Contents [hide]

Peachy History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Peachy History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Peachy arrived in England after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Peachy family lived in Kent. It is thought that Peachy is of topographical origin, distinguishing a bearer who lived near a peach tree, sold peaches, or was associated with the fruit in some other way. In French it is written peche, and the addition of the letter y on to the end of the name is probably the result of its Anglicization.

The family was "an ancient baronial family, called in charters, De Peccato. They appear as early as the reign of King Stephen, and they were doubtless of Norman extraction. They were of prime importance in Kent, temp. Edward. I." 1

Early Origins of the Peachy family

The surname Peachy was first found in Kent where the name descends from the baronial name Peche, Latinized De Peccato. One of the oldest recordings of the name is found in a stained glass window at Lullingstone in Kent. 1

Willielmus Peccatum was a Domesday under-tennant in Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex. 2 "William Pecatum was an under-tenant in Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex. The name may have been altered to Beach and Beachy. It has also been found as Peach and Peachy." 3

"Richard Peché was Bishop of Coventry 1162-1182, and another of the same name was Archdeacon of Malpas in Cheshire. In the course of time, [the name] lapsed into the form of Peachey or Peach. " 4

"Ralph Peche (perhaps William's son) about 1113 received from Roger, the second son of the Earl of Clare, the manor of Birdbrook in Essex ; one of those granted by Gilbert Lord Peche to Edward I.: and in 1134 Hamo Peche, in right of his wife Alice, one of the four sisters and coheirs of William Peverell, was Lord of Brunne in Cambridgeshire, and held a barony of his own in Suffolk of twelve knights' fees. He was Sheriff of Cambridge from 1164 to Easter 1166: and paid scutage on nineteen fees in 1168. He was followed by two sons, Geoffrey and Gilbert. Gilbert's wife was "a sister of that famous Fitz Walter, who led the Barons' party in the time of King John. On Fitz Walter's banishment, she had to find hostages for her loyalty. One of these hostages was her own daughter Alice." 4

Robert Peccin (Peche) was listed in the Pipe Rolls for Hampshire (1176-1177). 5 Sir John Peche (Pecche) (c. 1285-before 1335 in Honiley, Warwickshire) was Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports from 1323 to 1324.

Early History of the Peachy family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Peachy research. Another 111 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1164, 1671, 1723, 1736, 1737, 1794 and 1808 are included under the topic Early Peachy History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Peachy Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Peachy, Peach, Peache, Peachee, Peachey, Peche and many more.

Early Notables of the Peachy family

Another 31 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Peachy Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Peachy migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Peachy or a variant listed above were:

Peachy Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Samll Peachy, who arrived in Virginia in 1664 6
William Peachy, who settled in Newcastle Del. in 1677
William Peachy, who arrived in West New Jersey in 1677 6

Peachy Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Mary Peachy, who landed in Virginia in 1717 6

Peachy Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Thomas Peachy, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1851 6

Peachy migration to Australia +

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

Peachy Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. William Peachy, English convict who was convicted in Bristol, England for life, transported aboard the "Blenheim" on 11th March 1837, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 7

Peachy 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:

Peachy Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Miss Eleanor Peachy, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Lord Ashley" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 14th October 1858 8
John Peachy, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Portland" in 1864

Contemporary Notables of the name Peachy (post 1700) +

Bathurst Daingerfield Peachy II (1893-1953), American head baseball coach for William & Mary College in 1918
B. M. Peachy, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Virginia, 1912 9
Archibald C. Peachy, American politician, Member of California State Assembly 6th District, 1852-53 9
A. C. Peachy, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Virginia, 1904 9
Peachy L. Hockman, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Virginia, 1948 10

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)
Baring-Gould S., Family Names and their Story. London: Seeley, Service & Co. Limited, 1913. 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
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 15th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/blenheim
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 7) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 9) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html