The Kelso surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 8,671 people carried this name — #4,096 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 34,000 people counted. That is up 4% from 8,360 in 2000.

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In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890

Ireland registered 7 births for the Kelso name in 1890.

Most were registered in Ulster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 300 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time.

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

Where they were born, 1890

Ulster 5
Leinster 2

Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.

In Scotland’s registers today

Kelso was recorded 13 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 1564th most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 26. Each birth counts the child’s surname, each marriage both partners’ and each death the surname of the person who died — a yearly count of registrations, not of the people who live in Scotland.

National Records of Scotland, «Most Common Surnames, 2025» (published 26 May 2026): every surname recorded 10 or more times in the 2025 registers, and the series from 1975 · different spellings are counted separately — © Crown copyright 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

21 families named Kelso, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 143 people lived in those households, 6.8 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 3 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

New Hampshire 7
Pennsylvania 6
Maine 3
New York 2
Maryland 2
Massachusetts 1

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

In print

Kelso in American newspapers,
1870–1872.

Newspaper page from New Orleans Republican carrying the name Kelso
New Orleans Republican 1870-05-04
Newspaper page from New Orleans Republican carrying the name Kelso
New Orleans Republican 1870-05-06
Newspaper page from New Orleans Republican carrying the name Kelso
New Orleans Republican 1872-03-14

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 72,737 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Kelso in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1990s.

51,141 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Kelso. The most, 11,191, date from the 1920s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in New South Wales, at 1.5 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 25,669
Queensland 11,743
Victoria 6,399
South Australia 3,172
Western Australia 2,859
Tasmania 1,106
ACT (Canberra) 119
Northern Territory 12

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

Who carried it

People named Kelso,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Thomas Kelso
    Thomas Kelso 1784–1878 · businessperson
  • John R. Kelso
    John R. Kelso 1831–1891 · politician
  • John R. Kelso
    John R. Kelso 1831–1891 · politician
  • J. J. Kelso
    J. J. Kelso 1864–1935 · writer
  • Mayme Kelso
    Mayme Kelso 1867–1946 · actor
  • Sydney Frances Anna Plunkett d. 1913

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 Kelso,
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 States803 records

803 records of the Kelso name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 322
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 140
  • Other U.S. records 341
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Earl F. Kelso

    Born 1921 in Ohio. Enlisted 1943 at Santa Ana, California; stock clerk. U.S. Air Force veteran of World War II; died 1998, 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. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Mary Kelso

    Arrived at New York in 1885 aboard the Anchoria from Glasgow, aged 17; house steward. From Antrim, Ireland.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)
  3. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Thomas Josh Kelso

    Born 1950; from Louisville, Kentucky. U.S. Army, duty soldier; died in an accident 1970 in Khanh Hoa, South Vietnam.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)

Showing 3 of 803 records for Kelso 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, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · 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, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain).

Australia384 records

384 records of the Kelso name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 146
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 117
  • Other Australian records 121
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Margaret Kelso

    Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1841. Married 1841 in Hobart, Tasmania.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. 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 Mary Ann Kelso

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Buffalo, arriving 1833; ticket of leave 1838. Native of Glasgow.

    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 Elizabeth Kelso

    Arrived in Victoria in 1858 aboard the Royal Charter, as an infant; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 384 records for Kelso in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); 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).

Canada31 records

31 records of the Kelso name in Canada
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 8
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 6
  • Other Canadian records 17
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Jos Kelso

    Came to Ontario in 1881 aboard the Circassian, landing at Halifax, bound for Hamilton, Ontario; Irish.

    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 Amber Lynne Kelso

    Buried in 1988 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 26.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  3. A Canadian First World War grave register card for a soldier who died of wounds in 1917
    Example: Canadian war grave register, 1917
    War record John Kelso

    Died in service in 1915.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada.

Showing 3 of 31 records for Kelso in Canada.

Counts: Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. 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); Canadian First World War circumstances-of-death register (scan by Scottgraham87 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0).

United Kingdom26 records

26 records of the Kelso name in the United Kingdom
  • Stirling Council burial records 22
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 4
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Margaret Kelso

    Died 1911, aged 30; buried at Bannockburn Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland.

    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 D. Kelso

    Royal Army Medical Corps. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record James Kelso

    Buried in 1968 at Ballengeich Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 71.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Showing 3 of 26 records for Kelso in the United Kingdom.

Counts: Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). 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).

New Zealand5 records

5 records of the Kelso name in New Zealand
  • Christchurch City cemetery records 4
  • Thames-Coromandel District cemetery records 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Fanny Kelso

    Died 1975, aged 75; buried at Waimairi Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Archibald Kelso

    Buried in 1911 at Buffalo Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record William Kelso

    Died 1971, aged 73; buried at Ruru Lawn, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 5 records for Kelso in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0) · Thames-Coromandel District 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 Kelso.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Kelso 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.

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