Show ContentsGravel History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Gravel family

The surname Gravel was first found in Normandy (French: Normandie), the former Duchy of Normandy, where they held a family seat at Graval near Portmort at Seine-Inférieure in the arrondissement of Neufchâtel in the region of Flamets-Frétils. They later branched to Fourneau in Normandy, and became one of the eminent aristocratic families of that dukedom.

Early History of the Gravel family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gravel research. Another 93 words (7 lines of text) covering the year 1066 is included under the topic Early Gravel History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gravel Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Graval, Gravalle, Gravel, Gravell, Gravelle, Graville, Gravile, Gravil and many more.

Early Notables of the Gravel family

Notable amongst the family in this period was

  • Gravelle of Normandy

Gravel World Ranking

In the United States, the name Gravel is the 10,904th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1 However, in Canada, the name Gravel is ranked the 281st most popular surname with an estimated 15,310 people with that name. 2 And in Quebec, Canada, the name Gravel is the 83rd popular surname. 3


United States Gravel migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Gravel Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • John Gravel, who arrived in Charleston, South Carolina in 1828 4
  • Franz W Gravel, aged 37, who landed in Baltimore, Maryland in 1839 4

Canada Gravel migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Gravel Settlers in Canada in the 17th Century
  • Joseph-Massé Gravel who arrived in Quebec from Brittany in 1641
  • Massé-Joseph Gravel, son of Joseph and Marguerite, who married Marguerite Tavernier, daughter of Éloi and Margeurite, in Notre-Dame-des-Anges, Quebec on 1st May 1644 5
  • Pierre Gravel, son of Massé-Joseph and Marguerite, who married Madeleine Cloutier, daughter of Zacharie and Madeleine-Barbe, in Château-Richer, Quebec on 4th February 1676 5
  • Jean Gravel, son of Massé-Joseph and Marguerite, who married Marie Cloutier, daughter of Zacharie and Madeleine-Barbe, in Château-Richer, Quebec on 26th April 1684 5
  • Claude Gravel, son of Massé-Joseph and Marguerite, who married Jeanne Cloutier, daughter of Charles and Louise, in Château-Richer, Quebec on 4th February 1687 5
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Gravel Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • Augustin Gravel, son of Pierre and Madeleine, who married Élisabeth Caron, daughter of Pierre and Marie, in Cap-Saint-Ignace, Quebec on 7th January 1702 5
  • Joseph Gravel, son of Joseph and Marie, who married Barbe Gagnon, daughter of Noel and Geneviève, in Château-Richer, Quebec on 4th November 1715 5
  • Athanase Gravel, son of Charles and Françoise, who married Marie-Anne Doyon, daughter of Antoine and Françoise, in Château-Richer, Quebec on 15th November 1717 5
  • Pierre-Paul Gravel, son of Claud and Jeanne, who married Marguerite Prieur, daughter of Joseph and Hélène, in Château-Richer, Quebec on 18th January 1721 5
  • Charles Gravel, son of Charles and Françoise, who married Thérèse Michel, daughter of Olivier and Madeleine, in Château-Richer, Quebec on 22nd September 1723 5
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Gravel (post 1700) +

  • Maurice Robert "Mike" Gravel (1930-2021), American former politician, United States Senator from Alaska (1969-1981), 3rd Speaker of the Alaska House of Representatives (1965-1967)
  • Camille Francis Gravel Jr. (1915-2005), American lawyer and politician from Louisiana, adviser to Governors Earl Kemp Long, John McKeithen, and Edwin Washington Edwards
  • Leonard J. Gravel, American politician, Candidate for Presidential Elector for Vermont, 1948 6
  • Michel Gravel (1936-2021), Canadian photographer, one of the leading photojournalists in Quebec
  • Louis-Pierre Gravel (1868-1926), French Canadian missionary and who founded the town of Gravelbourg, Saskatchewan
  • Evens Gravel (b. 1970), French Canadian fencer at the 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympics
  • Elphège Gravel (1838-1904), French Canadian Roman Catholic priest, 1st Bishop of Nicolet, Québec (1885-1904)
  • Michel Gravel (b. 1939), French Canadian former politician, Member of the Canadian Parliament for Gamelin (1984-1988)
  • John Gravel (b. 1941), Canadian former WHA ice hockey defenceman
  • Raymond Gravel (1952-2014), French Canadian Catholic priest and politician, Member of the Canadian Parliament for Repentigny (2006-2008)
  • ... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. "Surnames Meanings, Origins & Distribution Maps - Forebears." Forebears, https://forebears.io/surnames
  3. "The first 1,000 family names by rank, Quebec (in French only)" Institut de la statistique du Quebec, https://statistique.quebec.ca/en/document/family-names-in-quebec/tableau/the-first-1000-family-names-by-rank-quebec
  4. 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)
  5. Internoscia, Arthur E., and Claire Chevrier. Dictionnaire National des Canadiens Français 1608-1760. Vol. 1, Institut Drouin, 1958.
  6. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 1) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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