Maxwell History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland
Ireland

Etymology of Maxwell

What does the name Maxwell mean?

The ancient roots of the Maxwell family name are in the Anglo-Saxon culture. The name Maxwell comes from when the family lived in or near Maxwell, a salmon pool located on the Tweed river near Kelso Bridge. The surname Maxwell belongs to the large category of Anglo-Saxon habitation names, which are derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads.

Early Origins of the Maxwell family

The surname Maxwell was first found in Yorkshire where they held a family seat from early times and their first records appeared on the early census rolls taken by the early Kings of Britain to determine the rate of taxation of their subjects.

Early History of the Maxwell family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Maxwell research. Another 191 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1156, 1203, 1231, 1296, 1320, 1797 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Maxwell History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Maxwell Spelling Variations

One relatively recent invention that did much to standardize English spelling was the printing press. However, before its invention even the most literate people recorded their names according to sound rather than spelling. The spelling variations under which the name Maxwell has appeared include Maxwell, Maxweel, Makeswell, Makiswell, Maxuel, Maxwaile, Maxwale and many more.

Early Notables of the Maxwell family

Notables of the family at this time include

Lord Maxwell

Maxwell World Ranking

In the United States, the name Maxwell is the 404^th most popular surname with an estimated 69,636 people with that name. 1 However, in Canada, the name Maxwell is ranked the 667^th most popular surname with an estimated 7,839 people with that name. 2 And in Australia, the name Maxwell is the 364^th popular surname with an estimated 9,947 people with that name. 3 New Zealand ranks Maxwell as 205^th with 2,716 people. 4 The United Kingdom ranks Maxwell as 497^th with 12,968 people. 5

Migration of the Maxwell family to Ireland

Some of the Maxwell family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 81 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Maxwell migration to the United States +

At this time, the shores of the New World beckoned many English families that felt that the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. Thousands left England at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. A great portion of these settlers never survived the journey and even a greater number arrived sick, starving, and without a penny. The survivors, however, were often greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. These English settlers made significant contributions to those colonies that would eventually become the United States and Canada. An examination of early immigration records and passenger ship lists revealed that people bearing the name Maxwell arrived in North America very early:

Maxwell Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Alexander Maxwell, who settled in Boston in 1650
Daniel Maxwell, who settled in Boston in 1652
James Maxwell, who settled in Maryland in 1658
Mary Maxwell, who arrived in Maryland in 1659 6
Jane Maxwell, who landed in Virginia in 1664 6
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Maxwell Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Elizabeth Maxwell, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1718
Hugh Maxwell, who arrived in Massachusetts in 1733
Alexander Maxwell, who landed in Virginia in 1740 6
John Maxwell, who landed in Augusta County, Va in 1740 6
Adam Maxwell, a Jacobite prisoner sent to America in 1747
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Maxwell Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

James Maxwell, aged 20, who arrived in Boston, Massachusetts in 1804 6
Margaret Maxwell, who arrived in New York, NY in 1815 6
Isabella Maxwell, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1816 6
Eleanor Maxwell, aged 28, who landed in Mobile, Ala in 1820-1873 6
Eliza Graham Maxwell, who landed in New York in 1830 6
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Maxwell migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Maxwell Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Andrew Maxwell, who arrived in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1749-1752
Mr. James Maxwell U.E. who settled in Canada c. 1784 7
Mr. James Maxwell U.E. born in Ireland who settled in St. Stephen, Charlotte County, New Brunswick c. 1784 served in the Flying Artillery 7

Maxwell Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Margaret Maxwell, aged 24, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Salus" in 1833
Sarah Maxwell, aged 32, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Salus" in 1833
Rebecca Maxwell, aged 22, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Protector" in 1834
Alexander Maxwell, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Protector" in 1834
William Maxwell, aged 23, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick aboard the ship "Condor" in 1838
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Maxwell migration to Australia +

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

Maxwell Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Thomas Maxwell, Irish convict who was convicted in Westmeath, Ireland for 7 years, transported aboard the "Atlas" on 29th November 1801, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
John Maxwell, English convict from Huntingdon, who was transported aboard the "Ann" on August 1809, settling in New South Wales, Australia 9
Mr. William Maxwell, Scottish convict who was convicted in Glasgow, Scotland for 14 years, transported aboard the "Eliza" on 22nd September 1819, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 10
Mr. Edward Maxwell, (b. 1787), aged 33, Irish servant who was convicted in Roscommon, Ireland for 7 years for house robbery, transported aboard the "Dorothy" on 5th May 1820, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 11
John Maxwell, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Navarino" in 1837 12
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Maxwell 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:

Maxwell Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

T Maxwell, who landed in Waiheke, New Zealand in 1837
C Maxwell, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1840 aboard the ship Aurora
James Maxwell, who landed in Auckland, New Zealand in 1840
James Maxwell, aged 20, a shepherd, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Aurora" in 1840
Mary Maxwell, aged 20, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Aurora" in 1840
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Maxwell 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

Maxwell Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Miss Marie Maxwell, aged 21 who arrived in St. Kitts (St Christopher) aboard the ship "Amity" in 1635 6

Contemporary Notables of the name Maxwell (post 1700) +

Margaret Callaghan Maxwell (1921-2019), Canadian infielder who played from 1944 to 1951 in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League
Charles Richard 'Charlie" Maxwell (1927-2024), known as "Sunday Charlie", "The Sabbath Slugger", and "Ol' Paw Paw", an American left-handed professional baseball left fielder
Billy Joe Maxwell (1929-2021), American professional PGA golfer who had 10 professional wins
Jan Maxwell (1956-2018), American five-time Tony award nominated, two-time Drama Desk Award winning stage and television actress, known for her roles in
Hamish Maxwell (1927-2014), American consumer products executive, CEO and Chairman of Philip Morris (1984-1991)
David Farrow Maxwell (1900-1985), eightieth president of the American Bar Association
Technician Fifth Grade Robert D Maxwell, American soldier awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor in 1944
Chester K. Maxwell, American fighter pilot and flying ace in the U.S. Army Air Forces, during World War II, credited with 5 aerial victories
William R. Maxwell, American fighter pilot and flying ace in the U.S. Navy, during World War II, credited with 8 aerial victories
Cassandra Maxwell, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from South Carolina, 1948 14
... (Another 98 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Maxwell family +

Air New Zealand Flight 901

Mr. Bruce Rhodes Maxwell (1959-1979), New Zealander Flight Steward, from Auckland, New Zealand working aboard the Air New Zealand sightseeing Flight 901 when it flew into Mount Erebus; he died in the crash 15

HMAS Sydney II

Mr. Ian Maxwell Maxwell (1914-1941), Australian Ordinary Signalman from Sandy Bay, Tasmania, Australia, who sailed into battle aboard HMAS Sydney II and died in the sinking 16

Ibrox disaster

Robert Maxwell (1956-1971), Scottish football supporter, from Lanarkshire who was at the Ibrox disaster on 2nd January 1971 when a human crush among the crowd killed 66 and injured 200 people he died of his injuries 17

RMS Titanic

Mr. John Maxwell (d. 1912), aged 31, English Carpenter/Joiner from Southampton, Hampshire who worked aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking 18

SS Atlantic

Mr. James Maxwell, who was traveling aboard the ship "SS Atlantic" when it struck rocks off Nova Scotia in 1873, died in the sinking

USS Indianapolis

Farrell Jacob Maxwell (1918-1992), American crew member on board the ship "USS Indianapolis" when she was on a top secret trip for the first nuclear weapon, she was sunk by Japanese Navy on 30th July 1945, he survived the sinking 19

The Maxwell Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Reviresco
Motto Translation: I flourish again.

Sources +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Surnames Meanings, Origins & Distribution Maps - Forebears." Forebears, https://forebears.io/surnames
"Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
"Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
"UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
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
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 14th July 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/atlas
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Ann voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1809 with 200 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/ann/1809
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 10th February 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eliza
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 12th July 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/dorothy
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) NAVARINO 1837. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1837Navarino.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 19) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Mount Erebus, Memorial, Roll of Remembrance (Retrieved 2018, February 21st). Retrieved from http://www.erebus.co.nz/memorialandawards/rollofremembrance.aspx
HMAS Sydney II, Finding Sydney Foundation - Roll of Honour. (Retrieved 2014, April 24) . Retrieved from http://www.findingsydney.com/roll.asp
Bradford City Football Club In memory (retrieved 22nd March 2021). Retrieved from https://www.bradfordcityafc.com/club/in-memoriam/
Titanic Passenger List - Titanic Facts. (Retrieved 2016, July 13) . Retrieved from http://www.titanicfacts.net/titanic-passenger-list.html
Final Crew List, retrieved 2021, October 30th Retrieved from https://www.ussindianapolis.com/final-crew