Waudbley History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Waudbley is an ancient Norman name that arrived in England after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Waudbley family lived in "Verboys, near Rouen, Normandy. This family gave its name to Warbois or Warboys, formerly spelt Wardeboys, a considerable village on the high road from Huntingdon to Ramsey." 1

Early Origins of the Waudbley family

The surname Waudbley was first found in Cambridgeshire, formerly Huntingdonshire where it is now a large parish and village. The village dates back to pre-Conquest times where the first listing was Weardebusc in 974. Literally the place name probably means "bush of a man called Wearda" having derived from the Old English personal name + busc. 2

By the time of the Domesday Book, the lands were held listed as lands of St. Benedict of Ramsey. Looking back further, the family was originally derived from Verbois, near Rouen in Normandy. 3 4

"Walter Wardebois is mentioned in the county as early as 1199. (Rotuli Curiae Regis.) Geoffrey de Wardbois, a townsman of Cambridge, was 'charged with having joined in the great riot against the Master and Scholars of the University' in 1322." 1

Early History of the Waudbley family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Waudbley research. Another 69 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1200, 1261, 1825, 1846 and 1887 are included under the topic Early Waudbley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Waudbley Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years the English language had no fixed system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations occurred commonly in Anglo Norman surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Waudbley were recorded, including Warboy, Warboyse, Warboise, Wardboys, Gardboys, Garboys, Worboy, Worboys and many more.

Early Notables of the Waudbley family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Emma Jane Warboise (1825-1887), author, the eldest child of George Baddeley Worboise and his wife, Maria Lane (her father property in Birmingham), was born in Birmingham on 20 April 1825. She early developed a strong turn for story writing, and by the time she was twenty had amassed a large quantity of manuscripts both prose and poetry...
Another 65 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Waudbley Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Waudbley family

The unstable environment in England at this time caused numerous families to board ships and leave in search of opportunity and freedom from persecution abroad in places like Ireland, Australia, and particularly the New World. The voyage was extremely difficult, however, and only taken at great expense. The cramped conditions and unsanitary nature of the vessels caused many to arrive diseased and starving, not to mention destitute from the enormous cost. Still opportunity in the emerging nations of Canada and the United States was far greater than at home and many went on to make important contributions to the cultures of their adopted countries. An examination of many early immigration records reveals that people bearing the name Waudbley arrived in North America very early: the name represented in many forms and recorded from the mid 17th century in the great migration from Europe. Migrants settled in the eastern seaboard from Newfoundland, to Maine, to Virginia, the Carolinas, and to the islands..

Citations +

Cleveland, Dutchess of The Battle Abbey Roll with some Account of the Norman Lineages. London: John Murray, Abermarle Street, 1889. Print. Volume 3 of 3
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.