This well known northern English name is of Anglo-Saxon origin, and is a locational surname deriving from any one of three places: Wardle in Cheshire, near Nantwich; Wardle in Lancashire, near Rochdale; or Weardale in County Durham. Weardale in County Durham is recorded as "Werredal" in the 1227 Close Rolls, and as "Weredal" in the Durham Assize Court Rolls of 1242; the region is so called from the river Wear, itself named with an ancient British (pre-Roman) word meaning "liquid, water", and the Olde English "dael", valley. The modern surname forms range from Wardle and Wardel(l) to Wardill, Wardall and Wardale. The marriage of John Wardell and Margaret Stockton was recorded on May 5th 1580, at Hurworth-on-Tees, County Durham, and Henry, son of Thomas Wardell, was christened on June 15th 1584, at St. Olave's, York. The family Coat of Arms depicts, on a silver shield, three bezants on a red bend between six red martlets. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of William de Werdale, which was dated 1216, in the "Priory Book of Fees of Durham", during the reign of King Henry 111, known as "The Frenchman", 1216 - 1272. (ref www.surnamedb.com)

The layout of this website is in the form of the 8 generations, with supporting data on census transcription pages, photo pages, a complete index of names of everyone mentioned (the "Names" button above), and a page index that leads directly to each individual page in the website (the "Page Index" button above). To start reading from oldest downwards, press the button above ("Family History Next Gen"). The Home Page button takes you to my other family trees.

There are many uncertain conclusions in this tree in the first three generations, when records are not as complete as we would like them to be.
Bearing this in mind, the possible direct line to Fred Shade is
(1) Thomas Wardle & Jane Bell
(2) Robert Wardle & Mary Wilkinson
(3) Robert Wardle & Elizabeth Hurwith
(4) John Wardle & Elizabeth Armstrong
(5) Sarah Wardle & John Chinery (goes to CHINERY tree)
(6) Mary Jane Chinery & Theodore Shade (goes to SHADE tree)
(7) Albert Shade & Ada Evenia Johnson
(8) Albert Ernest Shade & Mary Beatrice Chapple

Recent Changes

Expansion and includsion of family tree spreadsheet 1 Jan 2024