Kelsall Genealogy

A Web Page for all those interested in genealogy related to the family name KELSALL

I have registered the KELSALL name with the Guild of One-Name Studies. As such I have agreed to collect and compile information from all sources and to respond to all reasonable enquiries regarding the name.

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Contact Information

This site is maintained by Peter Kelsall. I will welcome your comments or additions. Please e-mail me at:

kelsall@q.com or visit my Guestbook

Last revised: January 5, 2010

Favorite Links

For general information on the village of Kelsall plus many links to Cheshire genealogy visit the Cheshire section of Genuki

For historical information for the village of Kelsall visit the Kelsall Village site and Don Dickson’s site

For reproductions of several articles of historical interest visit the site maintained by David Kelsall

For a forum of messages seeking information on Kelsall ancestors see The Kelsall Family Genealogy Forum

Origins of the Kelsall Name

The Kelsall name most obviously derives from the village of the same name in Cheshire. According to the Dictionary of Surnames (Hanks & Hodges) the name derives from “Kell’s nook or recess”.

As related in Barthomley.: In Letters From A Rector To His Eldest Son published in 1856 by The Rev. Hinchcliffe and Notes on the Family of Kelsall published by John Kelsall in 1916, the village is mentioned in the Domesday Book (1086) and the name Adam de Kelsall appears as early as 1277. William Kelsall was Sheriff of Chester in 1335 and Stephen de Kelsall was Mayor of Chester in 1350. (Much later, John Kelsall was Mayor of Chester in 1768 and his name appears on the Eastgate Arch below the famous clock, said to be the most photographed clock in the world after Big Ben. This John Kelsall is said to belong to the Kelsalls of Dodleston or Kinnerton.)

According to Lyson’s Magna Britannia (1810), the ancient branch of the Kelsall family from Tarvin (presumably the village of Kelsall) became extinct at an early period but a younger branch can be traced to Heathside and Bradshaw Hall in Cheadle.

Bardsley records the name Reginald de Keleshalle from 1273 in Cambridge and Johannes Kelesall from 1379 in Yorkshire. Reaney records Kelsale from 13th C Suffolk and Kelshall from 13th C Hertfordshire, both said to be “surviving as Kelsall”.

Distribution of Kelsall Families

Present-day Population

From telephone directory entries I estimate that there about 5000 people in the world with the name Kelsall. As shown in this table almost 70% are in the UK.

Country

Estimated Population

Percentage

United Kingdom

3200

68

United States

600

13

Australia

600

13

Canada

150

3

New Zealand

150

3

South Africa

20

.4

Other

10

.2

Total

4730

100

The numbers for the UK are estimated as follows: Population of Kelsalls = number on BT disc x total population/entries on disc

(=763 x 58,000,000/14,000,000).

Interestingly, almost the same answer is obtained by taking the proportion of Kelsalls in the total population in the 1881 census times the present population.

The numbers for the USA, Australia, Canada and New Zealand are obtained from the number of phonebook entries x 1.35 (allowance for unlisted numbers) x 2.5 people per household. The numbers for South Africa and “others” are guesses

Over half of all Kelsall households in the U.K. are in three counties, Staffordshire, Lancashire and Cheshire. In the USA, Kelsall is such a rare name that it is not found in the list of the 88,799 most common names found by the official Census.

If you have any information to add to these numbers please e-mail me at kelsall@q.com.

1881 British Census

The total population of Kelsall individuals in the 1881 British census was 1585. This includes 1515 Kelsall, 36 Kellsall, 19 Kelsal, 13 Kelsell and 2 Kelsale. Six individuals were in Scotland, the remainder in England & Wales. The most populous counties were as follows:

Summary

Lancashire

605

38.2%

38.2%

Staffordshire

433

27.3%

65.5%

Cheshire

280

17.7%

83.2%

Yorkshire

43

2.7%

85.9%

Shropshire

36

2.3%

88.1%

Nottinghamshire

32

2.0%

90.2%

Warwickshire

25

1.6%

91.7%

Derbyshire

20

1.3%

93.0%

Devon

18

1.1%

94.1%

Flintshire

17

1.1%

95.2%

London

17

1.1%

96.3%

Surrey

8

0.5%

96.8%

Cambridgeshire

6

0.4%

97.2%

Hampshire

6

0.4%

97.5%

Durham

5

0.3%

97.9%

Denbighshire

4

0.3%

98.1%

Edinburgh

4

0.3%

98.4%

Northumberland

4

0.3%

98.6%

Worcestershire

4

0.3%

98.9%

Cumberland

3

0.2%

99.1%

Lincolnshire

2

0.1%

99.2%

Oxford

2

0.1%

99.3%

Roxburgh

2

0.1%

99.4%

Somerset

2

0.1%

99.6%

Buckinghamshire

1

0.1%

99.6%

Leicester

1

0.1%

99.7%

Gloucester

1

0.1%

99.7%

Kent

2

0.1%

99.9%

Dorset

1

0.1%

99.9%

Essex

1

0.1%

100.0%

1585

100.0%

Kelsall Distribution in 1881 (without variants)

Drawn using Surname Atlas, Archer Software 2003

The total population of England & Wales recorded in the 1881 census was 25,974,436. There was, therefore, approximately one Kelsall for every 16,000 inhabitants.

The distribution of the Kelsall name is consistent with migration from its source in Cheshire to the neighbouring industrial counties of Staffordshire and Lancashire. In 1881 83% of all Kelsall families in the UK lived in these three counties. I think it is possible that most Kelsalls in Staffordshire are descended from James Kelsall of Audley.

Links to Kelsall Researchers

If you would like to be added to this list, or modify an entry, please e-mail Peter Kelsall.

	Researcher	Original UK County	Original UK Location	Interests	Other UK Locations	Other Overseas Locations
1	Kelsall, Peter	Staffordshire	Audley	James Kelsall, 1530	Buckley, Flintshire
2	Fox, Elizabeth	Staffordshire	Stoke	Frederick/Arthur, 1911
3	Galletly, Donald	Flintshire	Overton	Godfrey Kelsall, 1792/3	Wem, Shropshire; West Bromwich
4	Kelsall, Andrew	Staffordshire	Hanley	William Kelsall, 1781 m Clementina Clowes 1804 Whitmore	Stoke
5	Lawton, Greg	Staffordshire	Newcastle	Mary Elizabeth Kelsall, 1892
6	Powner, David	Staffordshire	Hanley
7	Smith, Colin	Cheshire	Wilmslow	Jonathon Kelsall b 1692	Ashton upon Mersey
8	Strong, Bill	Staffordshire	Hanley
9	Prokay, Janice	Cheshire	Stretford
10	McNamara, John	Staffordshire	Hanley	William Kelsall, 1781 m Clementina Clowes 1804 Whitmore
11	Harding, John	Cheshire	North Rode
12	Kelsall, Phil	Cheshire	Utkinton		Wyersdale
13	Wilson, Helen Louise; Wilson Cindy Sue	Lancashire	Childwall			Castlemaine, Australia; Reno Kansas
14	Charnley, Norman	Cheshire	Lymm	Henry
15	Higgins, Laura	Flintshire	Buckley
16	Taylor, Ken	Staffordshire	Hanley
17	Wilson, Kathleen	Staffordshire	Burslem	Richard Kelsall b 1831 connects to William Kelsall, 1781 m Clementina Clowes 1804
18	Kelsall, Gerald					Massachusetts
19	Kelsall, David; Pearson, Andrew	Staffordshire	Hanley, Wolstanton	Joseph Kelsall, 1839	Lancashire	New Zealand
20	Pollard, Roslyn	Staffordshire	Hanley	Charles Kelsall, b 1885
21	Buckley, Alan	Warwickshire	Birmingham	William George Kelsall b 1834, m Rosetta Lawley
22	Bowerman, Phil	Staffordshire	Burslem	Clement Kelsall, m Ann King 1888, father Clement Kelsall m Ann King
23	Bell, Bryant Kelsall			Walter Kelsall, father of Victor Albert Kelsall		New Zealand
24	Hexler, Cheryl					New York City
25	Jameson, Jackie	Cheshire	Hyde
26	Plowman, Heidi					Queensland
27	Patterson, Karen Eardley	Staffordshire	Whitmore
28	Bialis, Doris Kelsall	Warwickshire	Birmingham	John Kelsall m Susannah Hatman; William George Kelsall b 1834, m Rosetta Lawley	Flintshire
29	Carter, Jennifer	Cheshire	Northenden, Stockport
30	Kelsall, Dave	Cumberland	Workington
31	Ebsworth, Taylor	Lancashire	Manchester
32	Kelsall, David	Staffordshire	Audley	James Kelsall, 1530	Flintshire
33	Tarleton, Adam	Lancashire	Liverpool
34	Bryant, Gwyneth	Cheshire	Bowden
35	Smith, Jack	Lancashire	Ashton under Lyne
36	Kelsall, Donald S	Warwickshire	Birmingham
37	Kelsall, Donald R			Richard Kelsall m Edna May Clever, b c1883		Canada, Victoria
38	Kelsall, Angela					Western Australia
39	Kelsall, Paul	Lancashire	St. Helens
40	Lawrence, Karen	Lancashire	Stretford		Wilmslow
41	Emerson, Lorraine	Staffordshire	Hanley	Charles Kelsall m Ellen Bradbury 1813
42	Bolsover, Andrew	Cheshire	Wilmslow
43	Waudby, Irene	Staffordshire	Chesterton
44	Kelsall, Chris	Staffordshire	Audley	James Kelsall, 1530	Nottinghamshire
45	Burch, Carolyn	Cheshire	Wilmslow
46	Morakis, Patricia	Staffordshire	Wolstanton	William 1751 m Hannah Steele; parents of William b. 1773 m Dorothy Taylor 1794	Burslem, Talke Pits
47	Ward, Lawrence	Staffordshire	Burslem	Elias Kelsall b 1799 parents James & Sarah
48	Birks, Lisa	Staffordshire	Stoke	William Kelsall, 1781
49	Marker, Jim & Betty	Staffordshire	Hanley	Sarah Kelsall m William Rivers, 1835
50	Kelsall, Jeanne Marie					Hawaii
51	Kelsall, Fiona	Lancashire	Bleasedale
52	Mandel, Chris	Lancashire	Manchester	Richard & Grace Webster Kelsall, m 1799; Ida Mae Kelsall		New York
53	Kelly, Marion	Staffordshire	Hanley
54	Kelsall, Andy	Staffordshire	Burslem	Francis Robert Kelsall b 1935
55	Balcombe, Andrea	Warwickshire	Birmingham
56	Brown, Wendy	Staffordshire	Burslem	Thomas Kelsall b 1806; Eliza Kelsall m Elijah Finn	Wolstanton
57	Heath, Eugene					Nebraska
58	Kelsall, Samantha	Warwickshire
59	Tanner, Harold	Lancashire	Manchester	Ida Mae Kelsall, m. Alvin R. Johnson		New York
60	Kelsall, Gary	Staffordshire	Hanley, Penkhull
61	Kelsall, Terry	Lancashire	Wyresdale
62	Nelson, Annette	Lancashire	Wyresdale
63	Knowles, Stephen	Cheshire	Birkenhead			Australia, Melbourne
64	Kelsall, John & Lottie	Lancashire	Stretford
64	Kelsall, John William	Lancashire	Stretford
64	Kelsall, Allan James	Lancashire	Stretford
65	Kelsall, Becky					Canada, Edmonton
66	Kelsall, Peter	Staffordshire	Telford
67	Kelsall, Peter M	Lancashire				New South Wales
68	Kelsall, Steve	Cheshire	Hyde
69	Wyatt, Sue	Staffordshire	Burslem	Joseph Kelsall, 1831-1910, Bignall Hill Farm. Connects to William K b 1747 (Pat Morakis)
70	Low, Valda			Henry Kelsall,m Mary Eudoxia Lindses Dellas (aka. Dallas) in 1879		Australia or NZ
71	Duffy, Claire	Cheshire	Wilmslow	Peter Hulme m Sarah Kelsall 1845, father William Kelsall possible relations Samuel, Pamela and Elijah Kelsall
72	Wilkinson, Wright	Lancashire		Hannah Kelsall, b 1872, d Fall River Mass 1932		Massachusetts
73	Young, Bob			John, 1722
74	Thomas, Keith	Yorkshire		[KELSHAW]
75	Van Der Poll, Sheila	Lancashire	Burtonwood	Isaac Kelsall 1785 & Elizabeth, Gt. Sankey
76	Wildig, Reg	Staffordshire	Audley	Elizabeth, 1813
77	Adamson, George; Adamson, Pete	Lancashire	Wyresdale
78	Collier, Alan Moss	Lancashire	Wyresdale	John		Utah
79	Curley, Pat	Cheshire	Congleton	Catherine, 1902
80	Kinsey, Richard	Cheshire	Wilmslow
81	Kelsall, Roger	Staffordshire	Hanley	William Kelsall, 1781 m Clementina Clowes 1804 Whitmore
82	Edwards, Peter	Shropshire	Dudleston	Anne, 1813
83	Benson, Clark			Anne Kelsall m to Fredrick Labram b 1880		Missourri
84	Kelsall, Stacey Dawn			William Kelsall, b c. 1812
85	Kelsall, Guy M.	Lancashire	Wyresdale	William Kelsall m Elizabeth Mason		Oregon, Texas, NM, BC
86	Kelsall, Nigel	Staffordshire	Hanley	Wilfred Charles Kelsall b 1900
87	Iliff, Barbara			Samual Kelsall arrived Boston 1873 aged 29. Hannah Kelsall, b 1872, d Fall River Mass 1932		Massachusetts
88	Kelsall, Will	Devon	Westward Ho!	John Kelsall, 1766 m Lucretia Moultrie; Conrad Moultrie Kelsall & Piera Migliorini		Rosedale, California; Deeral, Queensland
89	Kelsall, Stephen			John Oswald Wright Kelsall b 1830s
90	Scargill, Anthony	Cheshire	Smallwood near Astbury, Northenden, Cheadle	John Kelsall (bap. 27.08.1721) and Sarah Arrowsmith (m. 29.12.1744).
91	Kelsall, Tom	Lancashire	Wyresdale
92	Meaney, Olive Jean	Lancashire	Warrington	William Kelsall b ~ 1831; Francis William Kelsall, b 1882		New Zealand
93	Kelsall, Chris			Richard Butler Kelsall m Edna May Clever, b c1883
94	Wooldridge, Margaret	Staffordshire	Burslem	Sarah Kelsall m Joseph Turner 1838. Parents Michael Kelsall & Sarah Reeves. Connects to William K b 1747	Wolstanton
95	Kelsall, David Albert	Staffordshire	Stoke	Albert Kelsall b 1931
95	Kelsall, David Albert	Nottinghamshire		William Leslie Kelsall born Nottingham 1909
96	Robertshaw, Lorraine	Flintshire	Overton	Mary Kelsall m James Wainwright, 1860's
97	Sickles, Ted	Warwickshire	Birmingham	William George Kelsall b 1834, m Rosetta Lawley
98	Kelsall, Michelle	Staffordshire	Stoke	Harold Kelsall b c1810
99	Speakman, Nicky	Staffordshire	Hanley	Elizabeth Kelsall m Isaac Fern, 1857
100	Rodger, June	Staffordshire	Burslem	Elias Kelsall b 1799 parents James & Sarah
101	Aldridge, Kay	Staffordshire	Bucknall	Ernest Kelsall d 1941
102	Kelsall, Peter	Lancashire	Salford	John Kelsall m Margaret Ellen Gilmore
103	McKenzie, Natalia	Cheshire	Bowdon	Sarah Kelsall m Thomas Pimlott, 1755
104	Harris, Ann	Cheshire	Bowdon	Martha Kelsall bapt 1 March 1742, father James Kelsall b ~ 1710 Carrington, m Elizabeth Owen 1738. Martha m William Garner, 1769
105	Richardson, Colin	Lancashire	Quernmore	Mary Elizabeth Kelsall, b 1848, m William Richardson 1868; John Kelsall b c 1593	Cockerham Eaton, Cheshire
106	Kelsall, Lee-Ann	Staffordshire	Hanley	Joseph Henry Kelsall b 1907, parents William John Kelsall and Olive ?	Durham
107	Kelsall, Russ Adam	Staffordshire	Stoke	Paul Raymond Kelsall	Birmingham, Scotland
108	Kelsall, Rachel	Staffordshire	Burslem	David John Kelsall b 1938, mother Kathleen Kelsall
109