For visitors to this site interested in the evolving Duggleby Family Tree, starting around the time of the Domesday book (1086), please see the special page by clicking here where you will find a copy of the latest update to the tree.
I have also provided some information about examples of the very old documents used to produce the family tree. If you are interested in these please take a look at my blog entries by clicking here, here and here.
Duggleby, in addition to being a rather unusual family name is also the name of a village in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It was mentioned in the Domesday Book as ‘Difgelibi‘ when detailing the lands and holding of Beringer of Cosney. The Domesday Book was a land survey and census from 1086. It was commissioned by William the Conqueror to assess the extent of the land and resources owned in England to determine what taxes he could raise.
The history of Duggleby can physically be traced back to about 3000 BC because it is the location of Duggleby Howe, one of the largest Round Barrows in Britain. The Barrow or burial mound is presumed to date from the late Neolithic period. It is 37 metres in diameter and aerial photographs show it is surrounded by a circular enclosure, 370 metres in diameter. There are two concentric bronze-age ditches one inside and one outside this enclosure. The origins of the Duggleby Howe are steeped in mystery. Its location is close to the source of the Gypsey Race, a ‘magical’ stream which rises through a series of springs and flows intermittently. This may well have influenced our ancestors’ decision to build Duggleby Howe. Folklore predicts that when the Gypsey race flows bad fortune is likely. Apparently it flowed in the year before the great plague of 1664!
A series of excavations were performed on the mound in the late 19th century revealing some of its secrets. It would appear that Duggleby Howe was used as a cemetery for a long period of time since the Late Neolithic. Some of the burials appear to have been of important people like chieftains who had flint weapons and ceramic articles buried alongside their bodies as well as tools and artefacts made from from flint, antlers, bones, boar tusk and beaver tooth. Other burials were cremations and the lack of any surrounding vessel or enclosure indicated they may well have been sacrificial offerings, possibly accompanying the burial of local chieftains. The broken bones of the ox, roebuck, red deer, fox, goat, and pig found at the site indicate the burials involved big ceremonial feasts. Interestingly among these were also human bones which had been broken and cooked. It would appear that at least some of the ancient English folk were cannibals (I have included a link for photos and more information about Duggleby Howe in the links section on the right hand side of the archives page).
Moving swiftly on from cannibals to my own ‘Duggleby’ history – it has been possible to trace my ancestors back to just after the time when the village of Duggleby was mentioned in the Domesday Book. The most notable early figure was Sir Henry Duggleby (born 1145). To give this some historical perspective this was around the time of the reign of King Richard 1 of England (Richard the Lion Heart, 1157-1199) and the third crusade. Sir Henry Duggleby was my GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT-GREAT GRANDFATHER (23 ‘greats’). A major acknowledgement is due here to Ellen Reid for her painstaking work and dedication in uncovering much of the documentary basis for this trail.
Clearly some of the earlier dates are approximations. You will also see the variations in spellings of the name as it was registered in the documents over the centuries: it is not just today that people struggle to spell the name Duggleby correctly. A lot of the early information came from Last Will and Testaments. All except the last three generations lived either in Duggleby or villages nearby. The lineage from Sir Henry to myself appears to be as follows (for more detail take a look at the PDF version of the tree available from here):
Duggleby (possibly Difgelibi, first name unknown): Born approx. 1115 – died ? Wife’s name unknown?
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Sir Henry de Duggleby (de Dingelby) Born approx. 1145 – died ? (Brother Jollan): Wife’s name unknown?
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Adam Duggleby Born 1195 –? Wife?
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Adam Duggleby (de Dugleby) 1250 – 1300 (Brother Hugh): Wife Joan
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Ralph Duggleby (de Dugleby) 1275 –? (Siblings: John, Robert, Adam): Wife?
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William Duggleby (Willelmo de Dugelbi) 1305 –? (Siblings: John, Walter): Wife?
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John Duggleby (Dyngelby) 1345 –? (Siblings: William, Robert): Wife?
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John Duggleby (de Duggylby) 1370 –? (One unknown brother): Wife?
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William Duggleby (Willim Dogilby) 1402 –? Wife?
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Duggleby (first name unknown): 1424 –? Wife?
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Thomas Duggleby (Doggleby of Thornholme) 1460 – 1503 Wife Margaret
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Walter Duggleby (Doggleby) 1485 –? (Siblings: Joan, Alice): Wife?
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William Duggleby (Douglebi of North Dalton) 1510 – 1561 (Siblings: Cuthbert, John): Wife?
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Robert Duggleby (Dugleby, Dougelbe of North Dalton) 1535 – 1589 (Siblings: Roger, Ann): Wife Mabel
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William Duggleby (Dougilbie) 1575 – 1620 (Siblings: John, Matthew, Richard, John, Audrey, Issabel) Wife Margaret
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Robert Duggleby 1605 – 1678 (Siblings: William, Thomas, Isabel): Wife Elizabeth
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John Duggleby 1675 – 1728 (Siblings: Nickolas, Elisabeth, Margaret, Beatrice): Wife Elizabeth
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David Duggleby 1723 – 1806 (Siblings: John, Rachel, Ann): Wife Elizabeth
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William Duggleby 1750 – 1794 (Sibling: Rebecca): Wife Elizabeth
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John Duggleby 1775 – 1830 (Siblings: Michael, William, Mary, Betty, Rebecca): Wife Jane
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William Duggleby 1804 – 1876 (Siblings: John, David, Bryan, Mary, Elizabeth, Mary, Anne): Wife Ann
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John Duggleby 1834 – 1911 (Siblings: George, William, Mary, Ann, Elizabeth, Jane, Matilda, Hannah): Wife Ann
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John William Duggleby 1879 – 1950 (Siblings: Seth, Wilson, Fred, Seth, Tom, George, Barbara, Mary, Frances, Ada): Wife Annie
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Leslie Duggleby 1907 – 1943 (Siblings: George, Maude, Adeline, Annie): Wife Elizabeth
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John Leslie Duggleby Born 1937 (Sibling: June): Wife Christine Helen
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Christopher Leslie Duggleby Born 1958 (Siblings: Matthew John, Helen Louise): Wife Monika
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Alexander Duggleby Born 1983 and Pascal Duggleby Born 1989
Chris Duggleby 
Hi
Just thought I would add to the Duggleby tree… My Name is Charlotte Duggleby and I’m married to Tristan Duggleby who’s father is Michael Duggleby who’s brother is John Duggleby who lives at Beswick hall. Tristan and I have two daughters.
I’ve found it very interesting about the history of the Duggleby tree. Please let me know if I can help in the future.
Charlotte
Hello Charlotte,
Thank you for making contact and welcome to our global virtual community of Dugglebys and others interested in the Duggleby ‘clan’, its history and the area in Yorkshire in, and around, the village of Duggleby. Let’s keep in touch and please do not hesitate to use the Duggleby History page as a posting board for exchanging messages with others interested in the growing international Duggleby ‘community of interest’.
Kind regards from a rather snow-bound Surrey,
Chris
HI Diana Collier here. Jemima Ann Duggleby (dau of Alfred Waldby Duggleby) was my gggmother, making me on the American side. All the Duggleby’s came to Davenport, IA and I did the original research on the family in 1975. If I can help fill in the American side, would love to help. Thanks!
Hi Diana,
It is super hearing from you. You are way up there on my choice of people to touch base with once big-oil puts me ‘out to grass’ and I can spend more time on my dream hobby: to help continue to charter the global Duggleby clan. Let’s keep in touch. All the best season’s greetings to you and yours.
Kind regards,
Chris.
Hi Dianna. I’m sure I’ve seen your research and think I’ve met you also. There are so many of the American Waldby Dugglebys it’s hard to keep track. I met Earl in Medaryville some years ago and he gave me a lot of detail on that branch of the family. I still keep in touch with Lois Foster and Ruth Duggleby (Don’s wife).I stayed in Wad and Ramona’s house when I went down there for Earl’s funeral. They had many wonderful old pictures and stories about the family. I think Ellen captured most of this information in her reports. I have a copy of a photograph of Alfred’s wife on the porch of the old farmhouse with the whole family surrounding her, including a chicken in the front yard. Alfred’s photo is hanging on the wall behind her. I believe Judy, Wad’s daughter has the original.
Bonny
Diana, My name is Garrett Duggleby, and my family was from Davenport Iowa. My father was Reginald Duggleby, who had around 8-9 brothers and sisters. My Grand mother was Gertrude Garrett Duggleby and I think my grand father was Alfred Duggleby, who owned a butcher shop in Davenport. He died before I was born. I remember the Colliers from our family reunions..maybe Dorothy Collier.
Hi Garrett,
Welcome to the ‘pin board’ and thanks for taking the trouble to post a response. Diana – over to you.
I never cease to be amazed at the size of the earlier Duggleby generations: although my sister, Helen, with her own addition (with a little help from husband Ignacio!) of 8 Spanish ‘Dugglebys’ in Malaga clearly has no intention of breaking with this tradition. I must check with my father John if he can recall any Duggleby butchers from amongst his own uncles in and around Hull (around the 1940’s).
Kind regards,
Chris.
Chris, My father was born in 1903 in Davenport Iowa. My Grand father was I believe one of three brothers who came to Canada from Yorkshire, probably in the1870’s. I was in the army (US) in 1970 and visited Driffield and Malton where I met a Dentist name Duggleby. We visited Duggleby about 5 years ago. There is alot of history in that area, especially Neolithic and Iron age. During the last Ice age, there was a land bridge between that area and the European continent, which they are now calling Doggerland. The Romans named the Tribe in the Driffield area, the Parisi, which had a lot of similarities to the Parisi that were found around Paris. I am currently interested in the DNA mapping being done in England, because it would allow you to track the Duggleby’s to other areas where these tribes came from/migrated o during the last Ice age. England is fasciating because there is so much of this old history that has been preserved.
I couldn’t agree with you more Garrett, I was amazed to almost stumble over a local prehistorical burial mound here in Surrey when I went jogging one morning. Many people here do not even know they exist. If you are interested I included some information and pictures in one of my blogs last summer (here is the link: https://chrisduggleby.com/2012/05/06/prehistoric-britain-or-more-precisely-prehistoric-woking/). I am thinking of adding some more detail about my family tree and history going back to Sir Henry in future blogs which might provide the global Duggleby community with some potential touch points. In addition some of the related documents just make interesting reading – like the last Will and Testaments of my Duggleby ancestors from the 16th Century. Just need to find a little time – my day job helping to address international issues with Joint Ventures in the Oil Industry is a little intense at the moment!
Watch this space….
Kind regards,
Chris.