The Dotson surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 33,347 people carried this name — #1,045 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 8,850 people counted. That is up 5% from 31,784 in 2000.

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In print

Dotson in American newspapers,
1901–1919.

Newspaper page from The Butte Inter Mountain carrying the name Dotson
The Butte Inter Mountain 1901-09-05
Newspaper page from The Ronan Pioneer carrying the name Dotson
The Ronan Pioneer 1919-06-13
Newspaper page from The Butte Inter Mountain carrying the name Dotson
The Butte Inter Mountain 1901-09-05

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 24,003 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Dotson in Australian newspapers,
1860s–1980s.

249 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Dotson. The most, 55, 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 Tasmania, at 3.5 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 66
Queensland 50
Tasmania 48
Victoria 47
ACT (Canberra) 20
South Australia 11
Western Australia 7

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

Who carried it

People named Dotson,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Heyward Dotson
    Heyward Dotson 1948–2020 · basketball player
  • Richard Dotson 1752–1847
  • Mentor Dotson 1837– · teacher
  • Esther Gordon Dotson 1918–2009
  • Jimmy Dotson 1933–2017 · singer
  • Bill Dotson 1940–2021 · athletics competitor

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 Dotson,
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 States1,449 records

1,449 records of the Dotson name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 928
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 375
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 95
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 17
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 13
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 8
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 5
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 5
  • Riverside Cemetery, Asheville (North Carolina) 1
  • Ramsey County (Minnesota) Memorial Hall, war dead 1
  • Sacramento County historic burials 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Robert L. Dotson

    Born 1913 in Ohio. Enlisted 1943 at Akron; aircraft worker from Summit County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1997, buried at Oakwood Cemetery, Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Jefferson Scott Dotson

    Born 1944; from Pound, Virginia. U.S. Air Force; declared dead 1969 in Laos. Buried at Dotson Cemetery, Pound, Virginia.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (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 John Dotson

    Arrived at New York in 1868 aboard the City of Boston from Liverpool, aged 31; farmer. From England.

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

Showing 3 of 1,449 records for Dotson 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) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · City of Asheville (public domain, PDDL) · Ramsey County, Minnesota (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Australia11 records

11 records of the Dotson name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 10
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 1
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Audrey Jane Dotson

    Arrived in Victoria in 1923 aboard the Ceramic, aged 10.

    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 Mary Elizabeth Dotson

    Of Hamilton, Victoria; died 1971.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Mary Eliz Dotson

    Arrived in Victoria in 1923 aboard the Ceramic, aged 36.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 11 records for Dotson in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (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).

Netherlands4 records

4 records of the Dotson name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 3
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 1
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record James Frank Dotson

    Died 1969 in 's-Gravenhage, aged 64.

    Open Archives, Haags Gemeentearchief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Thomas Dotson

    Married in 1681 in Breda.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Breda (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Roger Dotson

    Married in 1637 in Zaltbommel.

    Open Archives, Regionaal Archief Rivierenland (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 4 records for Dotson in the Netherlands.

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

Canada2 records

2 records of the Dotson name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 1
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 1
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Reginald D. Dotson

    Died 1935; buried at Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, British Columbia.

    City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver.
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Kenneth Earle Dotson

    Married 1947 in Bear River, Digby, Nova Scotia.

    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. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. 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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Dotson.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Dotson 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 Dotson volume
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