Contents [hide]

McCandless History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Canada New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Motto Citations

McCandless History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland
Ireland
England

Early Origins of the McCandless family

The surname McCandless was first found in Galloway (Gaelic: Gall-ghaidhealaibh), an area of southwestern Scotland, now part of the Council Area of Dumfries and Galloway, that formerly consisted of the counties of Wigtown (West Galloway) and Kirkcudbright (East Galloway), where they held a family seat in Western Scotland. After the Norman Conquest of England many of Duke William's rebellious Barons moved north. The border became a convenient but turbulent no-man's land where the persecuted found haven. Many were given land by King Malcolm Canmore and later by King David of Scotland. Some Gallowegians were native Scots, some were Irish clans mostly from Ulster in the 13th century. The name was first recorded in Scotland about the 15th century in Wigtown. They may also have been McCanish sept of Atholl to the north.

"Eight of this name appear in Wigtownshire in eighteenth century (Wigtown). William M'Candlish in Balmangan, 1794 (Kirkcudbright). In 1684 the name appears as Makkanless, McCandlish McAndlish M'Canleis, and M'Caunles (Parish). The spelling with Mac is probably now extinct. From Irish MacCuindlis or MacCuindilis, son of Cuindleas." 1

Early History of the McCandless family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our McCandless research. Another 122 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1684, 1794, 1806, 1873 and 1890 are included under the topic Early McCandless History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McCandless Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: McCandlish, McAndliss, McCandless, McChandliss, McChandlish, McChandless, McCandliss, McCaunless, McCaunles, McKanless, McCanless, Candlish and many more.

Early Notables of the McCandless family

More information is included under the topic Early McCandless Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McCandless Ranking

In the United States, the name McCandless is the 6,069^th most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 2

Migration of the McCandless family to Ireland

Some of the McCandless family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 51 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McCandless migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

McCandless Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

George McCandless, who arrived in America in 1795 3

McCandless Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Robert McCandless, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1803 3
William McCandless, who arrived in South Carolina in 1825 3
John McCandless, aged 17, who arrived in Baltimore, Maryland in 1832 3
James McCandless, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1837 3

McCandless migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

McCandless Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Miss. Catherine McCandless, aged 2 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Sisters" departing 22nd April 1847 from Liverpool, England; the ship arrived on 20th June 1847 but she died on board 4
Mrs. Mary McCandless, aged 26 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Sisters" departing 22nd April 1847 from Liverpool, England; the ship arrived on 20th June 1847 but she died on board 4
Mr. Thomas McCandless, aged 3 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Sisters" departing 22nd April 1847 from Liverpool, England; the ship arrived on 20th June 1847 but he died on board 4

McCandless 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:

McCandless Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

John McCandless, aged 20, a gardener, who arrived in Bluff, New Zealand aboard the ship "Adamant" in 1875 5

Contemporary Notables of the name McCandless (post 1700) +

Commodore Byron McCandless (1881-1967), longtime U.S. Navy officer who was awarded the Navy Cross
Bruce McCandless II (b. 1937), American naval officer and aviator, electrical engineer, and NASA astronaut with over 312 hours in space; he made the first untethered free flight by using the Manned Maneuvering Unit 6
Alfred A. "Al" McCandless (1927-2017), American politician, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California (1993-1995)
Wilson McCandless (1810-1882), United States federal judge
William McCandless (1834-1884), officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War
Lincoln Loy "Link" McCandless (1859-1940), American cattle rancher, industrialist and politician from Hawaii
Stanley McCandless (1897-1967), American considered to be the father of modern lighting design
Paul McCandless Jr. (b. 1947), American jazz woodwind player and composer
Bruce McCandless (1911-1968), American officer of United States Navy who received the Medal of Honor
Sam McCandless (b. 1978), American musician, producer and artist
... (Another 2 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The McCandless Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Sola nobilitas virtus
Motto Translation: Virtue is the only nobility.

Citations +

Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 86)
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
NASA Astronauts Homepage. (Retrieved 2010, September 27) Bruce McCandless. Retrieved from http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/mccandless-b.html