The Chisolm surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 4,435 people carried this name — #7,508 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 66,700 people counted. That is up 11% from 4,012 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Chisolm surname

Variant of Chisholm.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Chisolm» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a local name, from where the family lived: ‘of Chisholm’.

His entry covers Chisholm, Chisolm and Chisom.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 178 · public domain.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

28 families named Chisolm, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 169 people lived in those households, 6 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 10 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

Virginia 9
North Carolina 6
Maryland 4
South Carolina 3
Maine 2
New York 2
Pennsylvania 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. 234 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Chisolm in American newspapers,
1879–1881.

Newspaper page from Watertown Republican carrying the name Chisolm
Watertown Republican 1879-08-27
Newspaper page from Public Ledger carrying the name Chisolm
Public Ledger 1879-09-15
Newspaper page from Grant County Herald carrying the name Chisolm
Grant County Herald 1881-09-22

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

In print

Chisolm in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1980s.

472 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Chisolm. The most, 68, 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 Victoria, at 1.4 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 195
Victoria 132
Queensland 54
Western Australia 30
Tasmania 28
South Australia 17
ACT (Canberra) 13
Northern Territory 1

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

Who carried it

People named Chisolm,
with a public archive behind them.

  • B. Ogden Chisolm
    B. Ogden Chisolm 1865–1944
  • Margaret Willing Chisolm 1863–1904
  • John Julian “Jack” Chisolm II 1895–1965 · freelance writer
  • Adele Corning Chisolm 1897–1990
  • Mary Branch Chisolm 1917–2003

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0.

In the public record

People named Chisolm,
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 States288 records

288 records of the Chisolm name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 124
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 60
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 60
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 26
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 12
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 3
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 1
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 1
  • New York State police and firefighter memorial rolls 1
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Ronald Chisolm

    Born 1950; from Hollis, New York. U.S. Army, infantryman; killed in action 1970 in Quang Tri, South Vietnam. Buried at Long Island National Cemetery, New York.

    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 Eugene Chisolm

    Born 1921 in South Carolina. Enlisted 1943 at New York City; driver from New York County, New York. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1977, buried at Long Island National Cemetery, 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 Mary Chisolm

    Arrived at New York in 1869 aboard the Nebraska from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 18; servant. From England.

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

Showing 3 of 288 records for Chisolm 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, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · New York State, Open NY (police and firefighter memorial rolls). 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).

Australia52 records

52 records of the Chisolm name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 38
  • Tasmanian Names Index 6
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 5
  • State Library of Western Australia indexes 3
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record James Chisolm

    Arrived in Victoria in 1854 aboard the Hurricane, aged 11; Scottish.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Thomas S. Chisolm

    Gentleman of Caufield, Victoria; died 1954.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Birth record Freda Clarice Chisolm

    Born 1903 in Ulverstone, Tasmania.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 52 records for Chisolm in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: 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); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Canada16 records

16 records of the Chisolm name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 14
  • City of Winnipeg cemetery records 2
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Marjorie Chisolm

    Died 1994, aged 61; buried at Brookside Cemetery, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

    City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg.
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Margaret Rose Chisolm

    Died 1940 in Sydney Mines, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Eliza Chisolm

    Married 1845 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

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

Showing 3 of 16 records for Chisolm in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · 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); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

Netherlands3 records

3 records of the Chisolm name in the Netherlands Dutch church registers before 1811
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Donald Chisolm

    Married in 1755 in Nijmegen.

    Open Archives, Regionaal Archief Nijmegen (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Alexander Chisolm

    Baptised in 1701 in 's-Hertogenbosch.

    Open Archives, Brabants Historisch Informatie Centrum (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Willem Chisolm

    Married in 1611 in Utrecht.

    Open Archives, Het Utrechts Archief (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

United Kingdom1 record

1 record of the Chisolm name in the United Kingdom Stirling Council burial records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Ivon Prentice Chisolm

    Buried in 1973 at Balquhidder Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 69.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Counts: Stirling Council. 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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Chisolm.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Chisolm 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 Chisolm volume
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