Keope History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Keope is an Anglo-Saxon name. The name was originally given to a person employed at a castle or a keep. 1 Some experts theorize that the name Keope may have been applied as an occupational surname to a jailer. 2

Early Origins of the Keope family

The surname Keope was first found in Sussex where the first record of the Keope family was Thomas ate Kepe who was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of 1327. A few years later, Robert de Kepe was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Cumberland (Cumbria) in 1332. 2

In Somerset, early rolls there revealed Roger Kep and Richard atte Kippe, 1 Edward III (during the first year of the reign of King Edward III.) 3

"On his accession in 1272 the new King appointed Sir Adam Keeper of Woolner Forest, and we subsequently find him a great landowner in Somerset, Dorset, Sussex and Cambridge. His residence was in Hampshire, at a house called The Temple, that overlooked the forest. He was married three times. " 4

Early History of the Keope family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Keope research. Another 114 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1617, 1643, 1652, 1661, 1668, 1688 and 1743 are included under the topic Early Keope History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Keope Spelling Variations

One relatively recent invention that did much to standardize English spelling was the printing press. However, before its invention even the most literate people recorded their names according to sound rather than spelling. The spelling variations under which the name Keope has appeared include Keep, Keepe and others.

Early Notables of the Keope family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Henry Keepe (1652-1688), English antiquary, born in Feuter (now Fetter) Lane, in the parish of St. Dunstan-in-the-West, London, in 1652, was the son of Charles Keepe, who served as a cornet in Sir W. Courtney's regiment of cavalry during the whole of the civil wars, and was afterwards employed in the exchequer office. Henry entered New Inn, Oxford, as a...
Another 68 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Keope Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Keope family

At this time, the shores of the New World beckoned many English families that felt that the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. Thousands left England at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. A great portion of these settlers never survived the journey and even a greater number arrived sick, starving, and without a penny. The survivors, however, were often greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. These English settlers made significant contributions to those colonies that would eventually become the United States and Canada. An examination of early immigration records and passenger ship lists revealed that people bearing the name Keope arrived in North America very early: James Keep settled in Virginia in 1774; B. and G. Keep arrived in San Francisco in 1852; John Keep arrived in Philadelphia in 1753.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.
Cleveland, Dutchess of The Battle Abbey Roll with some Account of the Norman Lineages. London: John Murray, Abermarle Street, 1889. Print. Volume 2 of 3