Lochward History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

The name Lochward has a long Anglo-Saxon heritage. The name comes from when a family lived in the place called Lockwood that was in the West Riding of Yorkshire. The surname Lochward is a habitation name that was originally derived from the Old English words loca and wudu, meaning enclosure and wood. 1 Therefore the original bearers of the surname lived in or near a forest in Yorkshire.

Early Origins of the Lochward family

The surname Lochward was first found in West Yorkshire at Lockwood, a chapelry, in the parish of Almondbury. The village is a rural suburb to the town of Huddersfield and is located in the vale of the river Holme. 2

One reference claims Lockwood was originally called North Crosland and part of the Crosland family estate but was taken over by the Lockwood family after a series of disputes between the both families.

However, this claim is rather dubious and should be questioned as the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 list Willelmus de Lokewod and Thomas de Lockewod holding lands at that time. 3 Lockwood is also a civil parish in the unitary authority of Redcar & Cleveland in North Yorkshire.

"The Lockwoods were well established in Ecclesfield parish [of South Yorkshire] during the reign of Elizabeth. Lincolnshire is another home of the name. Lockwood is a parish near Huddersfield [West Yorkshire]."

Early feudal rolls provided the king of the time a method of cataloguing holdings for taxation, but today they provide a glimpse into the wide surname spellings in use at that time. Henry de Locwode was listed in the Assize Rolls for Staffordshire in 1294. Later, Adam de Lokwode was found in the Feet of Fines for Yorkshire in 1352 and Richard Lokwood was in the the rolls for Kent in 1455. 4

There is a scant entry for the family in Scotland, that of "John Locwode, witness in Edinburgh, 1426." 5

Early History of the Lochward family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Lochward research. Another 90 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Lochward History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lochward Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate spelled their names differently as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Lochward have been found, including Lockwood, Lockward and others.

Early Notables of the Lochward family

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

Migration of the Lochward family

Families began migrating abroad in enormous numbers because of the political and religious discontent in England. Often faced with persecution and starvation in England, the possibilities of the New World attracted many English people. Although the ocean trips took many lives, those who did get to North America were instrumental in building the necessary groundwork for what would become for new powerful nations. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America bore the name Lochward, or a variant listed above: Edmund Lockwood and his wife Elizabeth and child settled in Salem Massachusetts in 1630; Albert and Charles Lockwood arrived in Philadelphia in 1874; James and William Lockwood arrived in San Francisco in 1850..

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, 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)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
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)