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Shelley History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Shelley History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Early Origins of the Shelley family

The surname Shelley was first found in Cork (Irish: Corcaigh) the ancient Kingdom of Deis Muin (Desmond), located on the southwest coast of Ireland in the province of Munster, where they held a family seat as an offshoot of the Cahills, being directly descended from Tomhas na Sealbuide, or Thomas of the Seals. Irish history was greatly influenced by the Norman invasion of 1172, and thereafter, the surnames of Irish Gaelic clanns and septs and many of the Norman families became almost indistinguishable. This family name was found later in Clare where the name assumed Shalloo and represented the first recorded reference to the name.

Early History of the Shelley family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Shelley research. Another 73 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Shelley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Shelley Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Shally, Shalvey, Shalloo, Shealy, Shallow, O'Shallow, O'Shally, Shelley, O'Shelley, O'Shalvey and many more.

Early Notables of the Shelley family

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

Shelley Ranking

In the United States, the name Shelley is the 2,532^nd most popular surname with an estimated 12,435 people with that name. 1

Shelley migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Shelley Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

John Shelley, aged 23, who arrived in Virginia in 1619 aboard the ship "Bona Nova" 2
John Shelley, who landed in Jamestown, Va in 1624 2
Robert Shelley, who arrived in Boston Massachusetts in 1632 aboard the ship "Lyon" 2
Anne Shelley, who arrived in Boston Massachusetts in 1632 aboard the ship "Lyon"
Edward Shelley, who settled in Maryland sometime between 1640 and 1648
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Shelley Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Philip Shelley, who landed in America in 1760-1763 2

Shelley Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Samuel Shelley, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1810 2
Caleb Shelley, who arrived in Vermont sometime between 1819 and 1904
Samuel Thomas Shelley, who landed in New York, NY in 1834 2
Patrick Shelley, who arrived in Louisiana in 1844 2
J Q Shelley, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1850 2
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Shelley migration to Australia +

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

Shelley Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Charles Shelley, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Orleana" in 1840 3
Harriet Shelley, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Orleana" in 1840 3

Shelley migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 4

Shelley Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Joseph Shelley was banished to Barbados in 1685

Contemporary Notables of the name Shelley (post 1700) +

Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1797-1851), née Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, English gothic novelist, best known as the author of "Frankenstein" or "The Modern Prometheus" (1818)
W. D. Shelley, American politician, Mayor of Austin, Texas, 1905-07 5
Thomas C. Shelley, American politician, Member of Nebraska State House of Representatives, 1903 5
O. H. P. Shelley, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Montana, 1932 5
R. E. Shelley, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Alabama, 1972 5
Mark O. Shelley, American politician, Workers World Candidate for Presidential Elector for Michigan, 1984 5
Kevin Francis Shelley (b. 1955), American Democratic Party politician, Member of California State Assembly, 1997-2002; Delegate to Democratic National Convention from California, 2000, 2004; Secretary of State of California, 2003-05 5
Karen Anne Shelley, American politician, Candidate for Michigan State Board of Education, 2002 5
John Francis Shelley (1905-1974), American Democratic Party politician, Member of California State Senate, 1939-47; U.S. Representative from California 5th District, 1949-64; Mayor of San Francisco, California, 1964-68 5
Joan-Marie Shelley, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from California, 1988 5
... (Another 26 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Shelley family +

RMS Titanic

Mrs. Imanita Shelley, (née Parrish Hall), aged 25, American Second Class passenger from Deer Lodge, Montana who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and survived the sinking escaping on life boat 12 6

Citations +

"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)
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) ORLEANA 1840. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1840Orleana.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 2) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Titanic Passenger List - Titanic Facts. (Retrieved 2016, July 13) . Retrieved from http://www.titanicfacts.net/titanic-passenger-list.html