Morely History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The Morely name is habitational, derived from any of the several places so named; such as Morley in Cheshire, Derbyshire, County Durham, Norfolk, and West Yorkshire, and Moreleigh in Devon. These place names come from the Old English words "mor," meaning "marsh" and "le-ah," meaning "a clearing in the woods." 1

Early Origins of the Morely family

The surname Morely was first found in Derbyshire at Morley, a parish, in the union of Belper, hundred of Morleston and Litchurch. 2

"In [the] Domesday Survey this place is described as one of the manors of Henry de Ferrers. In 1235 the manors of Morley and Smalley were held by the abbot of Chester as of the fee of Hugh, Earl of Chester; and Morley was afterwards held by a family who took their name from the place." 3

Some of the family were found at Wennington in Lancashire in ancient times. "William de Wennington was in possession of the estate, which about the 4th of Edward III. (1330) passed to the family of Morley, of Great and Little Morley, with whom it remained until 1673." 3

The township of Mearley in Lancashire played an important role in the family history. "The chief part of the township was granted by Jordan le Rous to Stephen, afterwards called de Merley, whose daughter married Adam de Nowell, and carried the Hall and manor into that family, 38th of Edward III." 3

Some of the family were found in Yorkshire as the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 include: Johannes de Morelay; Adam de Morlay; and Margeria de Morlay as all holding lands there at that time. 4

The Maulay variant has an interesting background. According to the Battell Abbey Roll, "the first who came to England was Peter de Maulay, a Poitevin, brought by King John, and distinctly accused by Ralph Niger and Henry Knighton of being the tool he employed for ridding himself of his nephew Arthur. Peter's reward was the heiress of Doncaster, Isabella de Turnham, who brought him the barony of Mulgrave. " 5

Early History of the Morely family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Morely research. Another 214 words (15 lines of text) covering the years 1411, 1455, 1477, 1483, 1487, 1510, 1557, 1586, 1597, 1600, 1602, 1616, 1625, 1640, 1658, 1660, 1662, 1667 and 1684 are included under the topic Early Morely History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Morely Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Morely family name include Morley, Mawley, Morely, Moorley, Maughley, Morleigh, Moorley and many more.

Early Notables of the Morely family

Distinguished members of the family include Thomas Morley (1557-1602) English organist, church composer, madrigalist, editor, and music printer from Norwich; Sir William Morley (c.1586-1658), a Member of Parliament for Guildford (1625-26), Member of Parliament for Chichester (1640-42), supported the Royalist cause in the English Civil War; George Morley...
Another 47 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Morely Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Morely family to Ireland

Some of the Morely family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 101 words (7 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Morely migration to the United States +

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Morely surname or a spelling variation of the name include:

Morely Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Fra Morely, who landed in Virginia in 1640 6
Robert Morely, who arrived in Virginia in 1655 6
John Morely, who arrived in Maryland in 1678 6

Morely Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Patrick Morely, who landed in Arkansas in 1887 6

Morely 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:

Morely Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Jane Morely, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Wild Duck" in 1861
James Morely, aged 20, a groom, who arrived in Hawkes Bay aboard the ship "Queen of the North" in 1874

Citations +

Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
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)
Cleveland, Dutchess of The Battle Abbey Roll with some Account of the Norman Lineages. London: John Murray, Abermarle Street, 1889. Print. Volume 2 of 3
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)