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Profile Grandparents name Surname: MEE

I finally paid and had the name Mee researched and this is what I came up with

Benigno numine

is on our coat of arms

Mee



In ancient times, the first known bearers of the Mee name lived in
the settlement of My in Flanders. The surname Mee belongs to the
category of habitation names, which are derived from the pre-existing
names for towns, villages ,parishes, or farmsteads. However, some
exports theorize that the surname Mee may be occasionally be a
patronym derived from a pet form of the personal name Matthew.
Amongst the family names emerging from the mists of time are the ones
from Holland and Belgium such as the ancient posterity of Mee. The
distinguished history of the surname is closely entwined within the
colourful tapestry of the ancient chronicles of Britain. The heritage
of the Mee surname is thought to lie with Flemish weavers who
emigrated to Northern Britain.


The Flemish and Dutch presence in Britain commenced about the year
1150 A.D. and contributed to the Industrial development than any
other race. The Flemings were the artisan industrialist of the low
countries.
The Flemings were recruited first in Scotland to develop Scottish
industry. They became ardent Scottish patriots ,so much so that at the
storming of Berwick by the English in 1296, the Flemings barricaded
themselves in the Red hall with such stubborn resistance, they were
buried to a man.


They later immigrated south to Wales and the west of England where
they spawned the weaving and the woollen industry . In
Norfolk, Suffolk and Herefordshire they were particularly involved in
papermaking and erected several fine paper mills.

Professional researchers have carefully scrutinized such ancient
manuscripts as the Ragman Rolls (1291-1296) a record of homage
rendered to King Edward 1st of England, the Curia Regis Rolls ,The
Pipe Rolls, the Hearth Rolls, parish registers, baptismals, tax records
and other ancient documents and found the first record of the name
Mee in Nottingham where they were seated 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.


During the early and middle development phase of the name many
different spellings were found in the archives researched. Although
your name, Mee, occurred in many manuscripts, from time to time the
surname was spelt Mee, meigh, My and these variations in spelling
frequently occurred, even between father and son. It was not uncommon
for a person to be born with one spelling, married with another and
yet another to appear on his or her headstone. Scribes and church
officials spelt the name as it was told to them.


The family name Mee emerged as a notable English name in Nottingham
where they were recorded as a family of great antiquity seated with
a manor and estates in that shire. This industrial family were
settle in the early 14th century of East Redford in Nottingham from
their original seat of My in Flanders. By the 15th century they had
branched to St. Binnet's Fink in London where they continued their
business interests and became prominent in the capital financial
community. later Job Meigh acquired Ash Hall in Staffordshire .Notable
in the family at this time was Meigh of Stafford.


In England the Flemings started the trades of paper making, book
publishing, glass blowing , clothiers, glove making and many more
Many Flemings rose to high office and became members of the Peerage ,
including the Earls of Radnor and the Earls of Clancarty.
during the 16th,17th,18th centuries, England was ravaged by religious
conflict. Puritanism , the newly found political fervour of
Cromwellianism and the remnants of the Roman church competed for the
peoples' allegiances. During these turbulent times the conflicts
between Church groups, the Crown and political groups , as well as
their tithes , and demands on the rich and poor alike broke the
spirit of the people. Some turned away from religion, others
desperately renewed their faith, pursuing it with vigour and ferocity.


The Flemings were responsible in Ireland for the development of the
fine linen trade, for the development of the Irish pottery and gave
their name to such streets in Dublin as Combe, Pimlico and
Spitalfield. The leader of the Flemish contingent in Ireland was the
Marquis de Ravign of Port Arlington. The name Mee may well have
arrived in Ireland with the "Cromwellian Adventurers for Land" in the
17th century. At that time, 1,000 acres was available to settlers in
Ulster for 200 pounds, in Connaught's for 300 pounds and in Leister
for 600 pounds.

In the midst of this religious turmoil of the Middle Ages , the New
World beckoned the adventurous. They migrated, some voluntarily from
Ireland, but mostly directly from England, their home territories.
Some also moved to the European continent. Settle in Australi a,New
Zealand, the Carolinas, Virginia, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and the
West Indies.


Members of the family named Mee sailed aboard the armada of small
sailing ships known as the "White Sails" which plied the stormy
Atlantic.
These overcrowded ships were pestilence ridden, sometimes were 30% to
40 % of the passenger list never reaching their destination, their
numbers decimated by illness and the elements.

Early emigrants to North American bearing the Mee surname or spelling
variation of that family name include George Mee, who settled in
Virginia in 1635, James ,John, Robert and William Mee who all arrived
in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860, as wee as another William Mee
who settled in Baltimore in 1775.


From the port of entry many settlers made their way west, joining the
wagon trains to the prairies or to the west coast. During the
American

War of Independence, many loyalists made their way north to Canada
about 1790, and became known as the United Empire Loyalist.

Contemporary notables of this surname, Mee, include Professor John
Mee, management; Mrs. Ellen Mee, lecturer and Frederick George Mee,
lecturer.


The Motto for the Coat of Arms translates as By Divine Providence.

 

Possible Origins of Surname According To One Mee Researcher

Katy (see "Other MEE Researchers" below)
tells me that the name MEE is thought to be derived
from the name "LeMEY"
probably originated from Brittany, France.
Katy told me that the Mee''s
seem to have settled
in England
in the 1100s in one area.
There is a book in the Museum of Leicester
called the "Genealogy of the Mee Family"
written in 1913 by Charles Cowper Mee
More on History name

Other Mee Researchers;

Alvin and Terry Mee

Chadwick Mee

GenForum Mee

Katy Mee

Sandra Frisby's Page re Mee Clan

ARTHUR JOHN MEE born Jun 26 or Jun 27, 1880
7 siblings married to NELL CARVELL
birth date not known.9 siblings
exact town Nell from not known
but town 10 min from Kettering
My grandfather died 1956
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
She died Jan 1947
Toronto, Ontario, Canada 
They had four children
Ethel, Vera, Bill and my dad Ernest.

it is one of those pieces of the puzzle we have to yet fit together. Ironically, Kate proved to just live a few blocks from me. Like I said; small world.
The Url to Kate' s website is just below. 
I urge anyone who wants to follow up research around the MEE surname to visit her website.


JUST MEE FAMILY HISTORY PAGE