The ancient roots of the Clewes family name are in the Anglo-Saxon culture. The name Clewes comes from when the family lived in Cheshire in an area that was described by the Old English word as cloh, which means that the bearers of this surname lived near a ravine or hollow. It also could be described as the place that was set back from the town or village.
The surname Clewes was first found in Yorkshire where the first record of the family was Willelmus de Clowe who was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379. [1]
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Clewes research. Another 122 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1649, 1645, 1595, 1725, 1450, 1543, 1604, 1582, 1648, 1605 and 1616 are included under the topic Early Clewes History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
One relatively recent invention that did much to standardize English spelling was the printing press. However, before its invention even the most literate people recorded their names according to sound rather than spelling. The spelling variations under which the name Clewes has appeared include Clowes, Clowe, Clows and others.
Distinguished members of the family include William Clowes the Elder (c.1543-1604), an early English surgeon and author. He was the "son of Thomas and grandson of Nicholas Clowes, both of Kingsbury in Warwickshire, and great-grandson of Geffrey Clowes of Tutbury in Staffordshire, all of them gentlemen bearing tokens and arms of honour, helm, mantle, and...
Another 54 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Clewes Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.