The Kilmer surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 5,799 people carried this name — #5,938 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 50,800 people counted. That is up 11% from 5,229 in 2000.

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In the first U.S. census, 1790

In 1790, Kilmer was counted together with Killmor: 22 families in all.

Each family is counted by its head. About 155 people lived in those households, 7 to a family on average. The census counted these spellings together: Killmor, Killmer, Killmore, Kilmer, Kilmor, Kilmore. 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 York 18
Pennsylvania 4

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

Kilmer in American newspapers,
1900–1909.

Newspaper page from Okolona Messenger carrying the name Kilmer
Okolona Messenger 1909-02-24
Newspaper page from Okolona Messenger carrying the name Kilmer
Okolona Messenger 1909-03-03
Newspaper page from New-york Tribune carrying the name Kilmer
New-york Tribune 1900-05-03

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 104,625 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Kilmer in Australian newspapers,
1850s–1960s.

999 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Kilmer. The most, 295, 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 Western Australia, at 1.3 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 342
Victoria 243
South Australia 124
Queensland 123
Western Australia 116
Tasmania 47
ACT (Canberra) 2

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

Who carried it

People named Kilmer,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Joyce Kilmer
    Joyce Kilmer 1886–1918 · writer
  • John E. Kilmer
    John E. Kilmer 1930–1952 · military personnel
  • Chauncey Kilmer 1816–1901
  • Thomas Walker Kilmer 1871–1958
  • Dorris Eugene Kilmer 1921–1993
  • Anne Kilmer 1931–2023 · university teacher

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 Kilmer,
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 States480 records

480 records of the Kilmer name in the United States
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 168
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 167
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 55
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 52
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 20
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 16
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 2
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record John S. Kilmer

    Born 1918 in Michigan. Enlisted 1942 at Columbus, Ohio; draftsman from Montgomery County, Ohio. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1998, buried at Arlington Cemetery, Hillsdale, Michigan.

    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 Gertrude Kilmer

    Arrived at New York in 1886 aboard the Rhein from Bremen, aged 24; farmer. From Reichensachsen, Germany.

    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 John Edward Kilmer

    Born 1930; from San Antonio, Texas. U.S. Navy, hospital corpsman; killed in action 1952 in Korea.

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

Showing 3 of 480 records for Kilmer in the United States.

Counts: New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · 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, 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).

Netherlands139 records

139 records of the Kilmer name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 118
  • Dutch population registers 21
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Jacoba Kilmer

    Married in 1821 in Schiedam. Died 1855 in Schiedam, aged 85.

    Open Archives, Nationaal Archief Rijksarchief Zuid-Holland (CC BY 4.0); Open Archives, Gemeentearchief Schiedam (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Population register Gerardus Louis Henri Kilmer

    In the population register of Den Haag; teacher, born 1910 in Den Haag.

    Open Archives, Streekarchief Midden-Holland (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Elizabeth Maria Kilmer

    Died 1907 in Delft; born in 's-Gravenhage.

    Open Archives, Archief Delft (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 139 records for Kilmer in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Germany7 records

7 records of the Kilmer name in Germany Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Karl Kilmer

    From Dröbel, Bernburg. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 3 July 1915; then reported dead in the list of 25 May 1918 (Infantry Regiment No. 93).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  2. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Konrad Kilmer

    From Bebra, Rotenburg. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 18 July 1916 (Foot Guards Regiment No. 4).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  3. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Alwin Kilmer

    From Niederdorar, Mühlhausen. Reported dead in the Prussian casualty list of 30 September 1918.

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)

Showing 3 of 7 records for Kilmer in Germany.

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0).

Canada4 records

4 records of the Kilmer name in Canada
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 2
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 1
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 1
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record William Arthur Kilmer

    Buried in 1989 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 85.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Henry James Kilmer

    Died 1991; buried at Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, British Columbia.

    City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver.
  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 Frank Kilmer

    Died in service in 1917.

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

Showing 3 of 4 records for Kilmer in Canada.

Counts: City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. 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 Kilmer.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Kilmer 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 Kilmer volume
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