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Steed History Etymology Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Steed History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Etymology of Steed

What does the name Steed mean?

The earliest origins of the family name Steed date back to the Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. It was a name given to a man of mettle, or someone noted for his high spirits. In this case, this surname is derived from the Old English word steda, which means stud-horse or stallion.

Early Origins of the Steed family

The surname Steed was first found in Yorkshire. "This surname is derived from a geographical locality, 'at the stead,' a place, a station, a settlement; compare homestead, market-stead (= market-place). A great Yorkshire surname. The Market-place, Manchester, was the Market-stead till the close of the last century. The Market-stead, Ulverston, is commonly so set down in the parish registers till 1790. " 1

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 has only one listing of the family: John Stede, Suffolk; while the Yorkshire Polls Tax Rolls of 1379 include: Robertas del Stede; Ricardus del Stede; Petrus del Stede; and Laurence del Stede underlining the importance of the Yorkshire heritage versus any other.

Early History of the Steed family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Steed research. Another 125 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1376, 1417, 1581, 1588, 1619, 1701, 1735 and 1796 are included under the topic Early Steed History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Steed Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, French and other languages became incorporated into English through the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Steed include Stead, Steed and others.

Early Notables of the Steed family

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

Steed Ranking

In the United States, the name Steed is the 3,014^th most popular surname with an estimated 9,948 people with that name. 2

Steed migration to the United States +

A great wave of immigration to the New World was the result of the enormous political and religious disarray that struck England at that time. Families left for the New World in extremely large numbers. The long journey was the end of many immigrants and many more arrived sick and starving. Still, those who made it were rewarded with an opportunity far greater than they had known at home in England. These emigrant families went on to make significant contributions to these emerging colonies in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants:

Steed Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Tho Steed, who landed in Virginia in 1649 3
John Steed, who settled in Virginia in 1650
David Steed, who landed in Virginia in 1658 3
Rich Steed, who arrived in Virginia in 1663 3
John Steed, who landed in Maryland in 1665 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Steed Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Edward Steed, who settled in Maryland in 1774

Steed Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

William Steed, aged 30, who landed in Missouri in 1841 3
Thomas Steed, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1873 3

Steed migration to Australia +

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

Steed Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. William Steed, (b. 1813), aged 38, English agricultural labourer who was convicted in Ipswich, Suffolk, England for 7 years for larceny, transported aboard the "Cornwall" on 28th February 1851, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 4
William Steed, aged 25, a carpenter, who arrived in South Australia in 1854 aboard the ship "Hyderabad" 5

Steed migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 6

Steed Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Edwine Steed, his wife Calia, and son Edwyn, all settled in Barbados in 1679

Contemporary Notables of the name Steed (post 1700) +

Thomas Webster Steed (1904-1973), U.S. military officer in the United States Army Air Corps, Army Air Forces, and Air Force, recipient of the Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross (2), Army Commendation Medal (3) and Air Medal (7)
Ryan Justin Steed (b. 1990), American NFL football cornerback for the New Orleans Saints
Tim Steed (b. 1957), American comedian, author, screenwriter, songwriter, and keynote speaker
Joel Steed (b. 1969), former American football nose tackle
Thomas Jefferson "Tom" Steed (1904-1983), American military veteran, newspaper editor and Democratic politician
R. Dennis Steed, American politician, Member of West Virginia State Senate 5th District, 1913-16
Michael Steed, American Democratic Party politician, Member of Democratic National Committee from Maryland, 2004-08; Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Maryland, 2004, 2008 (member, Credentials Committee)
Mary C. Steed, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Idaho, 2008
George H. Steed, American politician, Mayor of Pine Bluff, Arkansas, 1952-53
Frank Steed, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Texas, 2012
... (Another 14 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Steed family +

HMAS Sydney II

Mr. Philip William Steed (1922-1941), Australian Ordinary Seaman from Mortdale, New South Wales, Australia, who sailed into battle aboard HMAS Sydney II and died in the sinking 7

Citations +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
"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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 11th March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/cornwall
South Australian Register Wednesday 15th March 1854. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) Hyderabad 1854. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/hyderabad1854.shtml
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
HMAS Sydney II, Finding Sydney Foundation - Roll of Honour. (Retrieved 2014, April 24) . Retrieved from http://www.findingsydney.com/roll.asp