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Lacy History Etymology Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Canada Australia New Zealand West Indies

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Suggested Reading Citations

Lacy History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Etymology of Lacy

What does the name Lacy mean?

The surname Lacy comes from the place name Lassi, in the department of Calvados in Normandy.

Early Origins of the Lacy family

The surname Lacy was first found in Yorkshire, where Ibert de Lacy, son of Walter de Lacy (Lacie) was granted the castle and town of Pontefract and 164 lordships by William the Conqueror. Walter de Lacie (d. 1085) was one of the commanders that William the Conqueror "sent to Wales to subjugate the principality; and being victorious, he acquired large possessions there, in addition to those already obtained, as his portion of the spoil of Hastings. " 1

"His lands had been assigned to him in the West, where he held territory - to what exact extent is not known - under William Fitz Osbern, the first Norman Earl of Hereford; and upon the rebellion of William's son, Earl Roger de Britolio, the whole vast fief was conferred upon him by the Conqueror. He waged war successfully with the Welsh, defeating three of their princes with great slaughter in Brecon; and was killed in 1085 by a fall from a ladder while inspecting a new church he had founded at Hereford. " 2

Roger de Laci who also accompanied the Conqueror was rewarded with the tenure in capite of 116 lordships. It is presumed that the two were related but the relationship is unknown. 3

Rishton in Yorkshire was the place where a manor was held by Edmund de Lacye, who died 42nd Henry III. 4

There were at least two listings of the name in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379: Robertus Lascey; and Isabella Lassy. 5

Stanlow-House in the union of Great Boughton, Higher division of the hundred of Wirrall in Cheshire was an ancient family seat to one branch of the family. "An abbey of Cistercian monks was founded here in 1178, by John Lacy, constable of Chester; but on account of the inundations of the Mersey in 1296, it was removed to Whalley, in Lancashire." 4

Early History of the Lacy family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Lacy research. Another 144 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1172, 1185, 1215, 1298, 1584, 1610, 1615, 1671, 1673 and 1681 are included under the topic Early Lacy History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lacy Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Lacey, Lacy, Lassey, Lassy, de Lacey, de Lacy and others.

Early Notables of the Lacy family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

Henry de Lacy, Earl of Lincoln, who was recorded on the Falkirk Roll. The roll lists those who fought at Falkirk in 1298, when the forces of Edward I defeated William Wallace's Scottish army. Henry wa...
William Lacey (1584-1673) was and English Jesuit whose real name was Wolfe. William Lacy (1610-1671) was a Royalist divine and a descendant of the noble family of Lacy

Lacy Ranking

In the United States, the name Lacy is the 1,263^rd most popular surname with an estimated 24,870 people with that name. 6

Lacy migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Lacy or a variant listed above were:

Lacy Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Lacy, aged 18, who settled in Virginia in 1635 aboard the ship "Thomas & John"
Rich Lacy, who arrived in Virginia in 1635 7
Win Lacy, aged 18, who landed in Virginia in 1635 7
Eliza Lacy, who landed in Virginia in 1649 7
James Lacy, who arrived in Virginia in 1653 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Lacy Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Mary Lacy, who arrived in Virginia in 1717 7
Prissela Lacy, who landed in Virginia in 1719 7
John Lacy, who landed in Virginia in 1723 7

Lacy Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Edward Lacy, who arrived in New York, NY in 1811 7
George Lacy, who arrived in New York in 1818 7
William Lacy, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1850 7
Ed Lacy, aged 33, who landed in Mobile, Ala in 1852 7
Lawrence, Michael, Nicholas, Patrick, Peter and William Lacy all, who arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Lacy migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Lacy Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Mr. James Lacy U.E. who settled in Belle Vue, Beaver Harbour, Charlotte County, New Brunswick c. 1784 8
Mr. William Lacy U.E. who settled in Carleton [Saint John West], New Brunswick, Canada c. 1784 8

Lacy Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Richard Lacy, aged 18, a labourer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1833 aboard the ship "Margaret" from London, England
Abel Lacy, aged 20, a labourer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1833 aboard the ship "Margaret" from London, England
Edward Lacy, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1834
Margaret Lacy, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1835
Mr. Henry Lacy, (b. 1836), aged 19, English labourer, from Merriott, Somerset, England, UK departing from Falmouth destined for Quebec, Canada aboard the ship "Barque John" on 3rd May 1855 which sank after striking the reef, he survived the sinking 9

Lacy migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Lacy Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Miss Mary Ann Lacy who was convicted in Lancaster, Lancashire, England for life for stealing, transported aboard the "Brothers" on 20th November 1823, arriving in New South Wales, Australia and Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 10
Bernard Lacy, a weaver, who arrived in New South Wales, Australia sometime between 1825 and 1832
Mr. Andrew Lacy, English convict who was convicted in York, Yorkshire, England for life, transported aboard the "Elphinstone" on 20th January 1836, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 11
John Lacy, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Lady Bruce" in 1846 12
Mary Lacy, aged 21, a domestic servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1855 aboard the ship "Bucephalus"

Lacy migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Lacy Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Robert Lacy, aged 28, a farm labourer, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Golden Sea" in 1874
Edward Lacy, aged 21, a cooper, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Golden Sea" in 1874
Emma Lacy, aged 15, a servant, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Golden Sea" in 1874
George Lacy, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Dilawur" in 1875

Lacy migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 13

Lacy Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Jane Lacy, who settled in Barbados in 1654
Jane Lacy, who sailed to Barbados in 1660

Contemporary Notables of the name Lacy (post 1700) +

William Howard Lacy (1945-2016), American businessman, CEO of MGIC Investment from 1987 to 1999
James J. "Jim" Lacy (1926-2014), American basketball player
Venus Lacy (b. 1967), Gold Medal-winning American Olympic basketball player
Steve Lacy (1934-2004), American jazz saxophonist and composer
Gerald LeRoy "Jerry" Lacy (b. 1936), American soap opera actor
Jennifer Lacy (b. 1983), American professional basketball player
Jeff Lacy (b. 1977), American former International Boxing Federation super middleweight champion
Hugh De Lacy (1910-1986), American politician, member of the United States House of Representatives from 1945 to 1947
Elizabeth B. Lacy (b. 1945), first woman named to be a Justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia
Ed Lacy (1911-1968), American writer of crime and detective fiction
... (Another 28 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Lacy family +

Halifax Explosion

Mr. Charles Albert Lacy (1864-1917), Canadian resident from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada who died in the Halifax Explosion (1917) 14

Citations +

Burke, John Bernard, The Roll of Battle Abbey. London: Edward Churton, 26, Holles Street, 1848, Print.
Cleveland, Dutchess of The Battle Abbey Roll with some Account of the Norman Lineages. London: John Murray, Abermarle Street, 1889. Print. Volume 2 of 3
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 3rd May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/wreck_of_emigrant_ship_john_1855.pdf
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/brothers
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th March 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/elphinstone
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) LADY BRUCE 1846. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1846LadyBruce.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
Halifax Explosion Book of Remembrance | Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. (Retrieved 2014, June 23) . Retrieved from https://maritimemuseum.novascotia.ca/what-see-do/halifax-explosion/halifax-explosion-book-remembrance