Killam History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Etymology of Killam

What does the name Killam mean?

The Killam name has descended through the generations from the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. Their name comes from having lived in the parish of Kilham in the East Riding of Yorkshire. Some members of the Killam family were also found in the township of Kilham found in the parish of Kirk-Newton in the county of Northumberland.

Early Origins of the Killam family

The surname Killam was first found in Yorkshire and Cumberlandshire, where they held a family seat from ancient times.

Early History of the Killam family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Killam research. Another 107 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1200, 1709, 1762 and 1798 are included under the topic Early Killam History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Killam Spelling Variations

Only recently has spelling become standardized in the English language. As the English language evolved in the Middle Ages, the spelling of names changed also. The name Killam has undergone many spelling variations, including Kilham, Killham, Killam, Killum and others.

Early Notables of the Killam family

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

Killam migration to the United States +

To escape the unstable social climate in England of this time, many families boarded ships for the New World with the hope of finding land, opportunity, and greater religious and political freedom. Although the voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, those families that arrived often found greater opportunities and freedoms than they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Killam were among those contributors:

Killam Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Killam, who arrived in Morgan County, Illinois in 1840 1
Samuel Killam, who landed in Morgan County, Illinois in 1850 1

Killam 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. 2

Killam Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

William Killam went to Barbados in 1668

Contemporary Notables of the name Killam (post 1700) +

Radcliffe Killam (1910-2007), American oilman, rancher, businessman, and philanthropist, son of O.W. Killam
Taran Hourie Killam (b. 1982), American actor, voice actor, comedian, singer, and writer
Oliver Winfield Killam (1874-1959), American politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Missouri, 1896 Member of Oklahoma State House of Representatives, 1911-14 3
James Killam, American politician, Member of Connecticut State House of Representatives from Glastonbury, 1839 3
Oliver Winfield "O.W." Killam (1874-1959), Texas oilman and politician, State Representative from Grove, Oklahoma (1911-1914), State Senator from Delaware County, Oklahoma (1915-1918)
Frank Killam (1843-1911), Canadian politician in Nova Scotia, MP for Yarmouth (1869-1882)
Thomas Killam (1802-1868), Canadian shipbuilder and politician from Nova Scotia, MLA for Yarmouth County (1851-1867)
Albert Clements Killam QC (1849-1908), Canadian lawyer, politician, judge, railway commissioner, and 16th Puisne judge of the Supreme Court of Canada (1903-1905)
Izaak Walton Killam (1885-1955), Canadian financier; he rose from paper boy in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia to become one of Canada's wealthiest individuals and founded the Killam Trusts

Citations +

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)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 6) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html