Researching James Speed
Delve into the history of James Speed using the links below. We hope you find this information useful!
 | Did you know that in the 1881 UK census there were 2406 people with the Speed surname? In that year Speed was ranked number 1608 for popularity in the UK. |
The name James means "one who supplants" and is of Hebrew origin.
Records of James Speed on Ancestry
Ancestry is a major source of information if you are filling out the detail of James Speed in your family tree. With over 30 billion records and 100 million family trees to search, Ancestry is one of the key websites to visit to help you trace your family tree back in time. Free trials are normally available and are a good way to fill out a lot of your tree quickly.
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Ancestry.com Global records search results for James Speed. |
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Ancestry.com US records search results for James Speed. |
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Ancestry.co.uk UK records search results for James Speed. |
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Ancestry.ca Canadian records search results for James Speed. |
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Ancestry.com.au Australian records search results for James Speed. |
DNA
Sometimes you can run into a brick wall in your tree and you just don't have enough evidence to make that next step back in time. A DNA test can sometimes help to make a link to a particular family name if you find you share common DNA with people who have the same or similar surnames as each other. If you are lucky then you may get a match within a few generations and discover some Speed ancestors. Additionally, the modern DNA test can give you a breakdown of your ethnic mix - you may be surprised at the results!
Have you reached a brick wall in your Speed Tree?
Birth, Death and Marriage Records for James Speed and the Speed Family Tree
Birth, Death and Marriage records are often the best method of making the links to the Speed Genealogy that will form part of your family tree. Although records vary from country to country, they are normally the most formal record of a person's relations. From the sources listed below it will be possible to locate a birth record and, from that record, a birth certificate may be obtainable which is likely to list the names of the parents, therefore taking you back another generation. A marriage certificate may also list the names of the respective fathers of the bride and groom which may then help you to find them earlier in life on a census record enabling you to fill out more detail in the Speed family tree.
Investigate Parish Records for James Speed at Find My Past.
Search for the UK registered births, marriages and deaths of James Speed using the FreeBMD database.
Search Genealogy Bank for James Speed records.
Search MyHeritage for James Speed information.
Look at the LDS Database for records about James Speed.
Research the Speed surname using fold3 Military Archives and view images of original Speed Military records.
| Did you know that there are currently 3258 people with the Speed surname in the UK? Speed is now ranked number 1712 for popularity in the UK. |
Speed Family History Databases
Another way to build your tree quickly is to use the research other people have already done. This can help to confirm or refute your own deductions - however, be wary of taking this data at face value as other researchers may not have been as meticulous as you. Always try to back up deductions with some definitive sources rather than relying too heavily on others.
Investigate the WikiTree database for user contributed records for James Speed.
Study MyTrees for information on the Speed family and people looking to contact living Speed relations.
Study One Great Family for Speed records submitted by people who are already researching the Speed Family Tree.
Find James Speed from Ireland on findmypast.ie
Speed Forums
There are a number of forums which are dedicated to rearching particular surnames. These can be good places to share your findings and also to tap into the knowledge that others may already have. These can sometimes be a good way of finding living relations as these tend not to show up on the other sources of information for privacy reasons.
Research the Speed surname using Genealogy.com forums .
| Did you know that there are currently 9115 people with the Speed surname in the USA? Speed is ranked number 154 for popularity in the USA. |
Miscellaneous Speed Databases
Search the Ellis Island Database for information on James Speed. This database contains over 25 million immigration records detailing passengers arriving in the United States of America.
Some Famous People called James Speed
James Stephens Speed
James Stephens Speed (1811–1860) was the ninth Mayor of Louisville, Kentucky. His father, John Speed, moved to Jefferson County in about 1795 and established a farm on Salt River Rd. (which became Dixie Highway), about 9 miles south of Louisville. James Speed moved to Louisville in his late teens and within a few years became a partner in a building and railroad contracting firm, Pickett and Speed.
He was elected to the Kentucky House of Representatives in 1843, and appointed a United States marshal by president Zachary Taylor in 1849. He was served as mayor of Louisville from April 26, 1852 until April 1855. The rules governing the office were confusing, and Speed was actually re-elected by popular vote each year of his term, yet never awarded an election certificate. Speed argued that his original election meant his term lasted until 1856, but a resolution in 1855 called for a new election that year. The election was won by Know-Nothing candidate John Barbee. Speed did not run in the election, believing he would remain mayor anyway, but Barbee was recognized as mayor by the city council, overriding Speed's veto. Speed appealed but ultimately lost at the Kentucky Supreme Court.
The Know-Nothings were inspired by editorials of the Louisville Daily Courier, which opposed Speed for his Catholicism (he was a Catholic convert), a major local controversy of the time (Speed was the first Catholic mayor). In 1856 Speed moved to Chicago, where he spent the remainder of his life. As mayor, he was chiefly concerned with public works projects, such as the water works and street improvement.
Source: James Stephens Speed, Wikipedia, The Free EncyclopediaOther names that sound a bit like Speed
Family names can get corrupted over time, particularly where literacy was not as good. The following list contains some names that have similar sounds so you may want to also look at one or two of the more likely possibilites.
Sabad Sabat Sabate Sabathe Sabati Sabbathi Sabetta Sabido Sabota Saft Savid Sawfoot Scafati Scaffidi Seebode Sepeda Sept Sevitt Seybt Shaffett Shafto Shoffit Shoptaw Shuffet Shuffett Shuffit Shuffitt Sibbet Sibbit Sibbitt Sibit Skipwith Soaft Sobota Soppeth Soppett Soppit Soppitt Spad Spada Spade Spady Spaet Spaeth Spaethe Spaid Spaight Spat Spata Spath Spathe Spayd Spayde Speaight Speedie Speedy Speight Speth Spieght Spieth Spight Spiotta Spitty Spoede Spoth Sveda Swift Swyft
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