The Melstead name is a habitational name derived from Milstead in Kent.

The surname Melstead was first found in Kent at Milstead, a village in the borough of Swale which dates back to the late 11th century when it was listed as Milstede. The place name probably means "middle place" from the Old English middel + stede. ^[1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4) However, the first reference of the surname was in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 where Richard de Minsted was listed in Buckinghamshire. Apparently the "n" and the "l" were often interchanged. ^[2]CITATION[CLOSE]
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6) In this case, the name could have originated at Minstead is a small village and civil parish in the New Forest, Hampshire. This village dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 ^[3]CITATION[CLOSE]
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8) where it was listed as Mintestede and literally meant "place where mint grows or is grown," from the Old English word minte + stede. ^[1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)

Early History of the Melstead family

Melstead Spelling Variations

Early Notables of the Melstead family (pre 1700)

Migration of the Melstead family to the New World and Oceana