Shadrake History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The ancestry of the name Shadrake dates from the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. It comes from when the family lived in various places named Sheldon including Derbyshire, Devon, Warwickshire and the West Midlands. The first portion of the surname Shadrake is derived from the Old English scylf meaning shelf. The second portion was originally derived from the Old English dun meaning hill. The surname simply referred to the hill with a flat top. 1

Early Origins of the Shadrake family

The surname Shadrake was first found in Worcestershire where "John Sheldon, of Abberton, in the reign of Henry IV" 2 is generally believed to be the progenitor. However, the Warwickshire "ancient house of Sheldon, of Sheldon is a matter of doubt, but not improbable. 2 For it is in Warwickshire that the family rose in prominence when William Sheldon purchased the manor of Beoly from Richard Neville in the reign of Edward IV. 2

The family held this estate as their principal seat until it was destroyed by a fire in the Civil Wars of the 17th century. "[Beoley, Worcestershire] belonged successively to the noble families of Mortimer, Beauchamp, and Holland, of whose ancient castle the mound and moat still remain; and in the reign of Charles I. the manor was the property of Ralph Sheldon, a distinguished royalist, whose mansion was burned by the family themselves, to prevent its falling into the possession of the parliamentarians. Attached to the church is the chapel of 'Our Lady,' formerly a private chapel of the Sheldon family, to whom it has a very handsome monument: underneath the chapel is the vault." 3

Over in the parish of Temple Grafton, another branch of the family was found. Originally held by Knights Templar (hence the prefix "Temple"), the property was purchased by the Sheldon family in the Dissolution of the Monasteries between 1536 and 1541 by Henry VIII. 3

The Selden, Seldin, Seldon and Seldom variants originate in Devon at Seldon in Hatherleigh or at Selden Farm in Patching Sussex. 4 West Tarring, Sussex is where the famous lawyer John Seldon (1584-1654) was born.

Early rolls give a glimpse of the many spelling in use over the years: Roger de Seldon was registered in the Pipe Rolls of Warwickshire in 1196; William de Selkedon in the Subsidy Rolls for Sussex in 1296; and Robert Selden, Selkeden in the Subsidy Rolls for Sussex in 1525. 4

Early History of the Shadrake family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Shadrake research. Another 71 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1584, 1598, 1599, 1610, 1642, 1654, 1660, 1663, 1677 and 1687 are included under the topic Early Shadrake History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Shadrake Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate spelled their names differently as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Shadrake have been found, including Sheldon, Shelden, Seldin, Sheldyn, Sheltan and others.

Early Notables of the Shadrake family

Distinguished members of the family include John Selden (1584-1654), an English jurist and a scholar of England's ancient laws and constitution; Edward Sheldon (1599-1687), an English translator of Catholic works; and Gilbert Sheldon (1598-1677), Bishop of London in 1660, Archbishop of Canterbury in 1663, eponym of the Sheldonian Theatre at Oxford.Richard Sheldon (d. 1642?), was an English divine, probably...
Another 58 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Shadrake Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Shadrake family to Ireland

Some of the Shadrake family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 34 words (2 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Shadrake migration to the United States +

Families began migrating abroad in enormous numbers because of the political and religious discontent in England. Often faced with persecution and starvation in England, the possibilities of the New World attracted many English people. Although the ocean trips took many lives, those who did get to North America were instrumental in building the necessary groundwork for what would become for new powerful nations. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America bore the name Shadrake, or a variant listed above:

Shadrake Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Frederick Shadrake, who landed in New York in 1834 5

The Shadrake 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: Optimum pati
Motto Translation: To suffer is best.

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Shirley, Evelyn Philip, The Noble and Gentle Men of England; The Arms and Descents. Westminster: John Bower Nichols and Sons, 1866, Print.
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
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)