My MACEY FAMILY History

By John Macey

 

 

 

Chilmark : A Wiltshire Village

The Saxons gave Chilmark its name. "Chil" may have come from "cild" (child) or "cigel" (a pole). "Mearc" meant boundary.

According to the  charter of the Wilton Abbey, King Athelstan (925 - 940 A.D. ) granted 'Chield-mearc'  to the monastery

Remains of previous Stone Age and bronze Age have been found nearby. Also the Iron Age hill-dwelling herdsmen, who cleared the woodland and cultivated the land and became farmers. 

But Where did the Macey's come from?

Romans settled there also in their day and it is possible that the MACEY clan are derived from demobbed soldiers? They used the quarries and their coins have been found. Right through the church registers the family name MACEY appears. The Roman poets Virgil and Ovid apparently had a friend called Macer.

"Mac-e" also would be the name by which anyone of a Roman family MACUS would be addressed. Or were they from Normandy in France? There are two villages in France that bear the name  MACEY  -  same spelling  -  is there a link there somehow?

In a similar way some records suggest that there are links with some of the men under arms who came across the channel with William the Conqueror. Will we ever know?

 

  

Chilmark became well established when, during the 13th. and 14th. Century due to the use of stone from the Chilmark Quarries in many buildings i.e. Salisbury and Chichester cathedrals.  The parish of Chilmark appeared to have survived "The Black Death",  possibly due to its remote location.

Many generations of Macey's (Macy's) worked in the quarries at Chilmark, in fact it has been suggested to me that (at one time) the quarry was owned by a Macey . This is new to me and I hope to follow this line of enquiry in due course.

 

 The Local School at Chilmark

 Typical Houses in Chilmark Village

Further reading about Chilmark can be found in:-

 

England to New England - A Tale of Two Chilmark's  by I. Sinclair pub by Chilmark Books 1994

The Nadder Valley in Old Photographs by Rex Sawyer  pub by Alan Sutton Publishing

 

Chilmark USA from Chilmark, Wiltshire, England

Some Macy (Macey) folk were amongst the first to travel from Chilmark to "The New World". Read on to find out more and surf to find some external links to Macy / Macey researchers in the United States of America.

                                                  

Particularly interested in Wiltshire Genealogy?  You   cant go wrong by visiting Pat Wilson's site to see what help is available. 

 

 

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Updated  25/10/2005