Contents [hide]

McPeak History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

McPeak History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The name McPeak arrived in England after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The McPeak family lived in Staffordshire. The surname of Peak derives from the Old English word pekke, indicating the top of a mountain or hill, and was a local name distinguishing a person who lived by a prominent peak. 1

Early Origins of the McPeak family

The surname McPeak was first found in Suffolk where Uluric Pec was listed at Bury St Edmunds c. 1095, nine years after the Domesday Book of 1086. Oxfordshire is the next entry: Richard de Pec who was listed at Eynsham in 1192. 2

As noted, most sources point to Staffordshire as to where the family hails. Staffordshire was where "among the earliest known bearers of the name are Richard del Pech or del Pek (d. 1196), son of Ranulf, Sheriff of Nottingham, and Willielmus Piec, who was in Winchester in 1194." 3 "The Peakes of Staffordshire were represented in Shropshire in the 13th century by the Piks and Pickes." 4

And two sources note Derbyshire, where the name was derived from "a pointed hill, as the Peak in Derbyshire" 5 and "one who came from Peak (hill), in Derbyshire." 6 "The Peak District, Derbyshire, is referred to as Peac lond in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, A.D. 924." 7

"The Peakes of Llewenny, co. Denbigh, have been seated there apparently from the XIV. century, and there is little doubt of their extraction from Thomas del Peke, to whom Henry de Lacy, Earl of Lincoln, about the year 1284, granted a burgage, &c., within the walls of Denbigh. As Llewennie was included within De Lacy's barony, it seems probable that it was granted at the same period. The family went into Wales in 1283, with King Edward I., doubtless as feudatories of the De Lacys. Harl. M.S. 1933. See B.L.G. The etymology of the name is the same as that of Peak." 5

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. William de Peke was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1296 and William atte Peke was listed in Devon in 1321. The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 lists: Isabell del Pek; and Martyn del Pek. 1

Early History of the McPeak family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our McPeak research. Another 101 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1283, 1284, 1551, 1592, 1619, 1667 and 1668 are included under the topic Early McPeak History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McPeak 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 MacPeake, Peak, Peake and others.

Early Notables of the McPeak family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Sir William Peake of Achurch; Robert Peake the Elder (c. 1551-1619), an English painter; and Sir Robert Peake (ca. 1592-1667), English print-seller and Royalist, he was exiled for refusing...
Another 36 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early McPeak Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McPeak Ranking

In the United States, the name McPeak is the 6,391^st most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 8

Migration of the McPeak family to Ireland

Some of the McPeak family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 32 words (2 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McPeak migration to the United States +

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 McPeak name or one of its variants:

McPeak Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Neal McPeak, aged 30, who arrived in Baltimore, Maryland in 1803 9
Thomas McPeak, aged 19, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1864 9

McPeak Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Mary McPeak, aged 37, who immigrated to the United States from Derry, in 1905
Patrick McPeak, aged 20, who landed in America from Derry, in 1906
Edward McPeak, aged 21, who landed in America from Convoy, Ireland, in 1911
James Patrick McPeak, aged 36, who immigrated to America, in 1913
John McPeak, aged 20, who landed in America from Swateragh, Ireland, in 1914
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

McPeak migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

McPeak Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Daniel McPeak, aged 21, a labourer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1834 aboard the brig "Betsy Heron" from Belfast, Ireland
Michael McPeak, aged 39, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Protector" in 1834
Hugh McPeak, aged 18, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Protector" in 1834

McPeak migration to Australia +

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

McPeak Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Thomas McPeak, English convict who was convicted in Woolwich, London, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Eden" on 27th August 1836, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 10

McPeak 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:

McPeak Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Catherine McPeak, aged 43, a housekeeper, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Maraval" in 1879
Mary McPeak, aged 20, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Maraval" in 1879
Sarah McPeak, aged 18, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Maraval" in 1879
Catherine McPeak, aged 13, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Maraval" in 1879

Contemporary Notables of the name McPeak (post 1700) +

Merrill Anthony "Tony" McPeak (b. 1936), 14th Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force
William "Bill" Patrick McPeak (1926-1991), American football player and National Football League coach
Holly McPeak (b. 1969), American beach volleyball player
Susan Ilene McPeak, American politician, Representative from Michigan 8th District, 1994
Michael J. McPeak, American politician, Representative from Michigan 1st District, 1994; Natural Law Candidate for Presidential Elector for Michigan, 2000
Enoch M. McPeak, American Republican politician, Presidential Elector for West Virginia, 1908
Tony McPeak, Scottish former professional footballer

Citations +

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)
Hanks, Patricia and Flavia Hodges, A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988. Print. (ISBN 0-19-211592-8)
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 20th October 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eden