The Keeney surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 9,294 people carried this name — #3,813 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 31,700 people counted. That is up 5% from 8,862 in 2000.

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Where the name comes from

The origin of the Keeney surname

Variant of Keaney.

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

In print

Keeney in American newspapers,
1879–1920.

Newspaper page from Bozeman Avant Courier carrying the name Keeney
Bozeman Avant Courier 1879-11-06
Newspaper page from Great Falls Daily Tribune carrying the name Keeney
Great Falls Daily Tribune 1920-08-26

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain.

In print

Keeney in Australian newspapers,
1840s–1960s.

160 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Keeney. The most, 29, date from the 1930s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Queensland, at 2.1 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Queensland 64
New South Wales 45
Victoria 25
Western Australia 11
South Australia 6
Tasmania 3
ACT (Canberra) 2

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

Who carried it

People named Keeney,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Frank Keeney
    Frank Keeney 1882–1970 · trade unionist
  • Russell W. Keeney
    Russell W. Keeney 1897–1958 · judge
  • Abner Chase Keeney 1826–1884
  • Seth Ashby Keeney 1864–1946
  • Eldora Nelson Keeney 1878– · writer
  • Philip Keeney 1891–1962 · librarian

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 Keeney,
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 States901 records

901 records of the Keeney name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 374
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 151
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 139
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 132
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 36
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 33
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 31
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 2
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 2
  • Sacramento County historic burials 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Donald A. Keeney

    Born 1919 in Idaho. Enlisted 1940 at Fort Macarthur San Pedro, California; auto mechanic. U.S. Army Air Forces veteran of World War II; died 1997, buried at Riverside National Cemetery, California.

    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 Gerald Robert Keeney

    Born 1941; from St Louis, Missouri. U.S. Army; died of illness 1964 in South Vietnam. Buried at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, Missouri.

    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 Susie Keeney

    Arrived at New York in 1880 aboard the Circassia from Glasgow and Moville, aged 20; servant. From Ireland.

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

Showing 3 of 901 records for Keeney 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) · 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) · 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).

Australia20 records

20 records of the Keeney name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 9
  • Tasmanian Names Index 7
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 4
  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 Cornelius Keeney

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Neptune, sailing from Cape of Good Hope in 1850.

    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 Thomas Keeney

    Arrived in Victoria in 1854 aboard the Fitzjames, aged 24; Irish.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Not named Keeney

    Died 1912 in Queenstown, Tasmania.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 20 records for Keeney in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (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); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

United Kingdom2 records

2 records of the Keeney name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 1
  • Stirling Council burial records 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record James Keeney

    Buried in 1899 at Valley Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 53.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record U. Keeney

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

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

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: 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).

Canada1 record

1 record of the Keeney name in Canada Nova Scotia Archives name indexes
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Hanah Keeney

    Listed at Yarmouth Township, Yarmouth, Nova Scotia in the census and tax rolls of 1838.

    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).

New Zealand1 record

1 record of the Keeney name in New Zealand Christchurch City cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record James Philip Keeney

    Died 1991, aged 48; buried at Belfast Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Keeney.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Keeney 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 Keeney volume
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