Show ContentsGleadall History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Anglo-Saxon name Gleadall comes from when the family resided in the region of Gledhill in the West Riding of Yorkshire. The name is a habitational name from the Old English gleoda which means "kite" and hyll which means "hill." 1

Early Origins of the Gleadall family

The surname Gleadall was first found in Yorkshire near Halifax where they held a family seat as Lords of the manor of Gledhill from very ancient times.

Barkisland in the West Riding of Yorkshire was home to another branch of the family but has since been lost. "Barkisland Hall, the ancient seat of the Gledhill family, is a stately mansion in the old English style of domestic architecture, and has long been the property of the Bolds of Bold Hall, Lancashire. The grammar school here, an ancient structure, was endowed in 1657 with £200 by Mrs. Sarah Gledhill" 2

Early History of the Gleadall family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gleadall research. Another 127 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1300, 1600, 1638, 1677, 1702, 1707, 1719, 1730 and 1735 are included under the topic Early Gleadall History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gleadall Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, French and other languages became incorporated into English through the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Gleadall include Gledall, Gledhill, Gladhill, Gladhall, Glanville and others.

Early Notables of the Gleadall family

Distinguished members of the family include Samuel Gledhill (1677-1735), lieutenant-governor of Placentia, Newfoundland from 1719-c.1730. Born at Horbury, near Wakefieid, Yorkshire, he was the youngest of the 13 children of Robert Gledhill, a cloth-dresser and educated at Wakefield Grammar School. He joined the navy but was kidnapped in Spain to be sold as a slave in the West Indies. After gaining his freedom he made his way to Spain and was commissioned a...
Another 73 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Gleadall Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Gleadall migration to the United States +

A great wave of immigration to the New World was the result of the enormous political and religious disarray that struck England at that time. Families left for the New World in extremely large numbers. The long journey was the end of many immigrants and many more arrived sick and starving. Still, those who made it were rewarded with an opportunity far greater than they had known at home in England. These emigrant families went on to make significant contributions to these emerging colonies in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants:

Gleadall Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Benjamin Gleadall, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1830 3

Gleadall migration to Australia +

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

Gleadall Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Stephen Gleadall, aged 26, who arrived in South Australia in 1854 aboard the ship "William Hammond" 4

Contemporary Notables of the name Gleadall (post 1700) +

  • Edward "Eddie"' Gleadall (d. 1993), English former professional football winger


  1. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  2. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  3. 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)
  4. South Australian Register Wednesday 20th January 1854. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) Willaim Hammond 1854. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/williamhammond1854.shtml


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