The Kilby surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 4,412 people carried this name — #7,534 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 66,700 people counted. That is up 1% from 4,363 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Kilby surname

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a local name, from where the family lived: ‘of Kilby’.

An early record he cites: Richard de Kelby, Lincolnshire, 1273 — Hundred Rolls.

His entry covers Kilbey, Kilby and Kelby.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 450 · public domain.

Among the farmers of England and Wales, 1880s

Kilby was found among the farmers of 2 counties.

It was most frequent in Oxfordshire: 20 in every 10,000 farmers there — about 1 in 500. Guppy counted the farmers listed in each county’s directory and recorded a name only where it reached about 7 in every 10,000; where it does not appear, it was rarer than that, not absent.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Per 10,000 farmers, by county

Oxfordshire 20
Hertfordshire 15

H. B. Guppy, «Homes of Family Names in Great Britain» (London, 1890), alphabetical list of English and Welsh names — public domain · farmers in Kelly’s Post Office Directories of the 1880s, per 10,000 farmers in each county.

In print

Kilby in American newspapers,
1915.

Newspaper page from The Pensacola Journal carrying the name Kilby
The Pensacola Journal 1915-09-04
Newspaper page from The Pensacola Journal carrying the name Kilby
The Pensacola Journal 1915-08-07
Newspaper page from The Pensacola Journal carrying the name Kilby
The Pensacola Journal 1915-08-26

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 63,683 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Kilby in Australian newspapers,
1840s–1990s.

6,810 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Kilby. The most, 1,327, date from the 1930s. New South Wales 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 the Australian Capital Territory, at 4.0 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 3,148
Victoria 1,213
Tasmania 1,178
Queensland 610
ACT (Canberra) 404
South Australia 121
Western Australia 118
Northern Territory 1

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

Who carried it

People named Kilby,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Thomas Kilby
    Thomas Kilby 1865–1943 · politician
  • Arthur Forbes Gordon Kilby
    Arthur Forbes Gordon Kilby 1885–1915 · military personnel
  • Richard Kilby 1560–1620 · translator
  • Christopher Kilby 1705–1771 · merchant
  • Clyde S. Kilby 1902–1986 · writer
  • Frank Kilby 1906–1985 · rugby union player

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 Kilby,
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 States373 records

373 records of the Kilby name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 160
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 60
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 52
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 48
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 19
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 18
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 14
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 1
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record James A. Kilby

    Born 1920 in Virginia. Enlisted 1942 at Charlottesville; electrician from Albemarle County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1998, buried at Culpeper National Cemetery, Virginia.

    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 Raymond Morgan Kilby

    Born 1947; from Radford, Virginia. U.S. Army, infantryman; died in an accident 1969 in Quang Ngai, 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 Mary Kilby

    Arrived at New York in 1848 aboard the Isabella Stewart from Dublin, aged 40; farmer. From Ireland.

    U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain)

Showing 3 of 373 records for Kilby 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) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · 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); 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).

Australia322 records

322 records of the Kilby name in Australia
  • Tasmanian Names Index 121
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 100
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 59
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 16
  • Canberra cemetery and marriage records 14
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 12
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record William Kilby

    Died 1925 in St John Street, Launceston, Tasmania. Will registered in Tasmania in 1925.

    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 John Kilby

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Hooghley, arriving 1828; ticket of leave 1832.

    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 Susan Kilby

    Arrived in Victoria in 1854 aboard the Delta, aged 29; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 322 records for Kilby in Australia.

Counts: Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (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 Kilby name in Canada
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 16
  • Ontario immigration records, 1865–1883 6
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 3
  • City of Winnipeg cemetery records 3
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 2
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 1
  1. The first page of an emigration file from Gündlingen, Baden, 1883
    Example: German emigration file, 1883
    Emigration record James Kilby

    Left New York in 1783 aboard the Elizabeth, bound for Cat Island, aged 21.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record John Kilby

    Came to Ontario in 1869 aboard the N American, landing at Quebec, bound for Guelph, Ontario; English.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record John Oswald Kilby

    Died 1993, aged 65; buried at Brookside Cemetery, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

    City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg.

Showing 3 of 31 records for Kilby in Canada.

Counts: City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · 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. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Emigration file, Gündlingen, 1883, Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg, Staatsarchiv Freiburg B 694/1 Nr. 1389 (CC BY 4.0); 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).

United Kingdom12 records

12 records of the Kilby name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 11
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Jane Kilby

    Buried in 1792 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 65.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. 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 W. J. Kilby

    West Yorkshire Regiment. 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 First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record C. Kilby

    Leicestershire Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

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

Showing 3 of 12 records for Kilby 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. 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).

France1 record

1 record of the Kilby name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Lilian Alice Kilby

    Born 1906 in Great Britain; died 1996 in Roquefort-les-Pins (Alpes-Maritimes).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Kilby.

When the index is not enough

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A volume says what happened to it.

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