The Bemis surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 4,722 people carried this name — #7,093 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 62,500 people counted. That is down 2% from 4,799 in 2000.

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In the first U.S. census, 1790

74 families named Bemis, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 416 people lived in those households, 5.9 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 9 other spellings. 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 48
Vermont 13
New Hampshire 5
New York 3
Connecticut 2
Maine 1
North Carolina 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. 229 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Bemis in American newspapers,
1896–1920.

Newspaper page from The Bon Homme County Independent carrying the name Bemis
The Bon Homme County Independent 1909-11-11
Newspaper page from The Florida Agriculturist carrying the name Bemis
The Florida Agriculturist 1896-10-28
Newspaper page from America carrying the name Bemis
America 1920-09-29

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 89,378 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Bemis in Australian newspapers,
1860s–1950s.

173 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Bemis. The most, 34, date from the 1930s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Victoria, at 1.8 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Victoria 67
New South Wales 51
Queensland 20
South Australia 16
Western Australia 14
Tasmania 3
ACT (Canberra) 1

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

Who carried it

People named Bemis,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Mercy Bemis Fuller
    Mercy Bemis Fuller 1763–1841
  • Seth Bemis
    Seth Bemis 1775–1851 · businessperson
  • Samuel Bemis
    Samuel Bemis 1793–1881 · dentist
  • Stephen C. Bemis
    Stephen C. Bemis 1802–1875 · politician
  • George P. Bemis
    George P. Bemis 1838–1916 · politician
  • Joshua Bemis 1729–1789

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Bemis,
in the records of 4 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 States373 records

373 records of the Bemis name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 179
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 83
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 47
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 29
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 18
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 15
  • Sacramento County historic burials 1
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Ellsworth F. Bemis

    Born 1916 in Washington. Enlisted 1941 at Portland, Oregon; railroad brakeman. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1987, buried at Willamette National Cemetery, Oregon.

    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 Earle John Bemis

    Born 1945; from Marietta, Georgia. U.S. Army; killed in action 1969 in Chau Doc, South Vietnam. Buried at Marietta National Cemetery, Georgia.

    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 Rosalie Bemis

    Arrived at New York in 1880 aboard the Australia from Glasgow, aged 14; servant. From Russia.

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

Showing 3 of 373 records for Bemis in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). 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).

Netherlands2 records

2 records of the Bemis name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch population registers 1
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 1
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Catharina Bemis

    Baptised in 1646 in Bergen op Zoom.

    Open Archives, West Brabants Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Population register Pierre Jean Bemis

    In the population register of Harderwijk.

    Open Archives, Streekarchivariaat Noordwest-Veluwe (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

Canada1 record

1 record of the Bemis name in Canada Nova Scotia Archives name indexes
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Emma May Bemis

    Died 1969 in Truro, Colchester, Nova Scotia.

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

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Australia1 record

1 record of the Bemis name in Australia Tasmanian Names Index
  1. The first page of an emigration file from Gündlingen, Baden, 1883
    Example: German emigration file, 1883
    Emigration record John Bemis

    Left Hobart in 1833 aboard the Elizabeth, bound for Whaling, as crew.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Emigration file, Gündlingen, 1883, Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg, Staatsarchiv Freiburg B 694/1 Nr. 1389 (CC BY 4.0).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Bemis.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Bemis 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.

See the Bemis volume
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