The Merryman surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 3,843 people carried this name — #8,572 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 76,900 people counted. About the same as in 2000 (3,849).

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What the name means

The meaning of the Merryman surname

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a nickname: ‘the merry man’.

An early record he cites: Adam Myryman, 1379 — Poll Tax, West Riding of Yorkshire.

His entry covers Merriman and Merryman.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 528 · public domain.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

In 1790, Merryman was counted together with Merriman: 107 families in all.

Each family is counted by its head. About 620 people lived in those households, 5.8 to a family on average. The census counted these spellings together: Merriman, Meremon, Meriman, Merreman, Merryman, Merrymoon, Merrymoone, Miriman, Mirriman. 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

Connecticut 39
Maryland 19
Virginia 10
North Carolina 10
Massachusetts 9
Maine 8
New York 6
Vermont 3
Pennsylvania 3

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

Merryman in American newspapers,
1907–1920.

Newspaper page from Webster City Freeman carrying the name Merryman
Webster City Freeman 1920-11-01
Newspaper page from The Bottineau Courant carrying the name Merryman
The Bottineau Courant 1912-10-25
Newspaper page from Corvallis Gazette carrying the name Merryman
Corvallis Gazette 1907-03-26

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 21,999 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Merryman in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1960s.

797 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Merryman. The most, 160, 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 Victoria, at 1.6 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Victoria 278
New South Wales 207
Western Australia 95
Queensland 87
South Australia 76
Tasmania 39
ACT (Canberra) 4

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

Who carried it

People named Merryman,
with a public archive behind them.

  • John Merryman
    John Merryman 1824–1881 · politician
  • George H. Merryman
    George H. Merryman 1878–1948 · politician
  • James H. Merryman
    James H. Merryman 1929–2003 · military officer
  • Andrew Curtis Merryman 1831–1905
  • John D. Merryman 1833–1920
  • Elijah Gittings Merryman 1858–1913

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 Merryman,
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 States264 records

264 records of the Merryman name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 148
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 58
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 42
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 5
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 5
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 3
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 1
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 1
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 1
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Dennis Gary Merryman

    Born 1949; from Sparta, Michigan. U.S. Marine Corps, rifleman; killed in action 1969 in Quang Nam, South Vietnam. Buried at Algoma Township Cemetery, Rockford, Michigan.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Ralph O. Merryman

    Born 1918 in Tennessee. Enlisted 1942 at Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia; salesperson from Macon County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1975, buried at Nashville National Cemetery, Tennessee.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Anne Merryman

    Arrived at New York in 1853 aboard the America from Liverpool, aged 22; servant. From Ireland.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)

Showing 3 of 264 records for Merryman in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · 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) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index. 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); U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Australia50 records

50 records of the Merryman name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 37
  • Tasmanian Names Index 7
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 2
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 2
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 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 Peter Merryman

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Royal Admiral, arriving 1833.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Josiah Merryman

    Arrived in Victoria in 1858 aboard the Sydenham, aged 60; English.

    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 Frederick Merryman

    Gentleman of Alphington, Victoria; died 1960.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 50 records for Merryman 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). 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).

Canada2 records

2 records of the Merryman name in Canada Nova Scotia Archives name indexes
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Charles Merryman

    Died 1867 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record John Duckett Merryman

    Married 1846 in Pictou, Nova Scotia.

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

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

United Kingdom1 record

1 record of the Merryman name in the United Kingdom St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Sarah Merryman

    Buried in 1804 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 56.

    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. 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 Merryman.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Merryman 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 Merryman volume
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