The surname Waggstaff was first found in Derbyshire where the name is generally thought to have been an occupational name for someone who could brandish a "wag" or "staff" with great effect. 1
Loading...
Early History of the Waggstaff family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Waggstaff research. Another 66 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1612, 1618, 1633, 1642, 1645, 1655, 1662, 1677, 1685, 1697, 1712 and 1725 are included under the topic Early Waggstaff History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Loading...
Waggstaff Spelling Variations
The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore,spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Waggstaff has been recorded under many different variations, including Wagstaffe, Waggstaffe, Wagstaff and others.
Loading...
Early Notables of the Waggstaff family
Notables of this surname at this time include: John Wagstaffe (1633-1677), an English writer on witchcraft who held an estate at Hasland in Derbyshire; and John Wagstaffe (1618-1697), of Ladybellegate House, Longsmith Street, Gloucester, an English politician, Member of the Parliament for Gloucester in 1685.
Sir Joseph Wagstaffe (fl. 1655), English Royalist, born about 1612, was probably the seventh and youngest son of Richard Wagstaffe of Herberbury in Warwickshire. "Joseph was a soldier of fortune, and at the beginning of 1642 was major in an Irish regiment in the service of France. In 1655 the Western Royalists asked for Wagstaffe to be... Another 126 words (9 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Waggstaff Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Loading...
Migration of the Waggstaff family
For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Waggstaff or a variant listed above: Mary Wagstaff settled in Virginia in 1655 with her husband; William Wagstaff settled in Rappahannock in Virginia in 1728; Richard Wagstaffe settled in Annapolis Maryland in 1750..
England
