Older Stansels EARLY STANSELLS

Compiled in the year 1086, the 'Book of Domesday', a collection of ancient English history pertaining to landowners, states that prior to1066, during the reign of King Edward the Confessor, there lived the Stanchil family in Chingestone (Kingston Bagpuze). Kingston Bagpuze is near Oxford, in Berkshire. About five hundred years later in the same 'shire' or county the name apparently had become Stanshall.

It states further that Mr. Stanchil perished in the Battle of Hastings, Oct 14, 1066. Before going to battle, he gave his land to the Abby of Abbington (church). The record also states that the family name had previously been known as Turkillus (believed to be Welsh).

A study of the language of the ancient Celts tells us that the letter 'h' was always silent. This being true, Stanchil and Stanshall were probably pronounced the same in those days as Stansel is today.

In 1571, John Stansell of Rochester hires of Robert Dene of Halling,gentleman, his croft of land called the 5 acres of St. Margarets in a field there of the Dean and Chap. of Rochester called Priest fielde for 40s. They are to maintain and keep the quicksett with good and sufficient hedges, and lay with quicksett the south side of the same crofte.

Rochester is in county Kent, near London. A 'croft' was a small farm, 'quicksett' was hedges (of a sort)

There are early records mentioning a village named Stansell in West Ridings, Yorkshire. However there are only scant records of a family by that name in early Yorkshire.

The 'Jackson Collection', Sheffield Library, Sheffield England,mentions a Wyon Maryons, who arrived in England with William the Conqueror and later became Lord of Stansell.

The Stansell village is mentioned by Hunter who stated: ...'the district is without a doubt referred to as Stemesale of the Clamore,in Domesday'.

William Bradford, the first Governor of Plymouth Colony in America, is said to have had ancestors, who is 1542 lived in the village of Stanselll, Yorkshire, near Austerfield, his birthplace.

In 'Yorkshire Pedigrees'(Walker), a marriage is recorded: Clare, dau of Geo Green of Stansall (village) to Francis Gregory, ca 1600.

In 1831, a list of early parishes mentions Stancill township, parish Tickhill, population 66. The village was located near Doncaster.

From 'Mansfield Marriages' Nottingham Parish Reg. vol 14, p4. NottsEngland, the following -- 'George Stansol, b ca 1540, married Oct 15,1565.'

Marriage Licenses, Westminster Vicar Gen., Archbishop of Canterbury,v23: 'Jan 31, 1667, Henry Hall of Shorham Kent, Gentleman, Bachelor about 27 and Anne Stansall of Southfleet, sd.co., spr. about 26 at own disposal, at Southfleet Langfield or Fawlkham, co. Ket.'

And Boyd's Marriage Index of England, 1701-1725, vol 69 shows: 'Tho. Stensall and Elnr Gresham, married 1716.'

In April 1635, Hotten's Passenger List, by John Cameron Hotten, lists the English ship 'Planter' bound from Liverpool to New England and among the passengers: 'Tho. Stansley age 16.'

The book, 'Emigrants to America, from Liverpool, 1697-1707' contains the following: on November 1st, 1701 this group,

Ralph Cockett of Dunyan (Durham?) age 15 yr 7 mo

Elizabeth Stansel age 21 yr 4 mo

Robert Jackson of Lanc' age 15 yr 7 mo

Ellen Rosen of Lanc' age 20 yr 4 mo

Mary Harefoot of Ormshire age 19 yr 4 mo

It is known that about the 13th century, when surnames were required by royal decree, many heads of families used the name of their village or community, others adopted their vocational occupations as surnames.

The multi-volume Oxford Dictionary of Oxford University (ClarendonPress, Lon 1933) list--

STANSEL, obs. form of verb stencil; stencil, to ornament with various colours.'1420, Aunturs of Arth, in steel was he stuffut, that sterne on his steed, with his sternes of golf, stanseld on stray.'

From the Genealogical Dictionary of New England, (Savage) v. 3.:

'Samuel May of Roxbury Mass (b Eng) married Abigail Stanssull, on Jun7, 1657.' Savage comments in reference to her name--'if copy of rec.furnish me spell correct, so strange a name.'

Early records about 1700, show a Nicholas Stansel, and family in New Amsterdam (New York), he was from Germany.

And, in 1704, in Virginia, the family of John Stansel, a native of England is noted. The author (The Stansel Family by Edwin Nathaniel Stansel) knows of no connection between the English line and the German line.

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Older Stansels had the following children: