Show ContentsWetterbee History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Wetterbee is a name whose history on English soil dates back to the wave of migration that followed the Norman Conquest of England of 1066. The Wetterbee family lived at Wetherby in West Yorkshire, a market town and civil parish within the metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds. "The Saxon name of this town, whence the present is obviously deduced, was Wederbi, a term intended to designate its situation on a bend of the river Wharfe." 1 Today in the United States, there are two towns listed: Weatherby, Missouri; and Weatherby Lake, Missouri

Early Origins of the Wetterbee family

The surname Wetterbee was first found in West Yorkshire where one of the first records was of Ivo de Werreby in 1214; and Richard de Wetherby in 1302. 2 Later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed Robertas de Wethirby as living there at that time. 3

Conjecturally the Wetherby family are descended from Ralph of Intwood, who held the lands and village of Intwood from Eudo, Steward to William the Conqueror. Intwood consisted of a church, a mill, nine horses, and thirty sheep, as recorded in the Domesday Book in 1086. 4

Wetherby is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Wedrebi, thought to derive from wether- or ram-farm or else meaning "settlement on the bend of a river". 5 Local folklore has it that when heavy snow storms hit the county, Wetherby does not get as much because the "Weather Goes By."

Early History of the Wetterbee family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Wetterbee research. Another 77 words (6 lines of text) covering the year 1461 is included under the topic Early Wetterbee History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Wetterbee Spelling Variations

A multitude of spelling variations characterize Norman surnames. Many variations occurred because Old and Middle English lacked any definite spelling rules. The introduction of Norman French to England also had a pronounced effect, as did the court languages of Latin and French. Therefore, one person was often referred to by several different spellings in a single lifetime. The various spellings include Wetherby, Weatherby, Wetherbie, Wetherbee, Witherby and many more.

Early Notables of the Wetterbee family

More information is included under the topic Early Wetterbee Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Wetterbee family

Many English families left England, to avoid the chaos of their homeland and migrated to the many British colonies abroad. Although the conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and some travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute, once in the colonies, many of the families prospered and made valuable contributions to the cultures of what would become the United States and Canada. Research into the origins of individual families in North America has revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Wetterbee or a variant listed above: John Witherby (or Wetherby) who settled in Sudbury, Massachusetts in 1630; John Wetherbee settled in New York in 1820; Bartholomew Wethersbie settled in Virginia in 1616.



  1. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  2. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  3. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  4. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  5. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)


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