SOME HULL CITIZENS, 1670

In the year 1670 a petition was presented to the Mayor and Aldermen of Hull by the parishioners of Holy Trinity, requesting a new assistant minister to replace the ailing Mr Ainsworth.
John Cook, in his “A History of the Charterhouse” (Hull 1882), gives the petition in full and adds that the signatories were “Men of some influence in Hull in their day, and many having descendants still flourishing in the town”.
A list of petitioners is below. I have reorganised them in alphabetical order of surname. I have also filled out the abbreviated fornames, apart from that of Jo. Blansherd, as it was neither Jno (John) or Jos (Joseph).
I shall, in time, add information on the individual signatories if I have anything on them.

The petitioners were –
James Atkinson, Robert Barnard, Richard Barnes, Jo. Blansherd, Thomas Broadley, Guy Brown, Robert Carlill, Thomas Coates, John Crowther, Nicholas Dewicke, George Dickinson, Joseph Ellis, William Everingham, Christopher Fawthropp, John Field, George Frogatt, Richard Gray, William Halam, George Healah, Thomas Heaton, Daniel Hoare, Edward Hodgson, Thomas Holtby, Anthony Iveson, Edward Johnson, Matthew Johnson, Thomas Johnson, William Lawson, Samuel Lightfoot, Richard Lindall, George Logan, Abednego Longbone, Henry Maister, Henry Metcalfe, Thomas Moxon, Timothy Pattison, Edmund Popple, Thomas Popplewell, Robert Raikes, Edward Ranson, John Rogers, Arthur Saltmarsh, William Shires, Matthew Smith, John Stockton, Richard Stockton, Will Tailer, Richard Vevers, Thomas Warcop, Thomas Watson, Thomas Weeton, Thomas Wrigglesworth, Robert Wright.

Some notes –
Robert Barnard – “merchant” 1695.

John Blansherd – “mercer” 1657; “gent” 1682 (1). Blansherd “an old East Riding family”. ‘Blaunchard’ in the East Riding in 1379.

Thomas Broadley This Thomas heads the Broadley family pedigree in Burke’s Landed Gentry of 1914.

Robert Carlill Robert Carlill, merchant, 1654. Robert Carleill, senior, merchant, 1670. Robert, son of Tristram Carleill of Sewerby, buried at Holy Trinity, 1670. Alderman Robert Carlill, buried at Holy Trinity, 1707. We may have a father and son here, almost certainly members of the same family. Carleill and Carlill are the same surname, and the Carleills of Sewerby were an old East Riding family.

Thomas Coates A Thomas Coates, master mariner is on record in 1679; a Thomas Coates, tailor, is on record 1680.

NOTES ON SURNAMES (HULL) 76

THIRSK From the North Yorkshire place name, early spellings of which often reverse the I and the R, so also with the surname.

John Thirsk, merchant of York, was Mayor of York in 1442 and 1462, and represented the town in Parliament in 1448 and 1450
Robert Thirsk, chaplain in Hull, pre-1445
John Thirsk in Beverley, 1547-8
John Thriske in Beverley,1578
James Thriske at Bentley, near Cottingham, 1584
Elizabeth Thriske in Hull, 1695

W.G.Hoskins, “Local History in England” (third edition, 1984), references a study of this surname by a Mr. J.W.Thirsk –
“The Thirsks began moving from the North Riding to the East Riding at some unknown date, though some remained. A complete count of all Thirsk deaths from 1837 to 1947 shows that of the 492 deaths, no fewer than 185 took place in Hull and Sculcoates (now part of Hull) and 128 in other places in the East Riding, including York. The West and North Ridings contributed only 62 deaths; Lancashire and Cheshire 71; and the remainder of England only 46. Thus the Thirsks remained remarkably concentrated over a period of 110 years, four generations which one commonly associates with increasing mobility. About 63 per cent lived and died in the East Riding, most of them in a much smaller area than this.
Turning to the registration of births, and taking only the period 1837-87, there were 361 births of which 290 – exactly 80 per cent – were in the East Riding. After 1887 there is much more dispersal …”

The name Thirsk derives from the Old Scandinavian word Ƿresk, meaning either ‘lake’ or ‘fen’. Reaney and Wilson’s dictionary of surnames lists Trask as a surname from the name Thirsk.
[The Sandinavian letter Ƿ represents the -th- sound as in words such as the, this, that, not as in thin, thick.]

SOME COMMON SURNAMES IN HULL, 1695

The commonest surnames in the Hull tax assessments, 1695. The information is taken from a Hull City Council publication, “The People of Hull in 1695 and 1697; an index to the poll tax assessments” (1987)
The top 15 were –
1. Smith
2. Thompson
3. Watson
4. Robinson
5. Brown
6. Taylor
7. Johnson
8. Wilson
9. Wood
10. Richardson
11. Walker
12. Wilkinson
13. Lambert
14. Ellis
15. Atkinson

Other common names (alphabetical order) were Banks, Clark, Etherington, Hodgson or Hodgshon, Peacock, Scott.

These break down into categories as –
Patronymics 11, nine of which have the -son ending
Locative names, three, two general (Wood, Banks), and one of an identifiable place name, properly spelt Hetherington
Occupational names, two
Finally, one nickname (Peacock), and one name recalling an ancestor of alien origin (Scott)
Ellis is a common name in Wales, but it was in existence in Yorkshire in the Middle Ages. It derives from the biblical Elias, though in Wales it might have been adopted as an englishing of the Welsh forename Elised.

For comparison here’s a list of the commonest surnames in the Hull telephone directory of 1990 –
1. Smith
2. Wilson
3. Taylor
4. Robinson
5. Brown
6. Johnson
7. Thompson
8. Harrison
9. Jackson
10. Walker
11. Wilkinson
12. Wright
13. Clark
14. Watson
15. Hall

NOTES ON SURNAMES (HULL) 75

WOODMANSEY A surname of Hull and the East Riding, from the village of Woodmansey near Beverley.
Peter of Wodmanse and Richard, son of Thomas Wodmanse, were listed among the debtors of Richard of Feribi, 1328 (Beverley Chapter Act Book)
John Wodmanse and Richard Wodmanse in Beverley, 1381 (Poll Tax)

William Woodmansey was one of the leaders of the Beverley men in the popular uprising known as the Pilgrimage of Grace, 1537. He later fled to Scotland where he was ‘recetted’, i.e., protected. Scotland was still a Catholic country at the time, and the rising had been against Henry viii’s suppression of the Catholic church. He was still in Scotland in 1541 and the English were trying to have him extradited. In the Hamilton Papers he is referred to as “Woodmancy of Beverley, a Captain of the insurrection”.

John, son of William Woodmansey, married Elizabeth, daughter of Robert Swanne, at Holy Trinity, Hull in April of 1568
Anthony Woodmancie at Bishop Burton, 1584
Entries in the Trinity House records point to the existence of a seafaring family of the name in Hull:
William Woodmancie, master of the John Bonaventure, 1601
John Woodmansey, Warden of Trinity House, 1606, 1611, 1617, 1622
Thomas Woodmansey, Warden of Trinity House, 1624
Anthony Woodmansea was assessed for tax in Hull, 1695
John Woodmancy was living in Humber Street, Hull; and Robert Woodmancy in Marvell Place, East Hull, in 1835 (Burgess Roll).

The meaning of the name is “woodman’s lake” which probably refers to a man having the occupation of woodman or forester, though Woodman is on record as a male given name in medieval England.

NOTES ON SURNAMES (HULL) 74

WINDAS, WINDASS  Assuming that this is another form of Windes and Windus listed in Reaney and Wilson’s dictionary then it is an early form of winding house, a building where wool was wound.

Reaney and Wilson note –

William de Windhows in Craven, Yorkshire 1379 (PollTax)

Thomas Wyndhouse, freeman of York, 1431

William Wyndowes, freeman of York, 1458

William Wyndes, freeman of York, 1530.

These three were all weavers, i.e., working in the woollen industry.

David Windus, son of William Windus was born at Sculcoates in September of 1653

William Windus and wife Elizabeth assessed for tax, Hull 1695. They are probably the William Windus and wife Elizabeth mentioned in a Hull deed of 1702, and William may be the William Windas, baker of Hull whose sons John and Robert were admitted freemen of Hull in 1737

Footballer Dean Windass is a favourite son of the city of Hull.

NOTES ON SURNAMES (HULL) 73

WHINCUP Information on this surname can be found here –
http://www.one-name.org/profiles/whincup.html

I just wish to add a couple of points.
Firstly, that in my opinion the name is likely to derive from the place name Whincop, in Eskdale, Cumbria, the meaning of which is probably “gorse-covered hill”. It is possible that the source is a lost Yorkshire place name of the same meaning; the name is found mainly in Yorkshire. North Yorkshire has the most Whincups but the name is well represented in the Hull area.
Secondly, “Thomas Whincop of Beverley preacher of God’s word” was appointed Master of the Charterhouse, Hull, in 1599. His name is later spelt Whyncopp, Wyntropp, and Whyncropp. Thomas died in 1624, and his name entered in the parish register of Holy Trinity as “Thomas Wincop lectorer”.
The Yorkshire Archaeological Journal, vol.26, blazons a coat of arms for “Thomas Whincup” –
“Argent, a fess and in chief a covered cup between two mullets all sable”.
I have never heard of another coat of arms for the surname Whincup.

NOTES ON SURNAMES (HULL) 72

WESTERDALE Reaney’s “Dictionary …” lists this name and gives its origin as the place name Westerdale in Cleveland. I would add that West Dale near Hunmanby in the East Riding is recorded as Westerdale in 1493.

From the register of the Freemen of York –
Will de Westerdale, tynkler (i.e., tinsmith), 1336
Jacobus* de Westerdall, lytester (dyer), 1385, possibly the same as Jacobus de Westerdale at York, 1381 (Poll Tax)
Walter de Westerdall, cordewaner (shoemaker), 1385
John de Westerdall, fletcher, 1390
Dionisius (Denis?) de Westerdall, no occupation given, 1392
Mr. Will Westerdale, clericus (probably a priest), 1460

Sir John Westerdale, vicar of Keyingham, raised a force to oppose Edward IV’s landing at Ravenspurn on the Holderness coast, 1471 (Hugh Calvert, “History of Hull”). This Sir John was probably the John Westerdale of Beverley who was ordained a priest at York in 1454. The title ‘Sir’ is in this instance that of a cleric, a ‘Pope’s knight’.
Edward IV, of the House of York, was returning from exile in Holland. The people of Hull and the East Riding in general were supporters of the Lancastrian cause in the Wars of the Roses.
The surname was in Roos, c.5 miles from Keyingham in 1571. John and Thomas, sons of William Westerdale were baptised at Roos in February of that year
Thomas Westerdale and Ellen Bonnin were married at Sculcoates, near Hull, in 1682
Thomas Westerdale, shipbuilder and harbour master of Hull, 1770s to 1790s
Samuel Westerdale, sheriff of Hull, 1841.

*Jacobus is the Latin form of the name James, but the name in that form was less familiar in the Middle Ages. In the 14th century Jakes, or some other version of the French Jacques would have been far more common. James belonged mainly to Scotland before the accession of the Stuarts to the English throne.

NOTES ON SURNAMES (HULL) 71

WAUDBY An East Riding surname and place name, Wauldby, near Elloughton.
There is in existence a twelve generation pedigree of Waldby of Wauldby, headed by a Robert Waldby, fl. 1188, but I am unsure of its reliability in the earlier generations (pre-1536).
The following names do not appear in the pedigree, and yet they are linked to the manor of Wauldby –
Nigel (or Niel) de Waldby, 1241
Ranulph, son of Ralph, son of Ringwer de Waldby, sentence of excommunication rescinded on payment of a fine, 1307 (Beverley Chapter Act Book)
William de Waldby, 1381
Thomas de Waldby, 1428
Philip Wauldby died 1542. This must be the “Philip Wawdebie”, listed among the East Riding gentry who took part in the popular uprising known as the Pilgrimage of Grace. His is the only name on the above mentioned pedigree to be reliably connected to Wauldby Manor.
William, son of Philip, died 1547
William Wauldby, died 1567
William Wauldby, died 1623
Philip Wauldby, died 1628
Robert Wauldby, died 1631. He left no issue, and the manor was divided between his two sisters and soon passed out of the family.

Other Waldby/Waudbys –
Alexander de Waldby, tailor, Freeman of York, 1336
Richard de Waldeby, potter , Freeman of York, 1337
John Waldby in Owthorn, Holderness, 1340
John Waldby and wife in Beverley, 1381 (Poll Tax)
Robert Waldby, Archbishop of York, 1396-1398 (died 1398), his brother, John Waldby (d.1393) was English Provincial of the Austin Friars. Robert was born in Yorkshire, one unconfirmed source says York
Thomas Waldby, walker (i.e., fuller of cloth), Freeman of York, 1439-40
William Waldeby, weaver, Freeman of York, 1444
Anthony Waldbie at North Newbald, 1584
John Waudby, yeoman in Sculcoates parish, 1754-5
Thomas Waldby, Mayor of Beverley, 1757-8
Richard Daniel Waudby, apothecary, Freeman of Hull,1801
John Waudby, Waltham Street, Hull, 1835/6 (Burgess Roll)

The arms of Waldby of Wauldby were –
Argent on a chevron sable two crosses humetty or (Surtees, vol.133)
In another version the crosses are formy.

NOTES ON SURNAMES (HULL) 70

WARVILL This is a difficult name, another one ignored by the experts, and there’s the reason I feel compelled to write something about it.
The IGI (Latter Day Saints) has a record of the name Warvel at Burton Agnes, 1759, later spelt Warvile. In Hull Warvel is on record 1840, Warvill 1844.
I’ve found no early instances of Warvill, but something close is found in Lancashire c.1247; Wion, son of Wervill, in the “Wapentake of Blackburnshire”. Wervill is known as a version of the Welsh female name, Gwerfel. Wyun could be an English rendering of the Welsh male name Gwion. So it is likely that this is a Welshman known by a metronymic (mother’s given name). Could this be the origin of the surname Warvill?
The “-vill” ending leads one to consider a French place-name origin, but there is no evidence to date from medieval sources.

NOTES ON SURNAMES (HULL) 69

TOWSE Though Reaney (Dictionary) doesn’t list this name as spelt here, he does list Towes under Tough. The John Towes, freeman of York, 1685, whom he cites was a member of the Towse family of the East Riding.
This family, according to its historian, descended from Thomas Towse who died in 1502, descended from a Somerset family.
“In 1536-7 Thomas Toox, possibly a member of the Towse family, had a lease of six bovates of the priory’s land.” J.D. Purdy, Victoria County History, East Riding, vol ii. This was Watton Priory.
“The Towses were buying land in Garton in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, and it descended in several branches of the family.” ibid.

Isabella Toust, daughter of Christopher Toust, baptised at Winestead, January 1597. There is a Christopher Towse, a younger brother of John Towse of Garton, who was living at this time.
John Towse in Holmpton, 1737.
John Tows in Owthorne, 1815.
(These three notices from Miles and Richardson’s “A History of Withernsea”. Perhaps a South Holderness branch of the Garton Towses.)
In Hull the name appears in the tax assessments of 1695, though perhaps not yet firmly rooted in the town.
Francis Towse married Tamar Calvert at Holy Trinity Hull in 1846, by which date the surname was established in Hull.
Private Frederick Towse and Corporal Harold Towse, Hull men serving with the East Yorkshire Regiment, gave their lives in World War I (Golden Book of World War One Casualties)

The Garton Towses are traceable down to the end of the 18th century in the pedigree compiled by Clive Towse. He also furnishes some details of the origins of the family and a suggested meaning of the surname –
“The family had first risen to local prominence in Taunton as cloth dyers and wool merchants in the late fifteenth century and it is significant that the surname, which during this period is occasionally spelt Toose, means a carder of wool.” (Clive Towse, “An Account of an Estate in Garton, in the East Riding of Yorkshire, the Property of the Towse Family, 1537-1800, with a note on the Somerset branch of the family.” Privately printed, 1980)

With reference to Reaney’s suggestion of origin in the word togh meaning “steadfast, stubborn”, I think it ought to be pointed out that Tough is a Scottish surname, from an Aberdeenshire place name, which derives from the Gaelic tulach, meaning “hill”.