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The present generation of the Maxwel family is only the most recent to bear a name that dates back to the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. Their name comes from having lived in or near Maxwell, a salmon pool located on the Tweed river near Kelso Bridge. The surname Maxwel belongs to the large category of Anglo-Saxon habitation names, which are derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads.
The surname Maxwel was first found in Yorkshire where they held a family seat from early times and their first records appeared on the early census rolls taken by the early Kings of Britain to determine the rate of taxation of their subjects.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Maxwel research. Another 191 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1156, 1203, 1231, 1296, 1320, 1797 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Maxwel History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Until the dictionary, an invention of only the last few hundred years, the English language lacked any comprehensive system of spelling rules. Consequently, spelling variations in names are frequently found in early Anglo-Saxon and later Anglo-Norman documents. One person's name was often spelled several different ways over a lifetime. The recorded variations of Maxwel include Maxwell, Maxweel, Makeswell, Makiswell, Maxuel, Maxwaile, Maxwale and many more.
Notables of the family at this time include
Another 81 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Thousands of English families boarded ships sailing to the New World in the hope of escaping the unrest found in England at this time. Although the search for opportunity and freedom from persecution abroad took the lives of many because of the cramped conditions and unsanitary nature of the vessels, the opportunity perceived in the growing colonies of North America beckoned. Many of the settlers who survived the journey went on to make important contributions to the transplanted cultures of their adopted countries. The Maxwel were among these contributors, for they have been located in early North American records: Alan, David, George, Henry, Hugh, James, John, Mary, Robert, Samuel, Thomas, William Maxwell all arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860. In Newfoundland, William was a soldier of St. John's in 1821.