virginia in 1638; Thomas Gatens arrived in Philadelphia in 1840; Patrick Gatans arrived in Philadelphia in 1858; William Gattens settled in Maryland in 1774..
England
