Show ContentsStockly History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The vast movement of people that followed the Norman Conquest of England of 1066 brought the Stockly family name to the British Isles. They lived in Staffordshire. The name was derived from the Old English words stocc, meaning tree trunk, and leah, meaning clearing, and indicates that the original bearer of the name lived at or near a wooded clearing. 1

Alternatively, the name could have originated in Devon where Stockley-English and Stockley-Pomeroy can be found. 2 3

Early Origins of the Stockly family

The surname Stockly was first found in Staffordshire where they were conjecturally descended from two Norman nobles, brothers in arms, named Rafwin and Alwin, who were under tenants of the Bishop of Chester at Yoxall in that shire.

Hartland, Devon is of particular importance to the family in early years. In the basement of the Abbey, "of which there remain portions of the Early English cloisters, belongs to Sir George Stucley, who represents, in the female line, the Stukelys of Afton, several members of whom figure prominently in Devonshire history. Thomas Stukely undertook the plantation of Florida, but turned to something like piracy instead, and died at Alcazar in Africa, fighting side by side with Sebastian of Portugal, in 1578. He it was who told Elizabeth that he would rather be the sovereign of a molehill than the highest subject to the greatest king in Christendom. It was Sir Lewis Stukely, afterwards named 'Judas,' who arrested Ralegh on his return from his last voyage ; and in later days Puritanism and the Parliament had few more earnest advocates in word and deed than another Lewis Stukely, the Independent minister of Exeter. " 4

The Hundredorum Rolls of has two early entries for the family: Ralph de Stockleye, Suffolk; and Pagan de Stockleye, Oxfordshire. 5 Robert de Stockele was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Sussex in 1296. 6

Early History of the Stockly family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Stockly research. Another 78 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1473, 1475, 1496, 1520, 1521, 1526, 1529, 1539, 1542, 1545, 1559, 1568, 1571, 1578, 1581, 1620, 1661, 1663 and 1667 are included under the topic Early Stockly History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Stockly Spelling Variations

A multitude of spelling variations characterize Norman surnames. Many variations occurred because Old and Middle English lacked any definite spelling rules. The introduction of Norman French to England also had a pronounced effect, as did the court languages of Latin and French. Therefore, one person was often referred to by several different spellings in a single lifetime. The various spellings include Stockley, Stockleigh, Stokeley, Stuckless, Stuckley and many more.

Early Notables of the Stockly family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Sir Thomas Stucley (1473-1542) of Affeton, Sheriff of Devon in 1521; and his eldest son, Sir Hugh Stucley (1496-1559), Lord of the manor of Affeton in Devon, and Sheriff of Devon in 1545. His eldest son and heir, Lewes Stucley (1529-1581), eldest son and heir, was Standard Bearer to Queen Elizabeth I. His third son, Thomas Stukley (c. 1520-1578) "The Lusty Stucley", was mercenary who fought in France, Ireland and in...
Another 78 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Stockly Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Stockly migration to the United States +

Many English families left England, to avoid the chaos of their homeland and migrated to the many British colonies abroad. Although the conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and some travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute, once in the colonies, many of the families prospered and made valuable contributions to the cultures of what would become the United States and Canada. Research into the origins of individual families in North America has revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Stockly or a variant listed above:

Stockly Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Christian Stockly, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1736 7

Canada Stockly migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Stockly Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • John Stockly, who arrived in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1749-1752


  1. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  2. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  3. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  4. Worth, R.N., A History of Devonshire London: Elliot Stock, 62, Paternoster Row, E.G., 1895. Digital
  5. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  6. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  7. 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)


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