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![Show Contents]() Wainfleet History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
 England
Early Origins of the Wainfleet familyThe surname Wainfleet was first found in Lincolnshire at Wainfleet, a market-town, in the union of Spilsby, Marsh division of the wapentake of Candleshoe. Wainfleet All Saints and Wainfleet St. Mary were collectively listed as Wenflet in the Domesday Book of 1086, the first recording of the place name. 1 Hence, conjecturally, the surname is descended from the tenant of the lands of Wainfleet, once a seaport, now five miles from the sea, by several Norman nobles including the Bishop of Durham, Earl Hugh, Gilbert de Ghent, Gocylin de Ghent who were recorded in the Domesday Book census of 1086. The village was noted for its salt production and held 27 salt pans. William of Wayneflete or Wainfleet (1395?-1486), was Bishop of Winchester, Lord Chancellor of England, and founder of Magdalen College, Oxford. "In 1497, it appears that Waynflete held the manor and manor-house of Dakenham Place, Barkinge. This deed points to Essex as the home of at least one branch of the family, and corroborates the inference which may be drawn from other data that the bishop was of gentle blood. " 2 Early History of the Wainfleet familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Wainfleet research. Another 64 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1180, 1447 and 1461 are included under the topic Early Wainfleet History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Wainfleet Spelling VariationsEndless spelling variations are a prevailing characteristic of Norman surnames. Old and Middle English lacked any definite spelling rules, and the introduction of Norman French added an unfamiliar ingredient to the English linguistic stew. French and Latin, the languages of the court, also influenced spellings. Finally, Medieval scribes generally spelled words according to how they sounded, so one person was often referred to by different spellings in different documents. The name has been spelled Wainfleet, Waynfleet, Waynflete, Wainflete and others. Early Notables of the Wainfleet familyOutstanding amongst the family at this time was - the Wainfleet family of Lincolnshire
Migration of the Wainfleet familyTo escape the political and religious persecution within England at the time, many English families left for the various British colonies abroad. The voyage was extremely difficult, though, and the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving. But for those who made it, the trip was most often worth it. Many of the families who arrived went on to make valuable contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families reveals a number of immigrants bearing the name Wainfleet or a variant listed above: settlers were recorded from the mid 17th century in the great migration from Europe. Migrants settled in the eastern seaboard from Newfoundland, to Maine, to Florida, and to the islands..
- Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
- Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
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