Early People, Places, and Times

Les Bizel etaient tourjours en Savoie! - the Bizels were always in Savoie! This statement was made to us by Joseph Bizel of Nice, France when we first met him in Sep 1971. Present-day Savoie is situated in eastern France, south of Geneva and adjacent to the western border of North Italy, in the heart of the Alps.

Although Savoie did not become a part of France until 1860, the inhabitants have spoken French for many hundreds of years. For a brief review of the turbulent history of Savoie, see the chapter on French Bizels.

Etienne Bizel was the oldest Bizel we learned about and he lived at Albiez le Viex (Albiez the Old). Savoie during the early part of the 16th century. His birthdate is estimated to be about 1475. We believe Etienne was the grandfather of Reverend Pierre Bizel, an outstanding Catholic Priest and candidate for sainthood. Pierre was born in the year 1548 and a history of his life exists because of his remarkable religious career.

THE SURNAME

During the course of our research, we discovered many names similar to Bizel and Bizzell. These were Bazzell, Bozzell, Buzzell, Bissell and their many variations. In only a few cases was the name Bezzell found and we believe this was an English phonetic spelling of Bizzell. The French "i" pronounces "e", to give Bee-Zell. Thus, we acdcepted the one or two Bezzells as members of the Bizel-Bizzell family.

At least four possible derivations of the Bizel name came to our attention: First, Joseph Bizel believes the name derives from the village of Albiez. By letting the "a" mean "at", as it does in French, and rearranging the remaining letters, he gets the name "Joseph a Bizel". As time passed and people moved to other places, the "a"{ was dropped leaing the surname Bizel. Second, there may have been a hamlet or small village in eastern France by the name of Bizel. Mrs. Lillian Bizzell Taylor (3212) wrote us in Feb 1976 saying she remembered her grandfather Holland George Bizzell telling about a chateau in a small village called Bizel, that was near the border of Itally. Our reference amaterial on France was not sufficiently detailed to verify that such a place existed. Third, a hamlet named Bozel does exist in Moutiers, near the border of Italy. Bozel is in Savoie, about 40 kilometers NW from Albiez. The Bizels may have derived their name from this village. Fourth, the name may relate to the word bezel, which means the edge of a cutting tool, or the oblique face of a brilliant cut gem.

We are convinced the name originated in the French Alps, near the present-day border of Italy. It is indeed remarkable that the Bizel-Bizzell name has survived so well intact during the past 400 years.

MIGRATION TO ENGLAND

It appears that some members of the Bizel family emigrated to England in the 16th century, although we were unable to find records to confirm it. The reason for thier coming was undoubtedly religion or economics, or a combination of both. Savoie lies just below Geneva which was a hot-bed of Catholic-Protestant religious upheaval at about that time.

Many people in this part of Europe became Huguenots and came under severe persecution. Families were split in thier religious allegiances and many persons were put to death for their beliefs. At best, they were sorely ostracized and denied employment opportunites.

Thus, there was an exodus of many people to england and other parts of the world. The major relligious sect leaving French-speaking Europe at that time was the Huguenots. It was the best organized and kept good records of the names of members. However, these lists by no means include all the people who departed in search of safer and better living conditions. We diligently searched Huguenot records for the Bizel-Bizzell name but were unable to find it.

According to an English legend passed along by Aunt Ellen Bizzell (3079), the family left France during the Saint Bartholomew massacre. There was said to be two sections, of which the English branch landed in Ireland and the other continued on to South America. The English branch travelled up thru Ireland and eventually landed in England. If Aunt Ellen's legend is true, the branch going to South America must have perished or changed its surname. We have searched in vain for persons with the Bizel or Bizzell name in South America.

On the other hand, there is good evidence that the English branch of the family did land in Southeren Ireland and spent some time there before moving along into England. We have records of a Pat Bizle who came to America from Ireland about 1825. The shiplist stated that his ancestors were born in France. Moreover, during the course of our research, we obtained information from Francis W. Bizel of Malone, NY who stated that some of his ancestors left Ireland during the potato famine and settled near Chicago, IL and Malone, NY.

In order to minimize discrimination, many of the French immigrants attempted to anglicize their nemes. Forexample, the name Xavier was changed to Sevier. Most of the names simply would not pronounce properly in the English language. Indeed, the French name Bizel (pronounced Bee-Zell) came to be called Bizzle in English. Several attempts were made to adjust the spelling in order to achieve a more correct English pronunciation, thus there are several variations - the most widely used being Bizzell. In England today, the only variations we found were Bizzel, Bizzell and Bizzill.

With the assistance of John L. Bizzell of London, England, we made extensive searches for the Bizel-Bizzell name in early English records. The earliest record found was for Richard Bizzell who married in 1633 to Elizabeth Wells at Walford, Warwickshire. This date certainly agrees quite well with Aunt Ellen's legend.

MIGRATION TO NORTH AMERICA

Thomas Bizzell was the first person of record we were able to find in America and we believe he was born about 1655 in England. A land grant was issued to him in Nansemond County, Virginia Colony, on 20 Oct 1691 and indicates that he made a summer-time crossing of the Atlantic.

To determine if Thomas came to America as an indentured servant, an extensive search was made of early Virginia records. We found no evidence that he did and concluded that he must have paid his passage across the ocean (6 pounds if he came directly from England to Virginia). We believe he was about 35 years old when he received his land grant and imported four indentured servants.

The English Colonies were anxious for new settlers and the Crown encouraged such migration. Land patents (or grants) were given to colonists who would pay the fare across for new settlers. After a period of indenture, the new settler was free to enter business for himself, apply for a land grant and obtain his own indentured servants from the old country. Thus, thousands of young men and women made it to the new world and were able to establish themselves.

Whatever the reason for coming and the means for payment of passage across, all early immigrants had one experience in common - a long, dangerous and extremely unpleasant voyage across the Atlantic, In 1902, Henry F. Thompson read a paper before the Maryland Historical Society in Baltimore, giving an absorbing account of what Thomas Bizell and other such passengers experienced during their journey. It was entitled: An Atlantic Voyage in the Seventeenth Century.