History of the Neely surname becomes less certain the further back in time we go. Records of the common man were scarce in the 1600's and rare in the 1500's. YDNA results have shed some additional insight into the distant past of this surname, but at this time, no one can say for sure what the origins of the Neelys were . Some highlights of what we have learned about the Neely History are posted in this section.