A surname of England and Ireland, in England from the English place name Shelley (Essex, Suffolk, Yorkshire WR, Northumberland); in Ireland a variant of SHALLOW. (Cottle, MacLysaght). Traced by Guppy in Staffordshire and by Spiegelhalter in Devon.
| At Ferryland | Surrogate Court Records: October 17, 1816 - Shelley, Walter - former resident of Port Law, Waterford, now boatkeeper in Ferryland, owed money to: Holdsworth, Henry and Co. Witness: Gorman, Richard. |
| Ferryland Supreme Court Records - October 2, 1827 Shelly, Walter - Sued: Kearron, Michael. | |
| Ferryland Supreme Court Records - October 16, 1833 Shelly, Walter - Member of Grand Jury. | |
| At Caplin Bay: | Southern District 1825 - 1888, Volume 1 - Page 81: December 5, 1828 - Walter Shelley of Caplin Bay, but now of St. John's, sold his plantation on the south west side of Caplin Bay to Benjamin Sweetland. Land was bounded by the property of John Power and Edward MacNamara, the Nash Plantation, and the road to Ferryland. |
| Royal Gazette - February 20, 1838 - Shelley, Walter - Member of Board of Commission for Roads and Bridges from Bay Bulls to Cape Broyle. | |
| Family History: | Early references to this surname seem to indicate that Walter Shelley lived at Ferryland. However, the land deed of 1828 indicates that Walter Shelley was from Caplin Bay, "but now of Saint Johns". It appears that he may have returned to the area again, since a court entry in 1833, shows a Walter Shelly as a member of the Grand Jury at Ferryland. Nothing else is known of this individual and whether or not he was married and had any children. Although the surname occurs later in some parish records, there is no evidence to link these individuals to Walter Shelley. The 1838 reference to a Walter Shelley as a member of the Board of Commission for Roads and Bridges may refer to the same individual, since members were usually residents of the district. No other references to the surname were found in the southern area of Ferryland District, however, there was a Shelly family living at Bay Bulls Big Pond when the 1921 Census was taken. A possible connection of this family to Walter Shelley could not be established. |
This page was last updated: Friday 10th February, 2006