Show ContentsGalmady History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Galmady family

The surname Galmady was first found in Devon where "Langdon was for several generations till recently the seat of the Calmadys. "1

By the 13th century, the family held the estates of Wembury in Devon. "The church [of Membury] contains a monument to the memory of Sir S. Calmady, who was mortally wounded at the siege of Ford House, during the great civil war." 2

Early History of the Galmady family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Galmady research. Another 141 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1080, 1142, 1149, 1162, 1163, 1455, 1487, 1510, 1600, 1619, 1635, 1642, 1645, 1660, 1666, 1671, 1683, 1685, 1686, 1697, 1732 and 1755 are included under the topic Early Galmady History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Galmady Spelling Variations

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 Galmady has appeared include Calmady, Kalmady, Galmady, Callmady, Calmadie, Calmadee, Calmadey, Callamadee and many more.

Early Notables of the Galmady family

Distinguished members of the family include Sir Shilston Calmady (died 1645), English soldier in the English Civil War, killed in action; and his son, Josias Calmady (1619-1683), an English politician who sat in the House of Commons, Member of Parliament for Okehampton (1660.) Edmund Calamy the Elder (1600-1666), one of the authors of ‘Smectymnuus,’ was born in February 1600, the only son of a tradesman in Walbrook. His father came from Guernsey, and the family tradition is that he was an exiled Huguenot from the coast...
Another 85 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Galmady Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Galmady family

At this time, the shores of the New World beckoned many English families that felt that the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. Thousands left England at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. A great portion of these settlers never survived the journey and even a greater number arrived sick, starving, and without a penny. The survivors, however, were often greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. These English settlers made significant contributions to those colonies that would eventually become the United States and Canada. An examination of early immigration records and passenger ship lists revealed that people bearing the name Galmady arrived in North America very early: the name represented in many forms and recorded from the mid 17th century in the great migration from Europe. Migrants settled in the eastern seaboard from Newfoundland, to Maine, to Virginia, the Carolinas, and to the islands..



The Galmady 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: Simili frondescit virga metallo
Motto Translation: The twig has leaves of similar metal.


  1. Worth, R.N., A History of Devonshire London: Elliot Stock, 62, Paternoster Row, E.G., 1895. Digital
  2. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.


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