The Brothers surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 11,619 people carried this name — #3,096 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 25,400 people counted. That is up 3% from 11,294 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Brothers surname

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a nickname: ‘the brother’.

An early record he cites: William le Brother, Oxfordshire, 1273 — Hundred Rolls.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 139 · public domain.

In France’s civil register

France’s register of deaths holds 36 people named Brothers.

2 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 2 départements, most often French Polynesia.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they were born

Born outside France 2
French Polynesia 32
Wallis and Futuna 2

Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

42 families named Brothers, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 215 people lived in those households, 5.1 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 2 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

North Carolina 23
Maryland 8
Virginia 4
Pennsylvania 3
New York 2
South Carolina 2

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. 231 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Brothers in American newspapers,
1904–1908.

Newspaper page from The Columbus Commercial carrying the name Brothers
The Columbus Commercial 1904-05-31
Newspaper page from Evening Star carrying the name Brothers
Evening Star 1908-10-16
Newspaper page from New-york Tribune carrying the name Brothers
New-york Tribune 1908-10-11

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 2,450 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Brothers in Australian newspapers,
1820s–1990s.

8,015 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Brothers. The most, 1,389, date from the 1930s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in Tasmania, at 1.9 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 2,661
Victoria 1,730
Queensland 1,092
Tasmania 932
South Australia 828
Western Australia 698
ACT (Canberra) 46
Northern Territory 2

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

Who carried it

People named Brothers,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Richard Brothers
    Richard Brothers 1757–1824 · sailor
  • John Brothers 1793– · naval officer
  • Alfred Brothers 1826–1912 · photographer
  • Elmer Dewitt Brothers 1860–1937 · writer
  • Michael Brothers 1870–1952 · politician
  • Michael Brothers 1870–1952 · politician

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 Brothers,
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 States1,048 records

1,048 records of the Brothers name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 408
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 197
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 171
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 93
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 92
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 52
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 31
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 2
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 2
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Gerald John Brothers

    Born 1949; from San Diego, California. U.S. Marine Corps, rifleman; killed in action 1967 in Quang Tri, South Vietnam. Buried at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, California.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Ernest W. Brothers

    Born 1921 in New York. Enlisted 1942 at Binghamton; packer from Chemung County. U.S. Army Air Forces veteran of World War II; died 1996, buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Elmira, New York.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (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 Judith Brothers

    Arrived at New York in 1848 aboard the Jane from Liverpool, aged 25; seamstress. From Ireland.

    U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain)

Showing 3 of 1,048 records for Brothers in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · 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, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Canada147 records

147 records of the Brothers name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 141
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 4
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 2
  1. The first page of an emigration file from Gündlingen, Baden, 1883
    Example: German emigration file, 1883
    Emigration record Samuel Brothers

    Left New York in 1783 aboard the Ariel, bound for St. Johns, aged 25.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record John Michael Brothers

    Buried in 1985 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 71.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  3. 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 Monty Holt Brothers

    Died in service in 1942.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada.

Showing 3 of 147 records for Brothers 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. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. 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); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Canadian First World War circumstances-of-death register (scan by Scottgraham87 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0).

Australia124 records

124 records of the Brothers name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 66
  • Tasmanian Names Index 35
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 14
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 8
  • State Library of Western Australia indexes 1
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Ann Ruth Brothers

    Died 1926 in St Margaret's Hospital, Launceston, Tasmania. Will registered in Tasmania in 1926.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Jacob Brothers

    Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1838. Married 1838 in Hobart, Tasmania.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  3. 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 Thomas Brothers

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Dick, arriving 1821; ticket of leave 1839. Native of Hertfor.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)

Showing 3 of 124 records for Brothers in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain).

New Zealand3 records

3 records of the Brothers name in New Zealand Christchurch City cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Annie Brothers

    Died 1910, aged 36; buried at Linwood Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Frank Brothers

    Died 1933, aged 74; buried at Bromley 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 James Fitsroy Brothers

    Died 1874; buried at Addington Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: 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).

United Kingdom1 record

1 record of the Brothers name in the United Kingdom War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead
  1. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record G. Brothers

    Middlesex Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

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

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

France1 record

1 record of the Brothers 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 Elma Ella Brothers

    Born 1922 in Uturoa; died 1994 in Paris.

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Brothers.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Brothers 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 Brothers volume
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