Mead History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Etymology of Mead

What does the name Mead mean?

The name Mead is derived from a variety of sources. Most sources agree the name is derived from "meadow" as in the Anglo-Saxon "meed, what is mowed or cut down. " 1 2 3 4

One source claims the mead is a "location name in Somerset" 5 and of course, mead is an alcoholic beverage created by fermenting honey with water. This ancient beverage dates back to vessels dated to at least 7000 BCE as discovered in northern China.

Early Origins of the Mead family

The surname Mead was first found in Warwickshire where Richard Mede was listed in the Pipe Rolls for 1199. Later in Essex, John Atemede was listed in the Feet of Fines in 1248; Richard inthemede was listed in Surrey in 1332 and in Yorkshire John del Mede was found in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379. John a Mede was found in Kent in 1454. In these cases, the name literally meant "dweller by the mead." 6

Early History of the Mead family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Mead research. Another 87 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1415, 1458, 1459, 1460, 1461, 1462, 1468, 1469, 1475, 1586, 1596, 1613, 1616, 1627, 1628, 1630, 1639, 1653, 1673, 1699, 1713, 1720 and 1754 are included under the topic Early Mead History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Mead Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Mead include Mead, Meade, Meades and others.

Early Notables of the Mead family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

Matthew Mead or Meade (1630?-1699), an English Independent minister, the second son of Richard Mead of Mursley, Buckinghamshire
Richard Mead (1673-1754), eleventh child of Matthew Mead, was an English physician whose work, "A Short Discourse concerning Pestilential Contagion, and the Method to be used to prevent it" written in...
Philip Mede or Meade, Meede, (c. 1415-1475) from Mede's Place in Somerset was a wealthy merchant in Bristol and was twice elected a Member of Parliament for Bristol in 1459 and 1460. He was also three...
Joseph Mede (1586-1639) was an English scholar who was educated at Christ's College, Cambridge, where he later became a Fellow from 1613. His Clavis Apocalyptica (1627), translated into English as Key...
Robert Mead (1616-1653), was an English poet, son of Robert Mead, a stationer, was born at the Black Lion in Fleet Street in 1616. 7
William Mead (1628-1713), the Quaker, was born probably in or near London, where he became a wealthy linendraper of Fenchurch Street, and member of the Company of Merchant Taylors. 7

Mead World Ranking

In the United States, the name Mead is the 1,468^th most popular surname with an estimated 19,896 people with that name. 8 However, in Australia, the name Mead is ranked the 846^th most popular surname with an estimated 4,656 people with that name. 9 And in New Zealand, the name Mead is the 472^nd popular surname with an estimated 1,453 people with that name. 10 The United Kingdom ranks Mead as 728^th with 9,215 people. 11

Migration of the Mead family to Ireland

Some of the Mead family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Mead migration to the United States +

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Mead or a variant listed above:

Mead Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Mead, who landed in Massachusetts in 1635 12
John Mead, who settled in Virginia in 1636
Gabriel Mead, who arrived in Dorchester, Massachusetts in 1638 12
Jon Mead, who landed in Virginia in 1642 12
Robert Mead, who landed in Virginia in 1662 12
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Mead Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

James Mead, who landed in Virginia in 1714 12
Casper Mead, aged 48, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1739 12
Johanes Mead, aged 16, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1739 12
Daniel Mead, who landed in America in 1760-1763 12
Jane Mead, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1773 12

Mead Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Thomas Mead, aged 27, who arrived in New York in 1801 12
Owen Mead, aged 34, who arrived in New York, NY in 1812 12
John Mead, who landed in New York, NY in 1816 12
John S Mead, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1849 12
G W Mead, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1850 12
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Mead Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Mr. John Mead, (b. 1860), aged 40, Cornish miner, from St Austell, Cornwall, UK travelling aboard the ship "Etruria" arriving at Ellis Island, New York on 1st July 1900 en route to Rome, new York, USA 13
Richard Mead, who arrived in Arkansas in 1906 12

Mead migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Mead Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Garret Mead, who landed in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1749-1752
John Mead, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1749
Joseph Mead, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1749
Mary Mead, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1750
John Mead, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1750
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Mead Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Mr. Richard Mead, (b. 1836), aged 19, Cornish settler departing from Falmouth destined for Quebec, Canada aboard the ship "Barque John" on 3rd May 1855 which sank after striking the reef, he died in the sinking 14

Mead migration to Australia +

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

Mead Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

John Mead, English convict from London, who was transported aboard the "Agamemnon" on April 22, 1820, settling in New South Wales, Australia 15
Mr. Thomas Mead, English convict who was convicted in Derby, Derbyshire, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Caledonia" in 19th June 1822, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 16
Mr. William Mead, (Booth, Henry, George), English convict who was convicted in North Riding, Yorkshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Countess of Harcourt" on 29th April 1828, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 17
Miss Hannah Mead, English convict who was convicted in Middlesex, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Earl of Liverpool" in December 1830, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 18
Mr. William Mead, (b. 1778), aged 53, English shepherd who was convicted in York, Yorkshire, England for life, transported aboard the "Exmouth" on 3rd March 1831, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, he died in 1831 19
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Mead 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:

Mead Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

John Mead, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "John Masterman" in 1857
Mary Jane Mead, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "John Masterman" in 1857
William A. Mead, aged 22, a labourer, who arrived in Hawkes Bay aboard the ship "Clarence" in 1875
Mr. James Mead, (b. 1841), aged 42, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Westland" arriving in Hawke's Bay, Napier, North Island, New Zealand in 1883 20
Mrs. Louisa Mead, (b. 1841), aged 42, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Westland" arriving in Hawke's Bay, Napier, North Island, New Zealand in 1883 20
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Mead 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. 21

Mead Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Samuel Mead, who settled in Barbados in 1680 with his wife, children and servants
John Mead, who settled in Barbados in 1685 after being banished from the west of England by Judge Jeffreys

Contemporary Notables of the name Mead (post 1700) +

Nick Mead (b. 1995), American rower, who competed at the 2020 and 2024 Summer Olympics
Ernest Campbell Mead Jr. (1918-2014), American academic and professor of music in the McIntire Department of Music at the University of Virginia
Major-General Armistead Davis Mead (1901-1980), American Chief of Staff 3rd Army (1952-1953) 22
Taylor Mead (1924-2013), American writer, actor, and performer
Matthew Hansen "Matt" Mead (b. 1962), American politician, 32nd Governor of Wyoming
Sydney Jay "Syd" Mead (b. 1933), American Saturn Award nominated visual futurist and concept artist, best known for his designs for science-fiction films Blade Runner, Aliens and Tron
William Rutherford Mead (1846-1928), American architect, co-founder of the firm McKim, Mead, and White
Harry Talbott "Chip" Mead Jr. (1950-1993), American racing driver from Dayton, Ohio
Margaret Mead (1901-1978), American Cultural Anthropologist and recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, eponym of the Mead crater on Venus
George Herbert Mead (1863-1931), American social psychologist
... (Another 5 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Mead family +

HMS Repulse

Mr. Stanley Frederick Mead (b. 1906), British Petty Officer Stoker, who sailed into battle on the HMS Repulse (1941) and died in the sinking 23

HMS Royal Oak

John N. Mead, British Boy 1st Class with the Royal Navy aboard the HMS Royal Oak (1939) when she was torpedoed by U-47 and sunk; he survived the sinking 24

The Mead 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: Toujours pret
Motto Translation: Always ready.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
Arthur, William , An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names. London: 1857. Print
Barber, Henry, British Family Names London: Elliot Stock, 62 Paternoster Row, 1894. Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"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)
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 3rd May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/emigration_ellis_island_1892_on.pdf
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 3rd May 2018). Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/wreck_of_emigrant_ship_john_1855.pdf
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Agamemnon voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1820 with 179 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/agamemnon/1820
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/caledonia
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 19th April 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/countess-of-harcourt
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 20th August 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/earl-of-liverpool
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 25th May 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/exmouth
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2013, May 9) Armistead Mead. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Mead/Armistead_Davis/USA.html
HMS Repulse Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listrepulsecrew.html
Ships hit by U-boats crew list HMS Royal Oak (08) - (Retrieved 2018 February, 9th) - retrieved from https://uboat.net/allies/merchants/crews/ship68.html