The Colston surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 4,363 people carried this name — #7,617 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 67,600 people counted. That is up 8% from 4,022 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Colston surname

As an English and Welsh surname

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

An early record he cites: John de Colston, Nottinghamshire, 1291–92 (20 Edward I) — Placita de Quo Warranto.

His entry covers Colston and Coulston.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 197 · public domain.

In print

Colston in American newspapers,
1909–1919.

Newspaper page from Sequachee Valley News carrying the name Colston
Sequachee Valley News 1918-04-11
Newspaper page from Sequachee Valley News carrying the name Colston
Sequachee Valley News 1919-03-13
Newspaper page from Sequachee Valley News carrying the name Colston
Sequachee Valley News 1909-08-26

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 27,283 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Colston in Australian newspapers,
1840s–1990s.

1,304 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Colston. The most, 286, date from the 1910s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Victoria, at 1.6 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Victoria 456
New South Wales 341
Queensland 252
Tasmania 102
South Australia 81
Western Australia 58
ACT (Canberra) 9

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

Who carried it

People named Colston,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Edward Colston
    Edward Colston 1636–1721 · politician
  • Edward Colston
    Edward Colston 1636–1721 · politician
  • Marianne Colston
    Marianne Colston 1792–1865 · illustrator
  • Robert Colston d. 2013 · actor
  • Louisa Ruperta Murray d. 1900
  • Amy Ruperta Colston d. 1919

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 Colston,
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 States311 records

311 records of the Colston name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 141
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 52
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 50
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 46
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 14
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 3
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 3
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 2
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Allan R. Colston

    Born 1917 in Illinois. Enlisted 1943 at Los Angeles, California; library assistant. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1980, buried at Riverside National Cemetery, California.

    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 Catharina Colston

    Arrived at New York in 1845 aboard the Stephanie from Hamburg, aged 23; servant. From Hanover, Germany.

    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 Edward Jerome Colston

    Born 1946; from Detroit, Michigan. U.S. Army, field artillery basic; killed in action 1967 in Binh Duong, South Vietnam.

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

Showing 3 of 311 records for Colston 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) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · 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); 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).

Australia95 records

95 records of the Colston name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 36
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 28
  • Tasmanian Names Index 20
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 8
  • State Library of Western Australia indexes 3
  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 James Colston

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Equestrian, sailing from London in 1845. Native of Shepton Mallet, Somerset.

    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 Sophia Colston

    Arrived in Victoria in 1859 aboard the Yorkshire, aged 21; 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 Harold W. Colston

    Plasterer of Northcote, Victoria; died 1940.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 95 records for Colston in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (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 Kingdom13 records

13 records of the Colston name in the United Kingdom
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 10
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 2
  • Stirling Council burial records 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Ann Colston

    Buried in 1830 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 52.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record J. E. Colston

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

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Charles Colston

    Buried in 1849 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 40.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Showing 3 of 13 records for Colston in the United Kingdom.

Counts: MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · 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); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Canada8 records

8 records of the Colston name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 3
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 3
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 2
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Jean Thornton Colston

    Died 1930; buried at Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, British Columbia.

    City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Florence Colston

    Buried in 1917 at Union Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Annie Colston

    Married 1876 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

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

Showing 3 of 8 records for Colston in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

Netherlands3 records

3 records of the Colston name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 2
  • Dutch population registers 1
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Alan David Colston

    Died 1972 in Groningen; born 1951 in Dundee; cook.

    Open Archives, Groninger Archieven (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Samuel Hunt Colston

    Died 1854 in Rotterdam, aged 27.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Rotterdam (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Population register James Colston

    In the population register of Utrecht; born in Port Glasgow.

    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: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Colston.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Colston 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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