Cooksey History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Cooksey belongs to the early history of Britain, it's origins lie with the Anglo-Saxons. It is a product of their having lived in Cooksey, a village in Worcestershire. 1 The village is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is spelled Cochesei. It is probable that the place name meant "cock's island," or possibly "cock's stream."

Early Origins of the Cooksey family

The surname Cooksey was first found in Worcestershire where one of the first records of name was Sir Walter Cokesey of Cokesey, Worcestershire, who died 1295. He claimed descent from a family that held large estates in Kidderminster, Witley and other places. His son, Walter Cokesey held lands in Witley in 1328. A brass plate at Kidderminster Church notes the burial of Walter Cooksey in 1407. 2

Early History of the Cooksey family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cooksey research. Another 89 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1200, 1400 and 1481 are included under the topic Early Cooksey History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cooksey Spelling Variations

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 Cooksey include Cookesey, Cooksy, Cooksey, Cookesy and others.

Early Notables of the Cooksey family

More information is included under the topic Early Cooksey Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cooksey Ranking

In the United States, the name Cooksey is the 4,534^th most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 3

Cooksey migration to the United States +

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 Cooksey were among these contributors, for they have been located in early North American records:

Cooksey Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Will Cooksey and his wife Sarah and children settled in Virginia in 1623
William Cooksey, who arrived in Jamestown, Va in 1624 4
Philip Cooksey, who landed in Maryland in 1659 4
Daniel Cooksey, who settled in Virginia in 1670

Cooksey Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Richard Cooksey, who landed in Georgia in 1736 4
John Cooksey, who settled in New England in 1767

Cooksey migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Cooksey Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Jane Cooksey, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Armstrong" in 1865

Contemporary Notables of the name Cooksey (post 1700) +

John Charles Cooksey (b. 1941), American ophthalmologist who was a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives
Frank Cloud Cooksey (b. 1933), American lawyer and politician; he worked as an attorney in the Civil Rights division of the U.S. District Attorney, Mayor of Austin, Texas from 1985 to 1988
Catherine Cooksey, American chemist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in the Sensor Science Division of the Physical Measurement Laboratory
Patricia Joen "P.J." Cooksey (b. 1958), American horse racing jockey who has had 2,137 career wins
Donald Cooksey (1892-1977), American physicist, associate director of the Lawrence Radiation Laboratory of the University of California at Berkeley
John Charles Cooksey M.D. (b. 1941), American ophthalmologist and politician, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Louisiana (1997-2003)
Daniel Ray "Danny" Cooksey Jr. (b. 1975), American singer, actor and voice actor
Scott Andrew Cooksey (b. 1972), former English professional footballer who played in 453 matches from 1990 to 2002
Mark Cooksey (b. 1966), English Commodore 64 musician, best known for composing the music for the platform game Ghosts'n Goblins.
Ernest George "Ernie" Cooksey (1980-2008), English footballer
... (Another 2 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Cooksey Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Prodesse quam conspici
Motto Translation: To do good rather than be conspicuous.

Citations +

Hanks, Patricia and Flavia Hodges, A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988. Print. (ISBN 0-19-211592-8)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
"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)