Draft:Flew (Surname)

Flew is a surname that appears to be primarily of English origin. It is the 633,196th most common name in the world. Its origin possibly stems from the Old English “flod(e)”, from “flowan” meaning “to flow”. It was possibly attributed to someone who dwelt near a small stream.

Another possibility is from the Welsh name Lloyd, meaning a person who dresses in grey or has grey hair.

History
Now is the time.

The earliest record of the name Flod is attributed to Roger Flod who lived around 1200, documented in “Documents illustrative of the Social and Economic History of the Danelaw".

Other examples include John de la Flodein the Hundred Rolls of Hampshirein in 1273, and John Floer in the Hundred Rolls of Devon in 1275. Early church records include the christenings of Frauncis Floode in 1542, at St. Michael's, Bassishaw, London, Anne Fluin at St Mary Whitechapel in 1616 and Eline Flewen at St Dunstans in the East, Stepney, in 1665. The marriage of Srah Flewan was recorded in 1665 at St. Dunstans.

Flews in England
The earliest recorded Flew in England, Thomas Flue, appears in The Tudor Lay Subsidies list in 1525.

The 1542 muster rolls of the Liberty of Portelond (Portland) in Dorset reported a Tho (Thomas) Flewe with a bow and 1/2 sheaf of arrows and Jn (John) Flew with a bow and 6 arrows. They were most probably father and son.

One of the earliest instance of the name Flew in English church records is the burial record of Alyce Flew on April 14, 1559, in Cannington, Somerset.

On July 4, 1736, the marriage of John Flew and Jone Dunn was recorded in Carhampton, Somerset. The record included the notation “ats Lewellin” (“also known as Lewellin”). The same notation was included for the marriage of Thomas Flew to Mary Davis on November 27, 1736. It is possible that, with Carhampton lying approximately 15 miles south across the Bristol Channel from Wales, migrants adopted the local name to conceal their Welsh origins.

Johnathan Barry, Professor of Early Modern History at the University of Exeter, UK, in his 2013 book "Raising Spirits", recalls the story of a William Flew who, near Downend, east of Bristol, UK, conjured a magical tree. Berry goes on to state that a William Flew was born about 1752. He married in Long Ashton, UK, just south of Bristol, UK, and died there in 1836.

Census
While England began taking census as early as 1801, until 1841, the data collected was merely a head count. Though some lists did include names, this information is sporadic. England retains data for 100 years after the census date making 1921 the latest available data. The following is a summary of the available census data by county for 1821 through 1921.

Reviewing the census data, the greatest concentration of Flews in the past was South West England, particularly in the counties of Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire and Somerset. For practical purposes, the Gloucestershire and Somerset counties can be considered as one since most of the Flews are concentrated around Bristol.

A review of available records going back to the 16th century do not reveal a link between the three distinct enclaves of Flews. While it is arguable that the three groups have a common origin, it appears to have been lost in older records.

Flews in the United States
Flews could have arrived in the Colonies as early as the late 17th century; however, no reliable records have yet been found. There a several verifiable records that indicate presence in the 18th century.

Members of Captain Christian Snyder's Company, 2nd Battalion, Philadelphia County Militia dated November 20, 1778, included William Flew.

The 1790 U. S. Census included two records of Flews - William Flew of Roxborough, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (possibly the same as above) and Elizabeth Flew of Germantown, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Records in the late 1700s and early 1800s list Flews mainly in and around Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. These were possibly among the Quakers that followed William Penn to the New World.

Census
The first U.S. census was conducted in 1790. Until 1850, the census collected only the name of each household, the number of white members of the household and the number of slaves. As a result, it is not possible to determine the number of the household that were family members and the numbers below for the 1790-1840 censuses seriously undercounts by name. To exacerbate the undercount, many of the records from 1790 to 1810 were destroyed on August 14, 1814, when, during the war of 1812, the British burned Washington, D.C..

By law, census data must be retained for 72 years. As a result, the latest data released is for 1950. Unfortunately, on January 10, 1921, a fire at the U.S. Department of Commerce building in Washington, DC, destroyed the majority of the population schedules from the 1890 Census. The following is a summary of Flews in the U.S. Census for 1790-1950 with the exception of 1890.

There was a marked drop in Flews from the 1940 to the 1950 census. Fifty-one of the total 111 of the 1940 respondents were female and, with the high marriage rates during and immediately following World War II, many would have married and changed their names.

Flews Throughout the World
In 2014 there were an estimated 482 Flews in 20 countries in the world. The following shows the distribution in the 10 most populated countries. In addition, Morocco, Myanmar, Norway, India, Philippines, France, Vietnam, Canada, Cameroon and Ireland each have one Flew.