The Brush surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 6,690 people carried this name — #5,218 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 44,100 people counted. That is up 2% from 6,561 in 2000.

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In the first U.S. census, 1790

60 Brush families were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 374 people lived in those households, 6.2 to a family on average. 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

New York 35
Connecticut 15
Vermont 6
Pennsylvania 1
Maryland 1
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. 231 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Brush in American newspapers,
1901.

Newspaper page from The Portland Daily Press carrying the name Brush
The Portland Daily Press 1901-12-21

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain.

In print

Brush in Australian newspapers,
1830s–2010s.

8,027 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Brush. The most, 1,661, date from the 1900s. 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 3,300
New South Wales 2,594
Queensland 1,009
South Australia 464
Western Australia 290
Tasmania 270
ACT (Canberra) 58
Northern Territory 1

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

Who carried it

People named Brush,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Alfred Brush d. 1870
  • John S. Brush d. 1860
  • Mary Brush 1701–1899 · engineer
  • Hannah Brush 1724–
  • Hannah Brush 1728–
  • Joshua Brush 1743–1781

Wikidata (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Brush,
in the records of 5 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 States1,493 records

1,493 records of the Brush name in the United States
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 806
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 241
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 143
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 134
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 112
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 51
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 2
  • Riverside Cemetery, Asheville (North Carolina) 1
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 1
  • 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 Stanley B. Brush

    Born 1916 in New York. Enlisted 1942 at Fort Jay Governors Island; stock clerk from Queens County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1980, buried at Calverton National Cemetery, New York.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Helena Brush

    Arrived at New York in 1887 aboard the Ems from Bremen and Southampton, aged 36; farmer. From Wilna, Russia.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)
  3. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Richard Bernard Brush

    Born 1947; from Nanuet, New York. U.S. Army, field artillery basic; killed in action 1969 in Hua Nghia, South Vietnam.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)

Showing 3 of 1,493 records for Brush in the United States.

Counts: NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · City of Asheville (public domain, PDDL) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · 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); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain).

Australia105 records

105 records of the Brush name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 54
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 25
  • Tasmanian Names Index 11
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 7
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 7
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 1
  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 Magnus Brush

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Indefatigable, sailing from England in 1812.

    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 Emma Brush

    Arrived in Victoria in 1857 aboard the Walmer Castle, 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 Leslie Brush

    Retired of Ferntree Gully, Victoria; died 1983.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 105 records for Brush 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) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). 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).

Canada64 records

64 records of the Brush name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 52
  • Halifax municipal cemeteries 6
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 5
  • City of Winnipeg cemetery records 1
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Martha E. Brush

    Buried in 1955 at Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, aged 95.

    Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax.
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Susan E. Brush

    Died 1910 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

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

    Died in service in 1916.

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

Showing 3 of 64 records for Brush in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); 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).

United Kingdom2 records

2 records of the Brush 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 A. Brush

    Corporal, Royal Warwickshire Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record A. J. Brush

    Lance Corporal, London Regiment. 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). 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).

Netherlands1 record

1 record of the Brush name in the Netherlands Dutch population registers
  1. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Population register Elisabeth Brush

    In the population register of Hoogezand; born 1828 in Sappemeer.

    Open Archives, Historisch Archief Midden-Groningen (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Brush.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Brush 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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