Show ContentsWinceelowe History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Winceelowe name has descended through the generations from the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. Their name comes from having lived in Buckinghamshire. The family name Winceelowe is derived from the Old English personal name Wine, meaning friend, and the Old English word hlaw, meaning hill or mound, and means that the original bearer of the name lived near a hill owned by someone name Wine.1

Early Origins of the Winceelowe family

The surname Winceelowe was first found in Buckinghamshire, at Winslow, today a market-town and parish, and the head of a union, in the hundred of Cottesloe with a population today of about 4,500. The town dates back to 795, when it was listed as Wineshlauu as land given by King Offa to the Abbey of St. Alban's. Years later in the Domesday Book, it was listed as Weneslai, land held by the Bishop of Lisieux and at that time was in the Murley Hundred and the manor there belonged to the Church of St. Alban. 2

Apart from being the source of this distinguished family's heritage, the market-town and parish of Winslow was well known in the 1800s for another reason which would be quite out of place today. "The white poppy was so successfully grown here, in 1821, as to produce 60lb. of opium, worth at least £75, from four acres, and 143lb. in the next year from eleven acres; for which, on both occasions, the prize of 30 guineas was awarded by the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce." 3

Early History of the Winceelowe family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Winceelowe research. Another 87 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1595, 1607, 1620, 1633, 1636, 1644, 1655 and 1663 are included under the topic Early Winceelowe History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Winceelowe Spelling Variations

Only recently has spelling become standardized in the English language. As the English language evolved in the Middle Ages, the spelling of names changed also. The name Winceelowe has undergone many spelling variations, including Winslow, Winselow, Winsloe and others.

Early Notables of the Winceelowe family

Notables of the family at this time include Edward Winslow (1595-1655), an English Pilgrim leader on the Mayflower who served as the 3rd, 6th and 10th Governor of Plymouth Colony in 1633, 1636, and finally in 1644. Born at Droitwich, near Worcester, he was the grandson of Kenelm Winslow (d. 1607) of Kempsey. "In July 1620, with his wife and three servants, he sailed from Delft Haven in the Speedwell to...
Another 70 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Winceelowe Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Winceelowe family

To escape the unstable social climate in England of this time, many families boarded ships for the New World with the hope of finding land, opportunity, and greater religious and political freedom. Although the voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, those families that arrived often found greater opportunities and freedoms than they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Winceelowe were among those contributors: Sarah Winsloe who settled in Virginia in 1685; Edward Winslow who settled in Hingham Massachusetts in 1633; Edward Winslow settled in Maine in 1622; Gilbert Winslow settled in Plymouth Massachusetts in 1620.



  1. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  2. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  3. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.


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