Guild of One-Name Studies
One-name studies, Genealogy
Study: Galley
Variants: Gallay, Galli, Gallie, Gally, Gulley
Category: 1 - A study where research using core genealogical datasets and transcriptions is in its early stages.
Contact: Magdalen Galley-Taylor
This interesting northern English medieval surname, recorded in the spellings of Galley, Gally, Galey, Gally, Galilee and Gallally, is believed to have one of two possible origins.
The first is occupational, and a metonymic or nickname for a galley-man, one who owned or sailed on a galley. A galley was a vessel which was principally driven by oars rather than sail, and whilst on the continent of Europe it generally described a warship, in England the meaning was more prosaic. Here it described a low built, flat-bottomed vessel, used in rivers and shallow estuaries, and navigated with both sails and oars. The derivation is from the French word 'galie' and this was probably introduced after the 1066 Norman Conquest.
The second origin is more romantic and open to conjecture. In the Middle Ages the word 'galilee' described the porch of certain churches, particularly those of Durham and Ely Cathedrals. A family called 'Galilee' have been recorded in the Durham area since the time of Edward II, 1307 - 1327. It is also known that the spelling of this name also 'developed' into Galley and Galey. Early examples of the surname recording include William de la Galilye of Durham in 1337, Adam del Galay of York, in the Friary Rolls of 1304, and John Galley of Newcastle upon Tyne, in 1540.
The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Henry Galye, which was dated 1219 - in the Yorkshire Assize Court Rolls during the reign of King Henry III, 1216 - 1272.
Estimates for the number of people with the surname Galley in the UK in the 1881 census vary somewhat between sources but the average value is 1096. In 1841 it was 602 and in 1911, 1650. By 1939 it had risen to 1695 but of course this excludes those in the forces. The latest UK figure gives a value of 2288.
Early Distribution of the name
UK
Across all the censuses the most populous counties are Essex, Durham, Lancashire and Cheshire, with London and Yorkshire being added in later as industrialization progressed. At the same time numbers in the rural counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire fell.
Australia
Thomas Galley, arrived in Adelaide, Australia from London via Plymouth, UK, aboard the ship "Spartan" on 16 April 1849.
A Mr Galley and his wife plus 2 children left London via Plymouth on the Minerva but one child was lost overboard on the journey. They arrive in Adelaide, Australia on 18 December 1849.
New Zealand
Joseph Henry Galley, British settler travelled from London, UK with 1 child aboard the ship "Assaye" arriving in Auckland, North Island, New Zealand on 26 December 1874
Canada
Philip Galley, landed in Nova Scotia in 1750
USA
Amongst the earliest settlers in the New World was Thomas Galley, aged 20, who left London, England, on 'the 13 die octobris 1635' aboard the ship 'Amitie'.
John Galley purchased land in Salem, Massachusetts in 1637
William Galley, settled in Virginia in 1637
Edward Galley, arrived in Maryland in 1678
George Galley, landed in Virginia in 1716
Daniel Galley, settled in Pennsylvania in 1772
Daniel Galley, landed in New York in 1801
William Galley, arrived in New York in 1801
James Galley, landed in America in 1807
John Galley, arrived in New York in 1813
Joseph Galley, settled in New Orleans in 1822