The name Crosse is part of the ancient legacy of the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. It is a product of when the family lived as dwellers at a cross or crucifix. The surname Crosse originally derived from the Old English word crosse, which means cross. [1] [2] [3]
The surname Crosse was first found in Lincolnshire. The name was first found to be in the southern English counties of Lincolnshire, Buckingham, and Oxfordshire, about the year 1250. By the year 1340 the most important branch of the name had moved northward to Lancashire, and established manors and estates at Crosse Hall, just outside Liverpool. This branch also moved into the Cross of Ledsham to the south in the county of Cheshire.
The Yorkshire Poll Tax of 1379 included: Johannes del Crosse; Johanna del Crosse; and Andreas de la Croys while the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 still had a few Latin entries for the family: Jordan ad Crucem, Buckinghamshire; Humfrey de Cruce, Oxfordshire; and Conan ad Crucem, Lincolnshire. [3]
The name is "rare or absent in the northern counties, and in the south coast counties. Mostly confined to the east centre of England and to the adjacent coast counties between the Wash and the Thames." [4]
In Norfolk, Thomas atte-cross, was Rector of Bexwell, Norfolk (no date given) [5]
In Lancashire, Richard del Crosse was found there in the Assize Rolls of 1285 and later William atte Cros was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Suffolk in 1327. [6]
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Crosse research. Another 74 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1718, 1630, 1689, 1646, 1672, 1674, 1686, 1630, 1660, 1633, 1616, 1698, 1641, 1662, 1671, 1680, 1689, 1691, 1632, 1682, 1655, 1606, 1683, 1621, 1627, 1664, 1738, 1700, 1762 and are included under the topic Early Crosse History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
The first dictionaries that appeared in the last few hundred years did much to standardize the English language. Before that time, spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. The language was changing, incorporating pieces of other languages, and the spelling of names changed with it. Crosse has been spelled many different ways, including Cross, Crosse, Croce, Crosce, Croise, Croice and others.
Notables of this surname at this time include: John Cross (1630-1689), Franciscan friar, a native of Norfolk, and his real name appears to have been More. He took the habit of St. Francis in or about 1646, and was declared D.D. on 12 Oct. 1672. On 10 May 1674 he was elected provincial of his order in England for three years, and being re-elected on 25 April 1686. [7]
Michael Cross (fl. 1630-1660), the painter, obtained great renown as a copyist in the reign of Charles I. He is doubtless identical with Miguel de la Cruz, a painter at Madrid, who in...
Another 331 words (24 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Crosse Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Some of the Crosse family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 57 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Thousands of English families in this era began to emigrate the New World in search of land and freedom from religious and political persecution. Although the passage was expensive and the ships were dark, crowded, and unsafe, those who made the voyage safely were rewarded with opportunities unavailable to them in their homeland. Research into passenger and immigration lists has revealed some of the very first Crosses to arrive in North America: