Loxley History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The ancient history of the Loxley name begins with the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from when the family resided in the region of Loxley in Staffordshire. 1 Loxley is a topographic surname, which was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree. Habitation names form the other broad category of surnames that were derived from place-names. They were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads.

Early Origins of the Loxley family

The surname Loxley was first found in Staffordshire at Loxley, a liberty, in the parish and union of Uttoxeter, S. division of the hundred of Totmonslow. Alternatively the family could have originated in the parish of Loxley in Warwickshire. The latter was listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Locheslei 2 and literally meant "woodland clearing of a man called "Locc," from the Old English personal name + "leah." 3 Interestingly, "Charles I. slept at the old mansion-house of Loxley the night before the battle of Edge-Hill, and many of those who were slain in the engagement were buried in the churchyard here." 4

Richard de Lokesley, taillour, temp. 14 Edward III was listed in the Freemen of York and the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 list Thomas de Lokeslay. 5

John de Lokkesleye was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1275 and a few years later, John de Loxelegh was listed in the Feet of Fines for Surrey (1315-1316.) 6

Early History of the Loxley family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Loxley research. Another 91 words (6 lines of text) covering the year 1180 is included under the topic Early Loxley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Loxley Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Loxley include Loxley, Lockley, Locksley and others.

Early Notables of the Loxley family

Notables of the family at this time include

Loxley of Stafford

Loxley migration to Australia +

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

Loxley Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Robert Loxley who was convicted in Newcastle-on-Tyne, Northumberland, England for 15 years, transported aboard the "Clara" on 19th March 1857, arriving in Western Australia, Australia 7

Loxley migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Loxley Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Smart Loxley, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1842
William Smart Loxley, aged 25, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Nelson" in 1842
Mr. W.S. Loxley, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Nelson" arriving in Wellington, North Island, New Zealand on 24th September 1842 8
William Loxley, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Edwin Fox" in 1875

Contemporary Notables of the name Loxley (post 1700) +

Herbert "Bert" Loxley (1934-2008), English footballer and manager
Mrs. Maureen Loxley M.B.E., British Price Integrity Operator for Tesco plc and Trade Union Representative for Usdaw, was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire on 29th December 2018 for services to the Retail Sector and to Trade Unions 9
Alicia Loxley (b. 1981), née Gorey, an Australian journalist and news presenter

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
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.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Convict Records of Australia. Retrieved 11th February 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/clara
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
"Birthday and New Year Honours Lists (1940 to 2019)." Issue 62507, 28 December 2018 | London Gazette, The Gazette, Dec. 2018, www.thegazette.co.uk/honours-lists