The Jenks surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 7,396 people carried this name — #4,782 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 39,800 people counted. That is up 4% from 7,138 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Jenks surname

A surname originating as a patronymic.

From a back-formation of Jenkin + the patronymic suffix -s.

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

In Argentina’s national register

At least 50 people named Jenks live in Argentina.

RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Chubut.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Chubut 50

RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

93 families named Jenks, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 590 people lived in those households, 6.3 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 6 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

Rhode Island 45
Massachusetts 22
Vermont 5
New Hampshire 4
Connecticut 4
New York 4
Pennsylvania 4
North Carolina 3
Maine 2

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. 247 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Jenks in American newspapers,
1898–1921.

Newspaper page from The Brookings Register carrying the name Jenks
The Brookings Register 1921-01-13
Newspaper page from Omaha Daily Bee carrying the name Jenks
Omaha Daily Bee 1904-09-11
Newspaper page from The Scranton Tribune carrying the name Jenks
The Scranton Tribune 1898-11-09

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 149,049 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Jenks in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1990s.

2,671 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Jenks. The most, 429, date from the 1920s. Queensland 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 2.0 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Queensland 775
New South Wales 654
Victoria 484
Western Australia 463
South Australia 214
Tasmania 54
ACT (Canberra) 7
Northern Territory 5

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

Who carried it

People named Jenks,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Michael Hutchinson Jenks
    Michael Hutchinson Jenks 1795–1867 · judge
  • Bela Whipple Jenks Sr.
    Bela Whipple Jenks Sr. 1824–1897 · politician
  • Thomas Leighton Jenks
    Thomas Leighton Jenks 1829–1899 · politician
  • George A. Jenks
    George A. Jenks 1836–1908 · lawyer
  • Fanny Garnett d. 1930
  • Hilda Marion Jenks d. 1957

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 Jenks,
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 States849 records

849 records of the Jenks name in the United States
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 222
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 217
  • Other U.S. records 410
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Charles L. Jenks

    Born 1924 in Utah. Enlisted 1944 at Fort Douglas; farmer from Minidoka County, Idaho. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 2000, buried at Logan City Cemetery, Utah.

    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 Richard Dale Jenks

    Born 1944; from San Bernardino, California. U.S. Army, helicopter pilot; died in an accident 1967 in Quang Tin, South Vietnam.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Julia Jenks

    Arrived at Baltimore in 1887 aboard the Weser from Bremen, aged 16; farmer. From Germany.

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

Showing 3 of 849 records for Jenks 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) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · 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) · 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: 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).

Australia132 records

132 records of the Jenks name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 74
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 23
  • Other Australian records 35
  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 Jenks

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Georgiana, sailing from Plymouth in 1828. Native of Hatfield, Hertfordshire. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1855. Married 1855 in Westbury, Tasmania, aged 48.

    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 Mary Jenks

    Arrived in Queensland in 1886 aboard the Duke of Buckingham, aged 19.

    Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Henry Huia Lancelot Jenks

    Retired of Auckland, New Zealand; died 1979.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 132 records for Jenks 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) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). 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).

Canada102 records

102 records of the Jenks name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 94
  • Halifax municipal cemeteries 3
  • Other Canadian records 5
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Frank Jenks

    Came to Ontario in 1877 aboard the Sarmatian, landing at Quebec, bound for Owen Sound, Ontario; English.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Stuart D. Jenks

    Buried in 1929 at Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, aged 60.

    Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax.
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record A. Stanley Jenks

    Died 1930 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

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

Showing 3 of 102 records for Jenks in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

United Kingdom11 records

11 records of the Jenks name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 6
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 4
  • Welsh wills index cards 1
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Frederic Samuel Jenks

    Will proved in 1936; of Rhyl, Flint.

    National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Ann Jenks

    Buried in 1810 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 66.

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

    West Yorkshire Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Showing 3 of 11 records for Jenks in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); 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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Jenks.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Jenks 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 Jenks volume
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