Wouldstick History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The ancestry of the name Wouldstick dates from the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. It comes from when the family lived in Woodstock, a town in the north-west part of Oxfordshire.

Early Origins of the Wouldstick family

The surname Wouldstick was first found in Oxfordshire at Woodstock. "This town is of Saxon origin, and was called by that people Vudestoc, signifying a woody place. It appears to have been chosen at an early period as an abode of royalty, and the manor-house, as it was called, is supposed to have been built upon the site of a Roman villa. Edmund of Woodstock, the second son of Edward I., was born here; as were also Edward the Black Prince, and Thomas of Woodstock, sons of Edward III. Henry VII. added considerably to the buildings of the palace, erecting the front and the principal gate-house." 1

"Edmund of Woodstock, Earl of Kent (1301-1330), youngest son of Edward I, by his second wife, Margaret of France, was born at Woodstock on 5 Aug. 1301. On 31 Aug. 1306 he received from his father a revenue of seven thousand marks a year. It was commonly believed that the old king proposed to confer the rich earldom of Cornwall either on Edmund or on his elder brother Thomas of Brotherton; but the accession of Edward II secured that prize for the favourite, Gaveston. Edward II, however, placed Edward Baliol in the custody of his half-brother. In 1319 he made Edmund lord of the castle and honour of Knaresborough." 2

The Feet of Fines for Oxfordshire included Alisius de Wodestoke in 1235. 3

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed: Hudde de Wodestok, Oxfordshire; and John de Wodestok, Oxfordshire. 4

Robert Wodestoke was found in the Assize Rolls for Devon in 1359 3 and another source notes: "Lifton, which adjoins Marystow, one of the frontier parishes of Devon next Cornwall, passed from the Crown, by the grant of King John in 1199, to Agatha, who had been nurse to Eleanor his mother. By Edward I. the manor, hundred, and advowson were given to Thomas of Woodstock, and descended thence through the Hollands to the Nevilles." 5

Early History of the Wouldstick family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Wouldstick research. Another 64 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1326, 1330, 1331 and 1385 are included under the topic Early Wouldstick History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Wouldstick Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate spelled their names differently as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Wouldstick have been found, including Woodstock, Woodstocke and others.

Early Notables of the Wouldstick family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Edmund of Woodstock, 2nd Earl of Kent (c. 1326-1331), who inherited the Earldom of Kent in 1331, a year after his father, Edmund of Woodstock, 1st Earl of Kent, was attainted. In 1330 he was, on the petition of his mother and the reversal of his father's condemnation, recognized as Earl of Kent. He died very...
Another 63 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Wouldstick Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Wouldstick family

Families began migrating abroad in enormous numbers because of the political and religious discontent in England. Often faced with persecution and starvation in England, the possibilities of the New World attracted many English people. Although the ocean trips took many lives, those who did get to North America were instrumental in building the necessary groundwork for what would become for new powerful nations. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America bore the name Wouldstick, or a variant listed above: Robert Woodstock arrived in St. Christopher in 1635; John Woodstock arrived in Maryland in 1775.

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Worth, R.N., A History of Devonshire London: Elliot Stock, 62, Paternoster Row, E.G., 1895. Digital