Parley History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Parley is one of the names that was brought to England in the wave of migration following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Parley family lived in Pavilly, in Seine Maritime, Normandy.

"A monastery was founded here by Amalbert, Lord of Pavilly 664, which was restored by Thomas de Pavilly, c. 1090 (Neustria Pia, 328). Reginald de Pavilly died in the first Crusade at Acre (Des Bois). Ralph de Pavilly witnessed a charter of William Earl of Surrey, temp. Henry I." 1

"The Pavelys," says Banks, were a very numerous family, and greatly divided, which renders a connected account most difficult to give with any accuracy to be depended upon." Contemporary with the above-named Ralph, according to Sir Richard Hoare, was Reginald de Paveley, Lord of Westbury in Wiltshire, where his descendants." 2

Early Origins of the Parley family

The surname Parley was first found in Dorset where they held a family seat at Charlton Marshall, when Reginald de Pavelli was granted the King's lands by King Henry II. Later King John granted Pillington of Norfolk to the Lords of Pavelli, Roger and Thomas. The son, however, Thomas Pavelli or Thomas Pawley still adhered to the King of France in 1204. 3

"There was a flourishing branch seated at Bickenhall in the county of Somerset; and another in Hampshire ; but this latter, according to Woodward, was founded by Walter de Pavilly, Mayor of Rouen, who was one of those who were banished from Normandy on account of their adherence to King johns He settled at Winchester, whence the name came into the county. Reginald de Paveley in 1264 was one of the Hampshire barons summoned to serve against Llewellyn. Robert de Paviliaco held Rodington in Nottinghamshire in the time of Henry I., and founded a family that was seated there till the end of Edward III.'s reign." 2

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 had two early entries for the family with the Pauly spelling: Geoffrey Pauly, Cambridgeshire; and William Pauly in Cambridgeshire. 4 5

Early History of the Parley family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Parley research. Another 132 words (9 lines of text) covering the year 1635 is included under the topic Early Parley History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Parley Spelling Variations

Before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Sound was what guided spelling in the Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Parley family name include Pawley, Pauley, Paulye, Paulley and others.

Early Notables of the Parley family

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

Parley migration to the United States +

To escape the political and religious chaos of this era, thousands of English families began to migrate to the New World in search of land and freedom from religious and political persecution. The passage was expensive and the ships were dark, crowded, and unsafe; however, those who made the voyage safely were encountered opportunities that were not available to them in their homeland. Many of the families that reached the New World at this time went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of the United States and Canada. Research into various historical records has revealed some of first members of the Parley family to immigrate North America:

Parley Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Cath Parley, aged 24, who landed in New York in 1854 6

Contemporary Notables of the name Parley (post 1700) +

Parley Parker Christensen (b. 1869), American politician, Member of Utah State House of Representatives, 1910-12;Progressive Candidate for U.S. Senator from Illinois, 1926
Parley Sheldon, American Democratic Party politician, Mayor of Ames, Iowa, 1884-86, 1890-94, 1902-08, 1910-16; Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Iowa, 1912 (member, Committee on Rules and Order of Business), 1916 (alternate), 1924 7
Parley B. Leonard (b. 1861), American Republican politician, First selectman of Vernon, Connecticut, 1899-1910; Member of Connecticut State Senate 35th District, 1911-12 8
Parley Hubbard, American politician, Member of Connecticut State House of Representatives from Salisbury, 1823-24 9

Citations +

The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Cleveland, Dutchess of The Battle Abbey Roll with some Account of the Norman Lineages. London: John Murray, Abermarle Street, 1889. Print. Volume 3 of 3
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. 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)
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)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, April 22) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, February 9) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 6) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html