The McGinnis surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 26,953 people carried this name — #1,303 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 10,900 people counted. That is up 1% from 26,578 in 2000.

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Where the name comes from

The origin of the McGinnis surname

Anglicized from Irish Mac Aonghusa and Scottish Gaelic MacAonghais.

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

In the first U.S. census, 1790

49 families named McGinnis, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 261 people lived in those households, 5.3 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 10 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

Pennsylvania 22
Virginia 9
New York 6
North Carolina 6
Maryland 5
Vermont 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. 252 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

McGinnis in American newspapers,
1904–1927.

Newspaper page from Evening Star carrying the name McGinnis
Evening Star 1908-08-09
Newspaper page from The Washington Times carrying the name McGinnis
The Washington Times 1904-05-22
Newspaper page from Evening Star carrying the name McGinnis
Evening Star 1927-07-29

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 63,540 pages in all carry the name.

In print

McGinnis in Australian newspapers,
1810s–1970s.

1,362 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss McGinnis. The most, 262, 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 Victoria, at 1.8 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Victoria 485
South Australia 248
New South Wales 226
Western Australia 144
Tasmania 138
Queensland 108
ACT (Canberra) 7
Northern Territory 4

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

Who carried it

People named McGinnis,
with a public archive behind them.

  • George McGinnis
    George McGinnis 1950–2023 · basketball player
  • Ross A. McGinnis
    Ross A. McGinnis 1987–2006 · soldier
  • Charles McGinnis 1906–1995 · athletics competitor
  • James D. McGinnis 1932–2009 · politician

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0.

In the public record

People named McGinnis,
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 States1,595 records

1,595 records of the McGinnis name in the United States
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 747
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 404
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 141
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 132
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 115
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 31
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 10
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 9
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 6
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Charles R. McGinnis

    Born 1933; from Shelby County, Tennessee. U.S. Army, light weapons infantryman; killed in action 1951 in South Korea. Buried at Memphis National Cemetery, Tennessee.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (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 McGinnis

    Arrived at New York in 1850 aboard the Constitution from Liverpool, aged 21; laborer. From Ireland.

    U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain)
  3. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Joseph H. McGinnis

    Born 1922 in Michigan. Enlisted 1940 at Detroit; messenger from Mason County, Illinois.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain)

Showing 3 of 1,595 records for McGinnis in the United States.

Counts: NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: 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); U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain).

Australia235 records

235 records of the McGinnis name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 120
  • Tasmanian Names Index 84
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 21
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 8
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 1
  • State Library of Western Australia indexes 1
  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 Mary Ann McGinnis

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Cadet, sailing from London in 1847. Native of Derry.

    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 Matthew McGinnis

    Arrived in Victoria in 1853 aboard the Glentanner, aged 25; Irish.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Rita Jane McGinnis

    Retired of Bendigo, Victoria; died 1990.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 235 records for McGinnis in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · State Library of Western Australia (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); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

Canada188 records

188 records of the McGinnis name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 147
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 12
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 11
  • Ontario immigration records, 1865–1883 6
  • City of Winnipeg cemetery records 5
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 3
  • Halifax municipal cemeteries 2
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 2
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Arthur McGinnis

    Came to Ontario in 1870 aboard the Crocodile, landing at Quebec, 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 Beatrice McGinnis

    Buried in 1987 at Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, aged 88.

    Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax.
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Clark McGinnis

    Died 1920 in Ingonish, Victoria, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.

Showing 3 of 188 records for McGinnis in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · 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. · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). 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); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

United Kingdom3 records

3 records of the McGinnis name in the United Kingdom
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 2
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Rofs McGinnis

    Buried in 1812 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 70.

    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 T. McGinnis

    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 Edward McGinnis

    Buried in 1798 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 57.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Counts: MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. 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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to McGinnis.

When the index is not enough

This page says where McGinnis 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 McGinnis volume
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