The Kidwell surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 9,006 people carried this name — #3,951 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 32,800 people counted. About the same as in 2000 (8,970).

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Where the name comes from

The origin of the Kidwell surname

Perhaps a variant of Kiddle.

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

In print

Kidwell in American newspapers,
1900–1917.

Newspaper page from Morgan County Republican carrying the name Kidwell
Morgan County Republican 1911-01-05
Newspaper page from The Columbus Commercial carrying the name Kidwell
The Columbus Commercial 1917-08-26
Newspaper page from The Courier carrying the name Kidwell
The Courier 1900-09-15

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 28,749 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Kidwell in Australian newspapers,
1860s–1950s.

112 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Kidwell. The most, 24, date from the 1920s.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 44
Queensland 26
South Australia 11
Tasmania 10
Victoria 10
Western Australia 5
ACT (Canberra) 1

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

Who carried it

People named Kidwell,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Zedekiah Kidwell
    Zedekiah Kidwell 1814–1872 · lawyer
  • William Kidwell 1662–1736 · artist
  • Carl Kidwell 1910– · writer
  • Albert Kidwell 1919–2008 · mineralogist
  • James F. Kidwell 1921–1988 · biologist
  • Wayne L. Kidwell 1938–2025 · judge

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 Kidwell,
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 States538 records

538 records of the Kidwell name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 370
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 135
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 15
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 7
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 4
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 4
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 2
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Joseph P. Kidwell

    Born 1919 in West Virginia. Enlisted 1941 at Los Angeles, California; painter. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1992, 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 Alice Kidwell

    Arrived at New York in 1885 aboard the Aurania from Liverpool, aged 21; servant. From England; bound for New York.

    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 Wayne Minor Kidwell

    Born 1948; from Herndon, Virginia. U.S. Army, infantryman; killed in action 1968 in Thua Thien, South Vietnam.

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

Showing 3 of 538 records for Kidwell 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, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · 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).

Australia20 records

20 records of the Kidwell name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 19
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 1
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Joseph Kidwell

    Arrived in Victoria in 1854 aboard the Crouch Brothers, aged 49; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (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 Harriet Kidwell

    Arrived in Victoria in 1853 aboard the British Empire, aged 26; English.

    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 William Kidwell

    Arrived in Victoria in 1854 aboard the Crouch Brothers, aged 18; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 20 records for Kidwell in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (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).

United Kingdom3 records

3 records of the Kidwell name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 2
  • Welsh wills index cards 1
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record John Andrew Kidwell

    Will proved in 1933; of Swansea.

    National Library of Wales, Wills Index Cards (CC0)
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record G. Kidwell

    Camel Corps. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1919.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)
  3. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record W. S. Kidwell

    Royal Scots. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

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

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · 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); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Canada2 records

2 records of the Kidwell name in Canada
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 1
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 1
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Alfred B. Kidwell

    Died 1914; buried at Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, British Columbia.

    City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver.
  2. 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 Osmond Kidwell

    Died in service in 1916.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - 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. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: 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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Kidwell.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Kidwell 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 Kidwell volume
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