Beachly History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Soon after the Norman Conquest of England in 1066, the name Beachly was recognized on the island as a name for a person who lived near a stream, or a person who lived near a prominent beech tree, or area wooded with beech trees. The two different landmarks were referred to by the same Old English root, beche.

Early Origins of the Beachly family

The surname Beachly was first found in Hertfordshire where Gosfrid le Beche was sometimes known as Geoffrey de Bec, one of the principal holders and tenant-in-chief of land in that shire as recorded by the Domesday Book in the year 1086. He was from Beche in Normandy and accompanied William the Conqueror into England at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Amongst other villages he also owned Aldenham, Cokenach, Eastwick, Hailey, Lilley, Langley and many others in Hertfordshire.

Robert de Beche, c. 1100, witnessed a charter of William Peveril of Dover and Goisfrid de Bech was a tenant in capite, Hertford, 1086. 1

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed Jacob de la Beche, Oxfordshire; Matilda de la Beche, Cambridgeshire; and William de la Beche, Oxfordshire. 2

Early History of the Beachly family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Beachly research. Another 134 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1538 and 1539 are included under the topic Early Beachly History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Beachly Spelling Variations

Norman surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. The frequent changes in surnames are largely due to the fact that the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The introduction of Norman French to England, as well as the official court languages of Latin and French, also had pronounced influences on the spelling of surnames. Since medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings. The name has been spelled Beach, Beche, Beck, Becke, Beache, Bech, Beech and many more.

Early Notables of the Beachly family

Another 46 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Beachly Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Beachly migration to the United States +

Many English families emigrated to North American colonies in order to escape the political chaos in Britain. Unfortunately, many English families made the trip to the New World under extremely harsh conditions. Overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the stormy Atlantic. Despite these hardships, many of the families prospered and went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the United States and Canada. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the name Beachly or a variant listed above:

Beachly Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

George Beachly, who arrived in Virginia in 1650 3

Beachly Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

H Beachly, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1851 3

Citations +

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)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
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)