The surname has several phonetic variants, including ENGWELL, ENGUELL and ENQUELL, all of which are corruptions of the dwelling place of the original family - thought to be one of the hamlets (Cold Norton or Stow Maries) which grew up along the river Crouch (just North of the river Thames) in Tudor times

The first element 'Ing' or 'Eng' derives from the Anglo Saxon for a hill or peak and the second element refers to a natural spring or borehole - presumably the family home was sheltered in the lee of a hill near to a significant water source

Many members of the family moved from Essex into London in the mid-19th Century whilst some travelled from Plymouth to America with the earliest New World settlers. Others migrated towards the City of London and settled within the sound of Bow bells to give birth to a generation of Cockney descendents. The root of the family tree has (so far) been traced back to 1794 when Richard and Elizabeth married in the parish of Horndon - England (research continuing).

Richard and Elizabeth (maiden name looks like TABER but very difficult to decipher) had at least three daughters and five sons. Four of the sons married and the name Engwell (and variants) was in turn continued through seven of their male children - the majority of Engwell's living in Essex today will trace their ancestry to one of these seven family elders . If you share the name Engwell (or one of its many variants), you may be interested in the detailed birth/marriage/death records and lifestories of your forebears held in the One Name Group database - accessed by pressing the family crest above.
If you have information on your Engwell ancestors that you would be willing to contribute to the database then please drop an e-mail to stuart@ingwell.com for more information

This branch includes five siblings who are known to have survived to adulthood - three brothers (James, Richard, and Charles), who continued the family name and two sisters (Mary and Elizabeth). who changed surname on marriage: Elizabeth marrying Maurice GOODEY and Mary marrying William LAVER.

The eldest son, James married his cousin Ann ENGWELL (daughter of his uncle William) on 24 Jul 1854. She bore him a daughter Emma but died giving birth to their second daughter Mary Ann in 1857. Eight years later, on 13 Nov 1864 he remarried Elizabeth Jane CROSBEY who was twelve years his junior. According to census records they later established their whole family in Little Wakering.

Samuel and Elizabeth had at least five children who survived to adulthood - two sons (Samuel and James) and three daughters (Caroline, Mary Ann and Emma); the names of these daughters' spouses (assuming they were married) are currently unknown

The eldest son (also named Samuel) married Hannah in around 1850. Initally they remained in the area of Purleigh and Stow Maries (according to the 1851 and 1871 censuses) but later they moved their family to Rayleigh (1881 census)

William and Sarah Ann (nee UNKNOWN) had at least ten children including three sons, but only the youngest (George) survived to marry and carry on the family name.

His elder brother Alfred (1848) and his younger brother John (1852) died in infancy as did his elder sister Jane (1841)

His six sisters were all married: Mary Ann married James SAUNDERS, Emma married Samuel SMITH, Lucy married John CHILEY, Jane married Nat ENNIFER, and Susanna married Alfred SHARPE.

The younger son, George married twice. His first wife Alice BECK was a widow with one child (Ethel BIRD) and the couple had one child together - Herbert Percy INGWELL born in Stowe Maries. Alice, however, died young and George went on to father seven more children (6 boys and one girl) with his second wife Susan GENTRY. Susan was a London girl (born in Shoreditch) and the whole family was brought up in Kensington. They were not entirely conventional, however, and their son Preston is recorded in the 1901 Census as a Circus Showman !

Richard and Hannah Davis had at least three sons and two daughters. Richard was a farm bailiff and fairly well-off - he left the princely sum of £300 in his will. Records of their eldest daughter Hannah remain to be researched but their younger daughter Elizabeth married James EARL - who hailed from Cornwall (Boat builder).

The eldest son (Charles) married Eliza Ann (nee Not Known) and, according to the census of 1881, they established their family in Downham. Charles took over as farm bailiff when his father died but only survived for a further few years himself.