The McLane surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 5,640 people carried this name — #6,077 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 52,400 people counted. That is up 6% from 5,313 in 2000.

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Where the name comes from

The origin of the McLane surname

Variant of McLean.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «McLane» (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

In 1790, McLane was counted together with McLean: 278 families in all.

Each family is counted by its head. About 1,543 people lived in those households, 5.6 to a family on average. The census counted these spellings together: McLean, McClaen, McClain, Mcclain, McClaine, McClane, McClean, McClene, Maclain, McLain, Mclain, McLaine, McLane, Mclane, McLean, Mclean, McLeane, McLeain, McLene. 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 89
North Carolina 83
New York 31
Maryland 21
South Carolina 15
Virginia 14
Massachusetts 10
Connecticut 5
Maine 4
Vermont 3
Rhode Island 2
New Hampshire 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. 253 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

McLane in American newspapers,
1840–1907.

Newspaper page from The Mirror And Farmer carrying the name McLane
The Mirror And Farmer 1907-11-14
Newspaper page from The Maryville Times carrying the name McLane
The Maryville Times 1899-02-04
Newspaper page from North American carrying the name McLane
North American 1840-09-02

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 88,574 pages in all carry the name.

In print

McLane in Australian newspapers,
1840s–1990s.

1,773 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss McLane. The most, 373, date from the 1930s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in New South Wales, at 1.4 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 852
Victoria 345
South Australia 262
Queensland 198
Western Australia 62
Tasmania 26
ACT (Canberra) 18
Northern Territory 4

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

Who carried it

People named McLane,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Louis McLane
    Louis McLane 1786–1857 · diplomat
  • Jimmy McLane
    Jimmy McLane 1930–2020 · swimmer
  • Robert Milligan McLane
    Robert Milligan McLane 1815–1898 · diplomat
  • M. Jean McLane
    M. Jean McLane 1878–1964 · painter
  • John McLane
    John McLane 1852–1911 · joiner

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

In the public record

People named McLane,
in the records of 3 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 States429 records

429 records of the McLane name in the United States
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 195
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 110
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 42
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 34
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 20
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 17
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 7
  • Sacramento County historic burials 2
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 1
  • New York State police and firefighter memorial rolls 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Glynn H. McLane

    Born 1915 in Texas. Enlisted 1940 at Houston; meat cutter. U.S. Air Force veteran of World War II and the Korean War; died 1978, buried at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery, Texas.

    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 Cath McLane

    Arrived at New York in 1834 aboard the Ocean from Liverpool, aged 20; laborer. From Ireland; bound for New Orleans.

    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 McDoyle McLane

    Born 1929; from Hart County, Georgia. U.S. Army, light weapons infantryman; killed in action 1951 in North Korea.

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

Showing 3 of 429 records for McLane 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) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · New York State, Open NY (police and firefighter memorial rolls). 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).

Canada99 records

99 records of the McLane name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 95
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 2
  • Ontario immigration records, 1865–1883 1
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 1
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record William McLane

    Died 1875 in Greenfield, Guysborough, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Mary Ethel McLane

    Died 1950; buried at Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, British Columbia.

    City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Denise McLane

    Buried in 1972 at St. Mary's Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta.

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

Showing 3 of 99 records for McLane 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. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0).

Australia44 records

44 records of the McLane name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 25
  • Tasmanian Names Index 13
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 4
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 2
  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 Jane McLane

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Emma Eugenia, sailing from London in 1850. Native of Canterbury, Kent.

    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 Donald McLane

    Arrived in Victoria in 1858 aboard the Vaquero, aged 50; British subject.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Robert McLane

    Of Inverell, New South Wales; died 1931.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)

Showing 3 of 44 records for McLane 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). 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); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to McLane.

When the index is not enough

This page says where McLane 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.

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