The McVay surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 8,086 people carried this name — #4,398 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 36,500 people counted. That is up 4% from 7,811 in 2000.

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Where the name comes from

The origin of the McVay surname

Variant of McVey.

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

35 families named McVay, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 172 people lived in those households, 4.9 to a family on average. The census counted these spellings together: McVay, M Vay, McVea, M Vea, McVeagh, McVey, M Vey, McVie. 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 15
Maryland 9
South Carolina 5
North Carolina 3
Virginia 2
Connecticut 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

McVay in American newspapers,
1899–1929.

Newspaper page from Austin's Hawaiian Weekly carrying the name McVay
Austin's Hawaiian Weekly 1899-06-24
Newspaper page from Rogue River Courier carrying the name McVay
Rogue River Courier 1912-11-22
Newspaper page from The Spokane Woman carrying the name McVay
The Spokane Woman 1929-06-27

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 23,838 pages in all carry the name.

In print

McVay in Australian newspapers,
1860s–1980s.

488 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss McVay. The most, 130, 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 Queensland, at 1.7 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Queensland 193
Victoria 125
New South Wales 96
Western Australia 32
South Australia 12
ACT (Canberra) 4
Tasmania 3
Northern Territory 1

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

Who carried it

People named McVay,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Hugh McVay
    Hugh McVay 1766–1851 · governor
  • Charles B. McVay III
    Charles B. McVay III 1898–1968 · military officer
  • Charles B. McVay, Jr.
    Charles B. McVay, Jr. 1868–1949 · military officer
  • Kenneth McVay 1940–2024
  • Jimmy McVay 1889–1950 · association football player
  • Kimo Wilder McVay 1927–2001 · talent manager

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

In the public record

People named McVay,
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 States640 records

640 records of the McVay name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 252
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 124
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 123
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 73
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 26
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 24
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 14
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 3
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Jack B. McVay

    Born 1921 in Missouri. Enlisted 1942 at Jefferson Barracks; baker from Douglas County. U.S. Army Air Forces veteran of World War II; died 1944, buried at Springfield National Cemetery, Missouri.

    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 McVay

    Arrived at New York in 1885 aboard the Adriatic from Liverpool, aged 50; housekeeper. From Liverpool, Ireland.

    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 Richard Wayne McVay

    Born 1945; from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. U.S. Marine Corps, rifleman; died of wounds 1966 in Thua Thien, South Vietnam.

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

Showing 3 of 640 records for McVay 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) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (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).

Australia28 records

28 records of the McVay name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 19
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 8
  • Tasmanian Names Index 1
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record James McVay

    Farmer of Gooram Gooram Gong, Victoria; died 1888.

    Public Record Office Victoria (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 Elizabeth McVay

    Arrived in Tasmania in 1860 aboard the Indiana from Glasgow.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Jas McVay

    Arrived in Victoria in 1911 aboard the Gothic, aged 39.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 28 records for McVay in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Canada12 records

12 records of the McVay name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 5
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 4
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 2
  • City of Winnipeg cemetery records 1
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record George William McVay

    Died 1972 in Lunenburg, 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 Joseph McVay

    Died 1932; 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 Hester McVay

    Buried in 1951 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta.

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

Showing 3 of 12 records for McVay 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. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. 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).

United Kingdom1 record

1 record of the McVay name in the United Kingdom War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead
  1. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record F. McVay

    Northumberland Fusiliers. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

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

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (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 McVay.

When the index is not enough

This page says where McVay 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 McVay volume
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