Ray Banks's compilation project currently includes? Does not include?
His Banks compilation project only partially includes  family information on those who changed their surnames to Banks, such as the Austerbank family of Connecticut, or the Ebanks family of Grand Cayman or the  Bank families of Russia who also changed their surnames to Banks.  Otherwise all other Banks, Bankes and Bancks families are included, but the compilation is only complete for Americans of European origin and part of the British Bankses.  Some Canadians with connections to Maine are in the compilation.

The DNA project includes anyone with the Bankes, Banks, Bancks surname worldwide, but detailed family information may be currently unavailable.

The Bankes/Banks immigrants 
While Britain is the place of origin of almost all the Bankses worldwide of European origin, it no longer has the most Bankses.  Most are now in the United States.  There have been almost 1,000 Banks immigrant groups coming to the U.S. prior to 1921   Some of these may prove to be from the same families.    There are significant, smaller numbers of Bankses in Canada, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and the Caribbean.

The Banks surname
Because surnames did not come into common use until the beginning of the Renaissance, unrelated persons who lived in different locations can have the same surnames.   In the case of the Bankses, the surnames were likely to have been first used to indicate, for example, a John who lived at the river bank in Lancashire.  Likewise, an unrelated William who lived by the river bank in Devonshire obtained his Banks surname the same way. 

The Banks crest
Multiple Banks families in England have used a similar coat of arms that features multiple fleur-de-lis in the design.  According to English law, only the male members of the current armigerous family were allowed to use such coats of arms.  Armigerous membership would be defined either by "Sir" in front of the name or "Gent." after the name in the instances of close, male relatives.   Seemingly some other persons became "Gent." by holding public office.  There are instances during the colonial American period of brothers within an armigerous family having the coat of arms on their carriages on on their houses, and there were some "Gents" here as well.  Although buying copies of these coats of arms has been a popular pastime, it is unclear that just having the correct surname entitles one to make any use of these.  The fleur-de-lis design on the French royal family's coat of arms seems to have been first used about the same time as the armigerous Banks family at Bank Newton, Yorkshire, began using a fleur-de-lis design with a different number and arrangement of the figures.  It does not seem likely that English gentry would imitate French royalty because the English and French nations were not then on good terms.   This problem seems obviated because several fleur-de-lis appeared at one time also on the English royal standards.  The Latin inscription on the Banks arms has a religious theme, and the fleur-de-lis had had religious significance in the centuries preceding the use of coats of arms.    For discussion of this symbol, link to Fleur-de-lis discussion.

Listing of the European Bankses in America
The known Banks families of the United States of European ancestry are listed below according to the state in which they first seem to have become residents.   Hopefully the number will shrink as new relationships are determined either through research or DNA testing.  The British compilation project is well underway.  The project coordinator, Ray Banks, would like to add Bankses from other areas of the world or missing ethnic groups at some future date when the current ones are better organized.

Contact the project coordinator
Contact the coordinator at  his e-mail address:      Ray Banks