Creswicke History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Creswicke is a name of ancient Anglo-Saxon origin and comes from the family once having lived beside a cress or marsh. The surname Creswicke originally derived from the Old English words cresse and wic which means marsh.

Early Origins of the Creswicke family

The surname Creswicke was first found in Yorkshire, at Creswick, a hamlet in the parish of Ecclesfield, near Sheffield. 1 While there is no doubt of the Anglo-Saxon heritage on the name, one must consider that the name could also have been Norman in origin as "William de Cresek was mentioned in Normandy c. 1200, where estates were granted to him by Henry de Bailliolet. " 2 The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 list Johannes de Cressewik and Johannes de Croswick. However, these may be the same person as one appears on page 40 while the other on page 41. 1

Early History of the Creswicke family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Creswicke research. Another 27 words (2 lines of text) covering the years 1379, 1679 and 1800 are included under the topic Early Creswicke History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Creswicke Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Creswicke family name include Creswick, Cressewik, Creswicke, Cressick and many more.

Early Notables of the Creswicke family

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

Migration of the Creswicke family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Creswicke surname or a spelling variation of the name include: Francis Creswick who sailed to Nevis in 1663. Henry Creswick of Hawthorne House, Melbourne, Australia.

Contemporary Notables of the name Creswicke (post 1700) +

Major General Sir Henry Creswicke Rawlinson (1810-1895), 1st Baronet, British diplomat and Orientalist, President of the Royal Geographical Society from 1874 to 1875, and of the Asiatic Society from 1878 to 1881

Citations +

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