The Clift surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 4,256 people carried this name — #7,789 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 69,400 people counted. About the same as in 2000 (4,242).

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Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s

Clift was found among the farmers of Hampshire: 21 in every 10,000.

Guppy counted the farmers listed in each county’s directory and recorded a name only where it reached about 7 in every 10,000; where it does not appear, it was rarer than that, not absent.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Per 10,000 farmers, by county

Hampshire 21

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), alphabetical list of English and Welsh names — public domain · farmers in Kelly’s Post Office Directories of the 1880s, per 10,000 farmers in each county.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

21 families named Clift, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 133 people lived in those households, 6.3 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

Massachusetts 5
Connecticut 4
Maryland 3
Virginia 3
Vermont 2
Pennsylvania 2
New York 1
North 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. 234 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Clift in American newspapers,
1911–1913.

Newspaper page from The Hattiesburg News carrying the name Clift
The Hattiesburg News 1911-11-07
Newspaper page from The Birmingham Age-herald carrying the name Clift
The Birmingham Age-herald 1913-12-21
Newspaper page from The Hattiesburg News carrying the name Clift
The Hattiesburg News 1911-11-06

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 38,137 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Clift in Australian newspapers,
1820s–2000s.

21,972 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Clift. The most, 3,674, 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 New South Wales, at 2.0 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 14,764
Queensland 2,366
South Australia 1,918
Victoria 1,781
Western Australia 660
Tasmania 312
ACT (Canberra) 111
Northern Territory 5

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

Who carried it

People named Clift,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Joseph W. Clift
    Joseph W. Clift 1837–1908 · politician
  • James A. Clift
    James A. Clift 1857–1923 · politician
  • Denison Clift
    Denison Clift 1885–1961 · screenwriter
  • Harlond Clift
    Harlond Clift 1912–1992 · baseball player
  • William Clift 1803–1832 · conservator
  • James Shannon Clift 1814–1873 · 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 Clift,
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 States387 records

387 records of the Clift name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 167
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 63
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 53
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 48
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 30
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 26
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Paul R. Clift

    Born 1920 in Rhode Island. Enlisted 1942 at Providence; store manager. U.S. Army Air Forces veteran of World War II; died 1991, buried at Rhode Island Veteran Memorial Cemetery, Exeter, Rhode Island.

    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 Sarah Clift

    Arrived at New York in 1835 aboard the Glasgow from Liverpool, aged 55; dressmaker. From England.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)
  3. A U.S. Army record of death and interment, Camp Nelson, Kentucky, 1864
    Example: U.S. burial record, 1864
    Burial record Willie Clift

    U.S. Army veteran of World War I. Born 1888, died 1965; buried at Chattanooga National Cemetery, Tennessee.

    U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)

Showing 3 of 387 records for Clift 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, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index. 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); Record of death and interment, Camp Nelson, Kentucky, 1864, U.S. National Archives (public domain).

Australia250 records

250 records of the Clift name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 99
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 48
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 47
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 45
  • Tasmanian Names Index 9
  • State Library of Western Australia indexes 2
  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 Samuel Clift

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Neptune, arriving 1818; certificate of freedom 1831.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record James Clift

    Arrived in Victoria in 1857 aboard the Kent, aged 31; 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 J. Clift

    Former farmer of Mildura, Victoria; died 1948.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 250 records for Clift in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · Queensland State Archives (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: 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).

United Kingdom22 records

22 records of the Clift name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 19
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 3
  1. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record M. Clift

    South Staffordshire Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1919.

    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 F. E. Clift

    Labour Corps. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1919.

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

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

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

Showing 3 of 22 records for Clift in the United Kingdom.

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: C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Canada16 records

16 records of the Clift name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 6
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 4
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 3
  • Ontario immigration records, 1865–1883 2
  • City of Winnipeg cemetery records 1
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Thos Clift

    Came to Ontario in 1872 aboard the Nestorian, landing at Quebec, bound for Chatham, Ontario; English.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Robert Wallace Clift

    Died 1955; buried at Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, British Columbia.

    City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver.
  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 James Arthur Clift

    Died in service in 1920.

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

Showing 3 of 16 records for Clift 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 Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); 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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Clift.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Clift 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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