The Dorris surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 6,644 people carried this name — #5,251 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 44,400 people counted. That is up 1% from 6,556 in 2000.

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Where the name comes from

The origin of the Dorris surname

Variant of Doris.

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

In print

Dorris in American newspapers,
1925–1928.

Newspaper page from Evening Star carrying the name Dorris
Evening Star 1928-11-06
Newspaper page from Evening Star carrying the name Dorris
Evening Star 1925-04-16

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 43,186 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Dorris in Australian newspapers,
1850s–1970s.

1,375 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Dorris. The most, 369, date from the 1910s. 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 Western Australia, at 1.8 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 513
Victoria 241
Western Australia 231
Queensland 228
South Australia 115
Tasmania 42
ACT (Canberra) 2
Northern Territory 1

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

Who carried it

People named Dorris,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Cyprien Dorris
    Cyprien Dorris 1860–1918 · politician
  • Grace S. Dorris
    Grace S. Dorris 1887–1968 · politician
  • Anita Dorris
    Anita Dorris 1903–1993 · actor
  • Frances Dorris
    Frances Dorris 1904– · zoologist
  • Presley A. Dorris 1822–1901 · pioneer
  • Carlos J. Dorris 1825–1907 · rancher

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 Dorris,
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 States441 records

441 records of the Dorris name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 216
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 100
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 57
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 42
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 14
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 6
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 3
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 2
  • Sacramento County historic burials 1
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Claude Hesson Dorris

    Born 1938; from Louisville, Kentucky. U.S. Marine Corps, infantry unit leader; killed in action 1968 in Thua Thien, South Vietnam. Buried at Zachary Taylor National Cemetery, Kentucky.

    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 Ray D. Dorris

    Born 1901 in Tennessee. Enlisted 1942 at Camp Forrest; mechanic from Davidson County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1983, buried at Nashville National Cemetery, Tennessee.

    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 James Dorris

    Arrived at New York in 1892 aboard the Teutonic from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 19; laborer. From Belfast, Ireland; bound for New Jersey.

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

Showing 3 of 441 records for Dorris 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 · 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: 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).

Australia15 records

15 records of the Dorris name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 8
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 5
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 1
  • Tasmanian Names Index 1
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Bernard Thomson Dorris

    Labourer of Norlane, Victoria; died 1960.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Joseph Dorris

    Of Tamworth, New South Wales; died 1929.

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

    Arrived in Victoria in 1862 aboard the Greyhound, aged 27.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 15 records for Dorris in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Germany14 records

14 records of the Dorris name in Germany Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Richard Dörris

    From Sorsum, Linden. Reported dead in the Prussian casualty list of 15 September 1915 (Infantry Regiment No. 79).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  2. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Konrad Dörris

    From Altenhagen, Springe. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 7 September 1916 (Infantry Regiment No. 62).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  3. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Heinrich Dörris

    From Verden, Aller. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 10 August 1918.

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)

Showing 3 of 14 records for Dorris in Germany.

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0).

Canada3 records

3 records of the Dorris name in Canada Nova Scotia Archives name indexes
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record John Dorris

    Listed at Roseway River, Shelburne, Nova Scotia in the census and tax rolls of 1787.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record John Dorris

    Listed at Shelburne, Nova Scotia in the census and tax rolls of 1791.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Elizabeth Dorris

    Listed at Shelburne, Nova Scotia in the census and tax rolls of 1827.

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

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Netherlands1 record

1 record of the Dorris name in the Netherlands Dutch church registers before 1811
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Henrica Dorris

    Baptised in 1687 in Hulhuizen.

    Open Archives, Gelders 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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Dorris.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Dorris 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 Dorris volume
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