The Alley surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 14,323 people carried this name — #2,529 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 20,600 people counted. About the same as in 2000 (14,285).

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What the name means

The meaning of the Alley surname

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a local name, from where the family lived: ‘of the Alley’ — the first of the origins he gives.

An early record he cites: Walter Alleye, Oxfordshire, 1273 — Hundred Rolls.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 48 · public domain.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

48 families named Alley, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 232 people lived in those households, 4.8 to a family on average. The table counts it together with one other spelling. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

Massachusetts 21
Maine 7
North Carolina 5
Maryland 4
Pennsylvania 3
New Hampshire 2
Connecticut 2
New York 2
Virginia 1
South Carolina 1

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 227 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Alley in American newspapers,
1920–1928.

Newspaper page from The Carbon County News carrying the name Alley
The Carbon County News 1928-11-15
Newspaper page from The Wolf Point Herald carrying the name Alley
The Wolf Point Herald 1920-05-20
Newspaper page from The Circle Banner carrying the name Alley
The Circle Banner 1920-05-21

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 4,140 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Alley in Australian newspapers,
1810s–1990s.

19,448 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Alley. The most, 4,872, date from the 1880s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Victoria, at 1.5 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Victoria 6,797
New South Wales 6,543
Queensland 4,113
South Australia 1,075
Tasmania 362
Western Australia 300
ACT (Canberra) 204
Northern Territory 29

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Alley.

Who carried it

People named Alley,
with a public archive behind them.

  • John B. Alley
    John B. Alley 1817–1896 · politician
  • B. F. Alley
    B. F. Alley 1840– · politician
  • Mary Elizabeth Alley d. 1906
  • Elizabeth Frances Alley d. 1948
  • Lewis Alley 1710–1783 · gunsmith
  • Jerome Alley 1760–1826 · poet

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 9 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Alley,
in the records of 6 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States953 records

953 records of the Alley name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 532
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 181
  • Other U.S. records 240
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Robert T. Alley

    Born 1920 in California. Enlisted 1946 at San Francisco; photographer from San Mateo County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1987, buried at Golden Gate National Cemetery, California.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Willie Warnie Alley

    Born 1935; from Richlands, Virginia. U.S. Air Force; killed in action 1969 in Long Khanh, South Vietnam. Buried at Fort Logan National Cemetery, Colorado.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Mary Alley

    Arrived at New York in 1857 aboard the Enterprise from Liverpool, aged 20; servant. From Ireland.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)

Showing 3 of 953 records for Alley in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · City of Asheville (public domain, PDDL) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Australia164 records

164 records of the Alley name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 77
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 32
  • Other Australian records 55
  1. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record John Alley

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Marion, sailing from London in 1845. Native of Wigan, Lancashire.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Nicholas Alley

    Arrived in Victoria in 1853 aboard the Helen Lindsay, aged 24; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Alfred Underwood Alley

    Company director of Hawthorn, Victoria; died 1963.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 164 records for Alley in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

Canada42 records

42 records of the Alley name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 40
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 2
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Mohammad Alley

    Died 1951 in Annapolis Royal, Annapolis, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. A Canadian First World War grave register card for a soldier who died of wounds in 1917
    Example: Canadian war grave register, 1917
    War record Eric Elgin Alley

    Died in service in 1916.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada.
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Julia C. Alley

    Married 1868 in Kings, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.

Showing 3 of 42 records for Alley in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Canadian First World War circumstances-of-death register (scan by Scottgraham87 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

New Zealand30 records

30 records of the Alley name in New Zealand
  • Thames-Coromandel District cemetery records 26
  • Christchurch City cemetery records 4
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Ernest Clifton Alley

    Died 1982, aged 80; buried at Omahu Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Sylvia Restelle Alley

    Died 1999, aged 100; buried at Waimairi Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Alexander Nelson Alley

    Buried in 1992 at Omahu Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato, aged 77.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 30 records for Alley in New Zealand.

Counts: Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0) · Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

France6 records

6 records of the Alley name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Angele Alphonsine Alley

    Born 1905 in La Buxerette; died 1991 in Châteauroux (Indre).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Gabriel Baptiste Alley

    Born 1896 in Laval; died 1973 in Laval (Mayenne).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  3. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Isabelle Eldra Alley

    Born 1929 in Antilles Britaniques (Sainte-Lucie); died 1998 in Le Lamentin (Martinique).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 3 of 6 records for Alley in France.

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

United Kingdom2 records

2 records of the Alley name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 1
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Charles Morris Alley

    Buried in 1824 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 51.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record T. Alley

    Royal Flying Corps. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Alley.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Alley is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

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