The Snellings of Surrey, England
URREY is the English county directly southwest of London. In Elizabethan times, the City of London was distinct from other nearby communities, such as Westminster, in what today is called Greater London. Now, much of northern Surrey is part of Greater London.
About 20 miles southwest of the City of London is the town of East Horsley, Surrey. In the old church, there are brass memorial plaques for a John Snellyng, who died in 1496, and another John Snelling, who died in 1504.
About 60 years later, George Snellyng was selected bailiff in Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey, in 1563. While we have not yet verified the relationship, we believe he was related to the two John Snellings of East Horsley, which was just 10 miles away, as well as to Thomas and Marke Snelling of Kingston.
Kingston-upon-Thames is directly across the Thames River from the estate of Hampton Court, up river from London and in the vicinity of Wimbledon. In medieval times, it was an important royal center with a stature similar to the City of London. Seven Anglo-Saxon kings were crowned there in the 10th century and it remained an important adminstrative center right through the English Civil Wars.
The position of bailiff was appointed by the crown and local authorities. It's an administrative post, typically with the power to collect taxes and serve as a magistrate. There were two bailiffs selected each year. And George Snelling served 11 times including 1563, 1669, 1572, 1578, 1586, 1589, 1594, 1597, 1598, 1604 and 1610.
The spelling of the Snelling name showed variation in the town records during this period. The record of his first selection lists him as George Snellyng. Then each subsequent appointment lists him as George Snellinge.
The Snelling name reappears on the list of Kingston-upon-Thames bailiffs again in 1619 with Thomas Snelling. Thomas was selected four times including 1619, 1623, 1628 and 1631.
We have seen reports which indicate Thomas Snelling may have received a land grant in Delaware at about that time, which could explain why his name does not continue to appear in the town records of Kingston-upon-Thames. The American colonies were just beginning to open up at that time. The ill-fated colony at Jamestown, Virginia, had been formed in 1607 and everyone there died by 1609. The Mayflower sailed for Massachusetts in 1620 to create the first permanent settlement.
Thomas' brother, Marke Snelling, is the other prominent Snelling in Kingston during that period. He had served as an alderman (city councilman) in the City of London and was broadly praised in Kingston for his charity when he died in 1633, leaving considerable sums to the poor.
We believe that Marke Snelling, whose first name was spelled Mark in some records, is the father of the first Snellings in Spain, although that has not yet been documented.
We discuss our reasons for this belief in the accompanying article on Marke Snelling.
Curiously, after 70 years of Snellings continuously holding prominent positions in Kingston-upon-Thames, the Snelling name disappears from public life there from the time Marke Snelling died in 1633. Thomas Snelling did not appear on the bailiffs list after 1631. Nor has any other Snelling. We suspect key members of the Snelling family may have left the area shortly after Marke's death.