The McKinley surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 24,000 people carried this name — #1,489 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 12,300 people counted. That is up 4% from 23,124 in 2000.

Look up another surname

Share

What the name means

The meaning of the McKinley surname

Anglicized from Scottish Gaelic Mac Fhionnlaoich, "son of Fionnlaoch (=Fair Warrior)". The dollar-bill sense is from the portrait of William McKinley featured on it.

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

In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890

Ireland registered 35 births for the McKinley name in 1890.

Most were registered in Ulster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 1,600 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time. 12 of them were indexed under other spellings of the name. The Registrar-General’s note on the name: “Antrim and Donegal.”

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

Where they were born, 1890

Ulster 32
Munster 2
Leinster 1

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

McKinley 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 22. 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

47 families named McKinley, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 267 people lived in those households, 5.7 to a family on average. The census counted these spellings together: McKinley, McCinley, McCinly, Mcinley, McKindley, McKinlay, McKinly. 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 29
North Carolina 8
New York 6
New Hampshire 1
Connecticut 1
Maryland 1
South Carolina 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

McKinley in American newspapers,
1896–1900.

Newspaper page from The Kalispell Bee carrying the name McKinley
The Kalispell Bee 1900-11-07
Newspaper page from The Greenville Times carrying the name McKinley
The Greenville Times 1900-11-07
Newspaper page from The Anaconda Standard carrying the name McKinley
The Anaconda Standard 1896-11-04

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 831,889 pages in all carry the name.

In print

McKinley in Australian newspapers,
1810s–2000s.

16,051 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss McKinley. The most, 3,738, date from the 1900s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Western Australia, at 2.3 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Western Australia 3,520
Victoria 3,377
New South Wales 3,004
South Australia 2,453
Queensland 2,006
Tasmania 1,600
ACT (Canberra) 39
Northern Territory 21

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

Who carried it

People named McKinley,
with a public archive behind them.

  • William McKinley
    William McKinley 1843–1901 · statesperson
  • Ida Saxton McKinley
    Ida Saxton McKinley 1847–1907 · politician
  • David McKinley
    David McKinley 1947–2026 · business executive
  • John McKinley
    John McKinley 1780–1852 · politician
  • Ray McKinley
    Ray McKinley 1910–1995 · jazz drummer
  • Chuck McKinley 1941–1986 · tennis player

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

In the public record

People named McKinley,
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 States2,333 records

2,333 records of the McKinley name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 802
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 583
  • Other U.S. records 948
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record John J. McKinley

    Born 1910 in New York. Enlisted 1942 at Camp Upton Yaphank; driver from Bronx County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1995, buried at Calverton National Cemetery, New York.

    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 Catherine McKinley

    Arrived at New York in 1835 aboard the Tally Ho from Liverpool, aged 18; laborer. From Longford, Ireland; 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 Ralph Herndon McKinley

    Born 1932; from De Kalb County, Georgia. U.S. Army, light weapons infantryman; declared dead 1950 in South Korea.

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

Showing 3 of 2,333 records for McKinley in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · 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, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0). 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).

Australia633 records

633 records of the McKinley name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 339
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 125
  • Other Australian records 169
  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 James McKinley

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Ramillies in 1850. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1855.

    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 Robert McKinley

    Arrived in Victoria in 1853 aboard the Yarra, aged 36; Scottish.

    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 Joseph Edward McKinley

    Retired of East Coburg, Victoria; died 1978.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 633 records for McKinley in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). 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).

Canada206 records

206 records of the McKinley name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 138
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 30
  • Other Canadian records 38
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Jas McKinley

    Came to Ontario in 1872 aboard the Sar, landing at Portland, bound for Bowmanville, 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 William James McKinley

    Buried in 1989 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 70.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Carl Martin McKinley

    Died 1948 in Onslow, Colchester, Nova Scotia.

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

Showing 3 of 206 records for McKinley in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · 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. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. 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).

New Zealand26 records

26 records of the McKinley name in New Zealand
  • Christchurch City cemetery records 14
  • Marlborough District cemetery records 8
  • Other New Zealand records 4
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Adeline Ann McKinley

    Died 1960, aged 66; buried at Memorial Park 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 Rona Yvonne McKinley

    Buried in 1980 at Totara Memorial Park Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato, aged 64.

    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 Frank Raymond McKinley

    Died 1984, aged 61; buried at Fairhall Cemetery, Marlborough.

    Marlborough District Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 26 records for McKinley in New Zealand.

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

United Kingdom12 records

12 records of the McKinley name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 11
  • Scottish rolls of honour, First World War 1
  1. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record James McKinley

    Born 1884 at Glasgow; butcher. Served in the First World War. Named in the Morayshire roll of honour (1921).

    National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain)
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record P. McKinley

    Tank Corps. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    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 J. McKinley

    Royal Irish Rifles. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

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

Showing 3 of 12 records for McKinley in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: 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 McKinley.

When the index is not enough

This page says where McKinley 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 McKinley volume
Scroll to Top