Heale History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Heale came to England with the ancestors of the Heale family in the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Heale family lived in Norfolk. The surname Heal was a topographic name indicating that its bearer lived in or near a nook or hollow. 1

Early Origins of the Heale family

The surname Heale was first found in Devon where they held a manor in the parish of Bradninch. One of the first on record was Roger De la Heale who was lord of Heale, temp. Henry III. 2

They were conjecturally descended from Erchenbald, who held the lands from the Count of Mortain, as recorded in the Domesday Book in 1086. 3

The first entry for the family was actually found in Hampshire. It was here that William de Lahela was listed in the Pipe Rolls for 1130.

A number of entries for the family were found in Somerset: John in the Hele; Edith atte Hele, Somerset; William in the Hele; and Edith in le Hele. All were listed 1 Edward III (in the first year of King Edward III's reign.) 4

"Many more instances from the same record could be given. One thing is certain, the West country is the chief habitat of the surname." 5"Hele and Heale are very common place-names in Devon, less frequent in Somerset, and occasionally noted in Hampshire, Wiltshire, Worcester and Surrey." 1

Hele Elize Hele, of Wollaton, [Devon] bequeathed in 1635 the manor of Brixton Reigny and all his estates to charitable uses, and thus became the great school founder of his native county. It is a question whether the Heles really sprung from Hele near Bradninch, or Hele in Cornwood, where they can certainly be traced to the reign of Richard II. ; but the latter is probably a younger branch." 6

Early History of the Heale family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Heale research. Another 130 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1130, 1234, 1543, 1560, 1581, 1592, 1595, 1601, 1608, 1626, 1627, 1630, 1635, 1644, 1659, 1661, 1665 and 1670 are included under the topic Early Heale History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Heale Spelling Variations

Multitudes of spelling variations are a hallmark of Anglo Norman names. Most of these names evolved in the 11th and 12th century, in the time after the Normans introduced their own Norman French language into a country where Old and Middle English had no spelling rules and the languages of the court were French and Latin. To make matters worse, medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, so names frequently appeared differently in the various documents in which they were recorded. The name was spelled Heal, Heale, Heales, Hele and others.

Early Notables of the Heale family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

William Heale (1581?-1627), was an English divine, a native of South Heal in the county of Devon, where he was born about 1581. 7

Heale migration to the United States +

Because of this political and religious unrest within English society, many people decided to immigrate to the colonies. Families left for Ireland, North America, and Australia in enormous numbers, traveling at high cost in extremely inhospitable conditions. The New World in particular was a desirable destination, but the long voyage caused many to arrive sick and starving. Those who made it, though, were welcomed by opportunities far greater than they had known at home in England. Many of these families went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Heale or a variant listed above:

Heale Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Heale, who settled in Cambridge Massachusetts in 1620
Richard Heale, who landed in Virginia in 1622 8
Nicholas Heale, who arrived in Virginia in 1650 8
Nicho Heale, who landed in Virginia in 1652 8
Abigail Heale, who settled in Virginia in 1654
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Heale migration to Australia +

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

Heale Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Thomas Heale, aged 23, a miner, who arrived in South Australia in 1857 aboard the ship "Gilmore"

Heale migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Heale Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Theophilus Heale, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1840 aboard the ship Captain of the Aurora
Mr. Thomas Heale, (b. 1813), aged 28, British miner travelling from Plymouth aboard the ship "Oriental" arriving in New Plymouth, Taranaki, North Island, New Zealand via Wellington on 7th November 1841 9
Mrs. Susan Heale, (b. 1814), aged 27, British settler travelling from Plymouth aboard the ship "Oriental" arriving in New Plymouth, Taranaki, North Island, New Zealand via Wellington on 7th November 1841 9
Mr. Richard Heale, (b. 1833), aged 8, British settler travelling from Plymouth aboard the ship "Oriental" arriving in New Plymouth, Taranaki, North Island, New Zealand via Wellington on 7th November 1841 9
Mr. William Heale, (b. 1834), aged 7, British settler travelling from Plymouth aboard the ship "Oriental" arriving in New Plymouth, Taranaki, North Island, New Zealand via Wellington on 7th November 1841 9
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Worth, R.N., A History of Devonshire London: Elliot Stock, 62, Paternoster Row, E.G., 1895. Digital
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
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)
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html