The Cushing surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 6,480 people carried this name — #5,373 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 45,500 people counted. About the same as in 2000 (6,498).

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What the name means

The meaning of the Cushing surname

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a baptismal name, from a given name: ‘the son of Custance’.

An early record he cites: Johannes Cussyng, 1379 — Poll Tax, West Riding of Yorkshire.

His entry covers Cushen, Cushing and Cushin.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 225 · public domain.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

125 families named Cushing, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 781 people lived in those households, 6.2 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 3 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 87
Maine 16
New Hampshire 9
Vermont 6
Rhode Island 3
New York 3
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. 236 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Cushing in American newspapers,
1889–1913.

Newspaper page from The Evening World carrying the name Cushing
The Evening World 1889-12-18
Newspaper page from The Montgomery Advertiser carrying the name Cushing
The Montgomery Advertiser 1913-07-12
Newspaper page from The Evening World carrying the name Cushing
The Evening World 1889-12-18

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 297,757 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Cushing in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1990s.

2,633 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Cushing. The most, 512, 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 2.1 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Victoria 1,187
Queensland 536
New South Wales 443
Western Australia 186
Tasmania 112
South Australia 104
ACT (Canberra) 23
Northern Territory 1

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

Who carried it

People named Cushing,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Thomas Cushing
    Thomas Cushing 1725–1788 · politician
  • William Cushing
    William Cushing 1732–1810 · judge
  • John Cushing d. 1819 · gardener
  • Thomas Cushing II 1694–1746 · lawyer
  • John Cushing 1695–1778
  • Matthew Cushing 1720–1779 · teacher

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 Cushing,
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 States1,150 records

1,150 records of the Cushing name in the United States
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 366
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 312
  • Other U.S. records 472
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record David Roy Cushing

    Born 1946; from El Paso, Texas. U.S. Army, medical equipment repairer; died in an accident 1967 in South Vietnam. Buried at Fort Bliss National Cemetery, Texas.

    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 August J. Cushing

    Born 1909 in New York. Enlisted 1942 at Fort Jay Governors Island; messenger from Bronx County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1978, 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)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Rebecca Cushing

    Arrived at New York in 1892 aboard the Teutonic from Liverpool, aged 50; housekeeper. From Liverpool, England; bound for New York.

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

Showing 3 of 1,150 records for Cushing 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) · 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, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · New York State, Open NY (police and firefighter memorial rolls) · City of Asheville (public domain, PDDL) · Ramsey County, Minnesota (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).

Canada164 records

164 records of the Cushing name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 142
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 12
  • Other Canadian records 10
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Wilfred Louis Cushing

    Buried in 1968 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 76.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Edmund Cushing

    Died 1876 in Grafton, Queens, 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 Robertson Macaulay Cushing

    Died in service in 1918.

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

Showing 3 of 164 records for Cushing in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · Contains information provided by the City of Waterloo under licence · City of Niagara Falls. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Niagara Falls. 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).

Australia98 records

98 records of the Cushing name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 54
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 32
  • Other Australian records 12
  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 William Cushing

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Strathfieldsay, arriving 1836; ticket of leave 1844.

    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 Mary Cushing

    Arrived in Queensland in 1882 aboard the Almora, aged 18.

    Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Oswald J. Cushing

    Actor of Mordialloc, Victoria; died 1919.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 98 records for Cushing in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (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 Kingdom7 records

7 records of the Cushing 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 F. Cushing

    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)
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record W. Cushing

    Norfolk 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 First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record A. Cushing

    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 7 records for Cushing in the United Kingdom.

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).

Netherlands4 records

4 records of the Cushing name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch population registers 3
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 1
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Leo Narcisse Joseph Cushing

    Married in 1947 in Maarssen.

    Open Archives, Het Utrechts Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Population register George Dowden Cushing

    In the population register of Meppel; born 1902.

    Open Archives, Drents Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Population register Sarah Martha Cushing

    In a population register; born 1846 in Sebec Maine.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Rotterdam (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 4 records for Cushing in the Netherlands.

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); U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Cushing.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Cushing 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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