Gleed History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The roots of the Anglo-Saxon name Gleed come 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 Gleed family

The surname Gleed 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 Gleed family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gleed 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 Gleed History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gleed Spelling Variations

The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore,spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Gleed has been recorded under many different variations, including Gledall, Gledhill, Gladhill, Gladhall, Glanville and others.

Early Notables of the Gleed 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 Gleed Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gleed migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Gleed or a variant listed above:

Gleed Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Tho Gleed, who landed in Virginia in 1638 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Gleed (post 1700) +

Philip K. Gleed (1834-1897), Canadian-born, American attorney and politician, President of the Vermont State Senate
Wing Commander Ian Richard Gleed DSO, DFC (1916-1943), nicknamed "Widge," a British Royal Air Force (RAF) pilot and flying ace credited the 13 aerial victories during the Second World War; he was shot down and killed over Tunisia
Jon Gleed (b. 1984), Canadian retired professional ice hockey defenceman from Milton, Ontario
Jason Gleed, Canadian musician, songwriter, and producer, known for Unbanned: The Legend of AJ1 (2018), Star, The Muppets (2011) and Footloose (2011)
Danuta Gleed (1946-1996), Kenya-born, Canadian writer who endowed the Danuta Gleed Literary Award in honour of his late wife in 1997
Frederick Gleed Fleetwood (1868-1938), American Republican politician, Member of Vermont State House of Representatives, 1900; Presidential Elector for Vermont, 1900; Secretary of State of Vermont, 1902-08, 1917-19 4

Historic Events for the Gleed family +

Prince of Wales colliery

Mr. George Gleed (b. 1853), "Cleade", Welsh coal miner who was working at the Prince of Wales Colliery in Abercarn, Wales on the 11th September 1878 when there was a coal mine explosion; he died 5
Mr. Gilbert Gleed (b. 1856), "Cleade", Welsh coal miner who was working at the Prince of Wales Colliery in Abercarn, Wales on the 11th September 1878 when there was a coal mine explosion; he died 5

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, 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)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 13) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Entombed in flood and flame (retrieved 3rd August 2021). Retrieved from https://web.archive.org/web/20120603025705/http://www.crosskeys.me.uk/history/prince.htm