Baxley History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Etymology of Baxley

What does the name Baxley mean?

The origins of the Baxley name come from when the Anglo-Saxon tribes ruled over Britain. The name Baxley was originally derived from a family having lived in Sussex and Buckinghamshire. 1 The Baxley surname is a habitational name derived from any of various places named Beckley, such as those in Kent, Oxfordshire, and Sussex. The place name Beckley comes from the Old English name becca with the Old English word leah, meaning a clearing in the forest. 2

Early Origins of the Baxley family

The surname Baxley was first found in Suffolk where Ralph de Beckele was listed in the Curia Regis Rolls for 1211. Later, Richard de Beckele was found in the Subsidy Rolls for Sussex in 1327 and later again, John Beklay was listed as a Freeman of York in 1446. 3

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 had two listings for the family: Thomas de Beckelegh, Oxfordshire; and Henry de Beckcle, Oxfordshire. 4

Early History of the Baxley family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Baxley research. Another 115 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1291, 1438, 1622, 1661, 1689 and 1753 are included under the topic Early Baxley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Baxley Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, French and other languages became incorporated into English through the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Baxley include Beckley, Beckly, Bistley, Bickley and others.

Early Notables of the Baxley family

Distinguished members of the family include William Beckley (died 1438), an English Carmelite, born in Kent, probably in the neighbourhood of Sandwich, where he appears to have entered the order of the Carmelites in early life. While still young he proceeded to Cambridge, where the Carmelites had a house since the year 1291. Here he seems to have taken his doctor's degree in divinity, and to have established a considerable reputation as a theologian. Bale...
Another 74 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Baxley Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Baxley Ranking

In the United States, the name Baxley is the 4,457^th most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 5

Baxley migration to the United States +

A great wave of immigration to the New World was the result of the enormous political and religious disarray that struck England at that time. Families left for the New World in extremely large numbers. The long journey was the end of many immigrants and many more arrived sick and starving. Still, those who made it were rewarded with an opportunity far greater than they had known at home in England. These emigrant families went on to make significant contributions to these emerging colonies in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants:

Baxley Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Baxley, who landed in Maryland in 1663 6

Baxley Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

William H. Baxley, aged 26, who arrived in America, in 1909
Ella M. Baxley, aged 40, who arrived in America, in 1914
Walter Baxley, aged 24, who arrived in America from New York, in 1917
William Provost Baxley, aged 6, who arrived at Pleasantville, N.Y., in 1919
George Baxley, aged 26, who arrived in America, in 1923

Contemporary Notables of the name Baxley (post 1700) +

Lucy Baxley (1937-2016), American politician, 28th Lieutenant Governor of Alabama (2003-2007), 37th Treasurer of Alabama (1995-2003)
Dennis K. Baxley (b. 1952), American politician, Member of the Florida House of Representatives (2012-)
Paul R. Baxley Jr. (1923-2011), American stunt coordinator and stuntman, stunt double of William Shatner on Star Trek
Craig Redding Baxley (b. 1949), American director, stunt coordinator, stunt performer
Isaac Rieman Baxley (1850-1920), American poet and playwright
Barbara Baxley (1923-1990), American Tony award nominated actress of stage, film and television
William Joseph Baxley II, (b. 1941), American Democratic politician, 24th Lieutenant Governor of Alabama (1983-1987), 41st Attorney General of Alabama, famous for reopening a case against the Ku Klux Klan which resulting in a conviction

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
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)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)