Show ContentsGrills History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Grills family

The surname Grills was first found in Cornwall where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor of Lanreth.

"The only gentleman's seat in the parish [of St. Anthony in Kirrier, Cornwall] is Bosahan, an elegant modern built mansion, erected by the late Thomas Grylls, Esq. of Helston. Its situation is eligible and commanding, and it furnishes a pleasing view of the most diversified scenery." [1]

"The manor of Polkinhorne [in the parish of Gwinear] belonged at a very early period to an ancient family of that name, with whom it continued until the reign of Charles II. ; when the heiress of this family married Thomas Glynn, Esq; of Helston. In the year 1757, Cordelia, sister and sole heiress of Thomas Glynn, Esq., grandson of the preceding, brought this manor in marriage to Richard Gerveys Grylls, Esq. of Helston, from whom it descended to his son the Rev. Richard Grylls, and Humphrey Millet Grylls, Esq. the present proprietors." [1]

Early History of the Grills family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Grills research. Another 256 words (18 lines of text) covering the years 1611, 1644, 1720 and 1722 are included under the topic Early Grills History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Grills Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Griles, Grills, Gryles, Grylles, Grill, Gril and many more.

Early Notables of the Grills family

Notable amongst the family at this time was

  • Sir John Grills knighted in 1644, Sheriff of Cornwall. "The [manor of Faweton, Conrwall] now belongs to the Rev. Richard Gerveys Grylls of Helston


United States Grills migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Grills Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Philip Grills, who landed in Maryland in 1673 [2]
Grills Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Frank Grills, who arrived in Alabama in 1928 [2]

Australia Grills migration to Australia +

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

Grills Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Miss Mary Grills, (b. 1832), aged 24, Cornish dairymaid departing from Soton on 31st January 1856 aboard the ship "Earl Grey" arriving in Geelong, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia on 7th June 1856 [3]

Contemporary Notables of the name Grills (post 1700) +

  • Gano Grills, American actor
  • Wesley L. Grills, American Republican politician, Candidate in primary for Ohio State Attorney General, 1924, 1926 [4]
  • Dave Grills (b. 1959), Australian politician, Member of the Western Australian Legislative Council for Mining and Pastoral Region (2013-)
  • Lee Elgy Grills (1904-1982), Canadian politician, Member of Parliament for Hastings South (1957-1963), Member of Parliament for Hastings (1968-1972)
  • Leo "Lucky" Grills OAM (1928-2007), Australian actor and comedian
  • Julian Fletcher Grills (b. 1940), former member of the Australian Labor Party
  • Roman Grills (b. 1966), German former footballer

HMS Repulse
  • Mr. Gordon Frederick Johnson Grills (1925-1942), British Boy Seaman, who sailed into battle on the HMS Repulse and survived the sinking, was listed as missing presumed killed in the evacuation of Singapore in 1942 [5]


  1. Hutchins, Fortescue, The History of Cornwall, from the Earliest Records and Traditions to the Present Time. London: William Penaluna, 1824. Print
  2. 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)
  3. Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 3rd May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_australia_victoria.pdf
  4. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, June 10) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
  5. HMS Repulse Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listrepulsecrew.html


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