Crookes History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland
Ireland
England

The Viking settlers of ancient Scotland were the first to use the name Crookes. It was a name for a crooked person. A broad and miscellaneous class of surnames, nickname surnames referred to a characteristic of the first person who used the name. They can describe the bearer's favored style of clothing, appearance, habits, or character. This nickname was originally derived from the Old Norman word crok which meant "hook" or "something crooked." While this origin can be expected, more accurately, the name was for someone "who came from Crook (hill, or bend of a river), the name of several places in England and Scotland." 1

Early Origins of the Crookes family

The surname Crookes was first found in Westmorland at Crook, a chapelry, in the parish, union, and ward of Kendal 2 of at Crook, a hamlet in the parish of Shevington, Lancashire. We find the earliest record of the family at the latter location. Specifically, the Lay Subsidy Rolls of 1332 list William del Crok there at that time. 3

Kirby's Quest lists Kohn de Cruk in Somerset, 1 Edward III (during the first years of King Edward III's reign.) 4

Later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed: Johannes de Crake; Thomas de Crokes; and Johanna de Crekes. 3

Moving further north into Scotland, two of the first entries were Malcolm Crok and Robert Cruk of Fingaldestone, Lanarkshire, who both rendered homage to King Edward I in his conquest of Scotland. A few years later, a benefice was reserved to Adam Croke of the diocese of St. Andrew in 1329 and John Cruke was a tenant in Garvalde under the Douglas in 1376. 5

Early History of the Crookes family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Crookes research. Another 138 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1560, 1562, 1574, 1575, 1576, 1582, 1591, 1617, 1635, 1641, 1649, 1674, 1699 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Crookes History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Crookes Spelling Variations

Intuition and sound were the primary sources medieval scribes used to judge appropriate spellings and translations for names. The spelling of a name thus varied according to who was doing the recording. The different spelling variations of Crookes include Crook, Crooke, Crooks, Cruik, Cruiks, Crok, Cruke, Crukes, Cruikes and many more.

Early Notables of the Crookes family

Notable amongst the Clan from early times was Andrew Crooke (died 1674) and William Cooke (died 1641) who were London publisher partners who published significant texts of English Renaissance drama, most notably of the plays of James Shirley.Thomas Crooke (fl. 1582), was an English divine, matriculated at Trinity College, Cambridge, in May 1560, where he was elected scholar 1562, and afterwards fellow, proceeded B.A. 1562. 6Samuel Crooke (1575-1649), was an...
Another 70 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Crookes Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Crookes family to Ireland

Some of the Crookes family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 60 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Crookes migration to the United States +

In their new home, Scots found land and opportunity, and some even fought for their new freedom in the American War of Independence. Some, who remained loyal to the crown went north to Canada as United Empire Loyalists. In this century, the ancestors of both of these groups have begun recovering their illustrious national heritage through Clan societies and other Scottish historical organizations. Early immigration and passenger lists indicate many people bearing the Crookes name:

Crookes Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Robert Crookes, who arrived in Maryland in 1665 7

Crookes Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

James Crookes, who landed in New York, NY in 1812 7
Samuel Crookes, who landed in America in 1822 7

Crookes migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Crookes Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Jonathan Crookes who was convicted in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Dick" on 2nd October 1820, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
Mr. William Crookes, English convict who was convicted in West Riding, Yorkshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Elphinstone" on 20th January 1836, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 9

Contemporary Notables of the name Crookes (post 1700) +

Sir William Crookes (1832-1919), British scientist

Citations +

Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 8th July 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/Dick
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th March 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/elphinstone