The Medley surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 13,630 people carried this name — #2,641 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 21,600 people counted. That is up 4% from 13,152 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Medley surname

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a local name, from where the family lived: ‘at the mid-ley’.

His entry covers Medley and Meadley.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 526 · public domain.

In Argentina’s national register

At least 73 people named Medley live in Argentina.

RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.

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

Where they live today

Buenos Aires Province 73

RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.

In print

Medley in American newspapers,
1912–1920.

Newspaper page from The Cape County Herald carrying the name Medley
The Cape County Herald 1912-05-10
Newspaper page from The Cordova Daily Times carrying the name Medley
The Cordova Daily Times 1915-02-24
Newspaper page from The Sun And The New York Herald carrying the name Medley
The Sun And The New York Herald 1920-02-04

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 1,064 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Medley in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1990s.

10,456 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Medley. The most, 2,577, date from the 1940s. 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 3,698
New South Wales 2,385
Queensland 2,318
South Australia 1,147
Tasmania 441
Western Australia 386
ACT (Canberra) 41
Northern Territory 15

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

Who carried it

People named Medley,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Henry Medley
    Henry Medley 1687–1747 · naval officer
  • George Medley
    George Medley 1720–1796 · politician
  • Samuel Medley
    Samuel Medley 1738–1799 · hymnwriter
  • Kathleen Mary Medley d. 1965
  • William Medley d. 1509
  • Frederick Medley d. 1857

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 Medley,
in the records of 6 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 States824 records

824 records of the Medley name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 439
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 189
  • Other U.S. records 196
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Arthur F. Medley

    Born 1915 in Missouri. Enlisted 1944 at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas; driver from Jackson County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1998, buried at Leavenworth National Cemetery, Kansas.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Tommy Ray Medley

    Born 1949; from Newton, Texas. U.S. Marine Corps, rifleman; killed in action 1968 in Quang Tri, South Vietnam.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Betty Medley

    Arrived at New York in 1848 aboard the Blake from Liverpool, aged 23; laborer. From Ireland.

    U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain)

Showing 3 of 824 records for Medley in the United States.

Counts: 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) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (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); 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).

Australia200 records

200 records of the Medley name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 101
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 53
  • Other Australian records 46
  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 William Medley

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Layton, sailing from Sheerness in 1835. Native of Claydon, Gloucestershire.

    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 Laura Medley

    Arrived in Victoria in 1887 aboard the Potosi, as an infant; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Livre d’or of the French war dead, Paris
    Example: roll of the war dead
    War record Cyril L. Medley

    Enlisted in 1915 with the 21st Battalion. Honoured on the Ballarat Avenue of Honour.

    City of Ballarat, Avenue of Honour Plaques (CC BY 3.0 AU)

Showing 3 of 200 records for Medley 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) · City of Ballarat, Avenue of Honour Plaques (CC BY 3.0 AU) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · 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); Livre d’or of the war dead, Paris, Ministère des pensions, Archives nationales (CC0).

Canada79 records

79 records of the Medley name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 69
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 4
  • Other Canadian records 6
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Harry Henry Medley

    Buried in 1979 at Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, aged 75.

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

    Died 1941 in Antigonish, Nova Scotia.

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

    Died in service in 1918.

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

Showing 3 of 79 records for Medley 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. · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. · 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. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Canadian First World War circumstances-of-death register (scan by Scottgraham87 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0).

United Kingdom7 records

7 records of the Medley name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 6
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 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 A. Medley

    Bombardier, Royal Field Artillery. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (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 F. Medley

    Royal Dublin Fusiliers. 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 First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record E. Medley

    Northumberland Fusiliers. 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 7 records for Medley in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. 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).

France6 records

6 records of the Medley name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Edouard Paul Francis Medley

    Born 1905 in Spain; died 1998 in Perpignan (Pyrénées-Orientales).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Yvette Marie Jeanne Medley

    Born 1897 in Bordeaux (Gironde); died 1992 in Nérac (Lot-et-Garonne).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  3. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Jean Pierre Andre Medley

    Born 1939 in Saint-Cloud (Hauts-de-Seine); died 1994 in Villejuif (Val-de-Marne).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 3 of 6 records for Medley in France.

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

New Zealand3 records

3 records of the Medley name in New Zealand Christchurch City cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Kate Medley

    Died 1918, aged 30; buried at Linwood 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 Hubert Medley

    Died 1896, aged 66; buried at Linwood Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Annie Medley

    Died 1921, aged 87; buried at Linwood Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Christchurch City 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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Medley.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Medley 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 Medley volume
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