The following is a scanned copy of a letter I received from my grandfather, William Manvell (born 1900). I received the letter in 1988, when I first started researching the family name:
THE LEGEND OF THE FAMILY NAME OF MANVELL
The Manvell family are descendants of the Huguenots of France who were persecuted in the
eighteenth century on account of their religion and were forced to flee for their lives.
Some of them fled to England, including a family named Mandeville. They settled in England
(and pursued their various trades.)
The Mandeville we are talking about was a very well - known carpenter and cabinet-maker
and had his own factory. However, he was a very nasty character, and badly mistreated his
family and his apprentices.
He was so bad, that he got the name of "Man~Devil" instead of his own name. The
rest of his family, in order to disassociate with him changed their names. The most
popular name chosen was Manville, but our branch of the family chose to spell the name
Manvell.
There are a few other families named Manvell in England and the United States, but
we are not acquainted with them except for one family in Canada.
This is a true account of the origin of our name. My father verified it with the Society
of Huguenots in England.