The Goodnight surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 3,564 people carried this name — #9,155 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 82,600 people counted. That is up 2% from 3,480 in 2000.

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In print

Goodnight in American newspapers,
1897–1907.

Newspaper page from The Leader carrying the name Goodnight
The Leader 1904-09-03
Newspaper page from The Billings Gazette carrying the name Goodnight
The Billings Gazette 1907-01-22
Newspaper page from The Grenada Sentinel carrying the name Goodnight
The Grenada Sentinel 1897-12-18

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 74,487 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Goodnight in Australian newspapers,
1860s–2000s.

1,475 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Goodnight. The most, 301, date from the 1900s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Victoria, at 1.5 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Victoria 461
New South Wales 431
Queensland 220
South Australia 154
Western Australia 135
Tasmania 45
Northern Territory 3

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

Who carried it

People named Goodnight,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Charles Goodnight
    Charles Goodnight 1836–1929 · farmer
  • Isaac Goodnight
    Isaac Goodnight 1849–1901 · judge
  • Clyde Goodnight
    Clyde Goodnight 1924–2002 · American football player
  • Scott Holland Goodnight d. 1972
  • Rachel Young 1771–1828
  • Clarence J. Goodnight 1914–1987 · arachnologist

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 Goodnight,
in the records of the United States.

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 States180 records

180 records of the Goodnight name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 126
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 47
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 2
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 2
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 2
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record John L. Goodnight

    Born 1920 in North Carolina. Enlisted 1943 at Fort Bragg; textile mill worker. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1998, buried at Carolina Cemetery Park Corp, Concord, North Carolina.

    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 Peter Ray Goodnight

    Born 1950; from Pacoima, California. U.S. Army, utility/observation helicopter pilot; died in an accident 1970 in Quang Ngai, South Vietnam.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)
  3. A U.S. Army record of death and interment, Camp Nelson, Kentucky, 1864
    Example: U.S. burial record, 1864
    Burial record Fidel C. Goodnight

    U.S. Air Force veteran. Born 1932, died 2001; buried at Coddle Creek Church Cemetery, Randleman, North Carolina.

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

Showing 3 of 180 records for Goodnight in the United States.

Counts: 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) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (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); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); Record of death and interment, Camp Nelson, Kentucky, 1864, U.S. National Archives (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Goodnight.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Goodnight is.
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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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