It was among those Anglo-Saxon tribes that once ruled over Britain that the name Goodvine was formed. The name was derived from the baptismal name for the son of Godwin.
The surname Goodvine was first found in Yorkshire where they held a family seat from very early times. Godwin or Godwine (d. 1053) was the Earl of Wessex, chief adviser to King Canute, who held great wealth and lands in those times. His son Harold Godwinson (circa 1022-1066) was Harold II of England, the last Anglo-Saxon King of England, killed on October 14 1066 at the Battle of Hastings. Godwin, or Godwine was also the name of an 11th century Bishop of Lichfield, who died in 1020. [1]
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Goodvine research. Another 165 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1219, 1296, 1177, 1273, 1327, 1500, 1517, 1590, 1517, 1562, 1633, 1594, 1665, 1603, 1674, 1641, 1660, 1695, 1677, 1654, 1655, 1659, 1600, 1680, 1605, 1662, 1605, 1719, 1670, 1730, 1670, 1695, 1597 and are included under the topic Early Goodvine History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Until the dictionary, an invention of only the last few hundred years, the English language lacked any comprehensive system of spelling rules. Consequently, spelling variations in names are frequently found in early Anglo-Saxon and later Anglo-Norman documents. One person's name was often spelled several different ways over a lifetime. The recorded variations of Goodvine include Godwin, Goodwin, Goodin, Gooding, Goodings, Goodwyn, Godwyn, Godwine, Goodwine, Goddwin, Goddwyn, Goddywne and many more.
Distinguished members of the family include Thomas Godwin (1517-1590), Bishop of Bath and Wells, born in 1517 at Oakingham, Berkshire, of poor parents; Francis Godwin (1562-1633), English divine, Bishop of Llandaff and of Hereford; John Goodwin (1594-1665), an English preacher, theologian and prolific author; John Goodwin (1603-1674), an English lawyer and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1641 and 1660, supporter of the Parliamentary cause in the English Civil War; Peter Gooden (died 1695), an English Roman Catholic priest; Thomas Godwin (died 1677), a Virginia politician and landowner, served in the House of Burgesses 1654-1655...
Another 98 words (7 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Goodvine Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Some of the Goodvine family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 84 words (6 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 boarded ships sailing to the New World in the hope of escaping the unrest found in England at this time. Although the search for opportunity and freedom from persecution abroad took the lives of many because of the cramped conditions and unsanitary nature of the vessels, the opportunity perceived in the growing colonies of North America beckoned. Many of the settlers who survived the journey went on to make important contributions to the transplanted cultures of their adopted countries. The Goodvine were among these contributors, for they have been located in early North American records: Reinould Godwin, who arrived in Virginia in 1620; Mrs. Goodwin settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1632; Daniel Godwin, who came to Virginia in 1635; Deveraux Godwin, who arrived in Maryland in 1638.