The Pearsall surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 4,888 people carried this name — #6,877 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 60,200 people counted. That is up 5% from 4,661 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Pearsall surname

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a local name, from where the family lived: ‘of Pearshall’.

His entry covers Pearsall, Pearsaul, Piersol and Peirsol.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 592 · public domain.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

94 families named Pearsall, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 572 people lived in those households, 6.1 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 24 other spellings. 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

New York 40
Pennsylvania 20
Virginia 17
North Carolina 6
South Carolina 5
Connecticut 3
Maryland 2
Massachusetts 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. 256 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Pearsall in American newspapers,
1903–1926.

Newspaper page from The Billings Gazette carrying the name Pearsall
The Billings Gazette 1903-01-30
Newspaper page from The Herald And News carrying the name Pearsall
The Herald And News 1926-10-12
Newspaper page from Cameron County Press carrying the name Pearsall
Cameron County Press 1910-10-13

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 36,675 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Pearsall in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1990s.

6,604 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Pearsall. The most, 1,597, 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 Tasmania, at 7.8 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Tasmania 2,965
New South Wales 1,957
Victoria 718
Western Australia 432
Queensland 352
ACT (Canberra) 80
South Australia 72
Northern Territory 10

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

Who carried it

People named Pearsall,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Hannah Housman d. 1735 · diarist
  • Richard Pearsall 1698–1762
  • Thomas Pearsall 1735–1807
  • Alva Pearsall 1839–1893 · photographer
  • Virginia C. Pearsall 1840–1884
  • Robert Pearsall 1852–1929 · architect

Wikidata (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Pearsall,
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 States1,337 records

1,337 records of the Pearsall name in the United States
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 803
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 193
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 174
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 123
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 20
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 16
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 3
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 2
  • Riverside Cemetery, Asheville (North Carolina) 1
  • 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 Jesse A. Pearsall

    Born 1923 in New York. Enlisted 1943 at New York City; textile mill worker from Queens County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 2001, buried at Greenfield Cemetery, Hempstead, New York.

    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 Richard Mark Pearsall

    Born 1948; from Pontiac, Michigan. U.S. Army, infantryman; killed in action 1969 in Binh Dinh, 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 Elisa Pearsall

    Arrived at New York in 1855 aboard the Lucy Thompson from Liverpool, aged 24; servant. From England.

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

Showing 3 of 1,337 records for Pearsall in the United States.

Counts: NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · 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, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · City of Asheville (public domain, PDDL) · 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); 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).

Australia307 records

307 records of the Pearsall name in Australia
  • Tasmanian Names Index 236
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 36
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 21
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 7
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 6
  • State Library of Western Australia indexes 1
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Anne Pearsall

    Died 1877 in Hobart, Tasmania, aged 75. Will registered in Tasmania in 1877.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. 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 Joseph Pearsall

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Shipley, arriving 1822; ticket of leave 1827.

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

    Arrived in Victoria in 1852 aboard the Martin Luther, aged 3; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 307 records for Pearsall in Australia.

Counts: Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · State Library of Western Australia (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); 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).

Canada20 records

20 records of the Pearsall name in Canada
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 12
  • City of Niagara Falls (Ontario) cemetery records 3
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 2
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 2
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 1
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Rebecca Pearsall

    Died 1943; buried at Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, British Columbia.

    City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver.
  2. 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 James Henry Pearsall

    Died in service in 1917.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada.
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Benjamin R. Pearsall

    Married 1898 in Colchester, Nova Scotia.

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

Showing 3 of 20 records for Pearsall in Canada.

Counts: City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · City of Niagara Falls. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Niagara Falls. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Canadian First World War circumstances-of-death register (scan by Scottgraham87 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

United Kingdom2 records

2 records of the Pearsall 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 H. Pearsall

    Lance Corporal, South Staffordshire Regiment. 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 T. P. Pearsall

    Pralian Infantry. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    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).

Netherlands1 record

1 record of the Pearsall name in the Netherlands Dutch population registers
  1. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Population register John Pearsall

    In the population register of Amsterdam; born 1814 in Birmingham.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Amsterdam (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Pearsall.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Pearsall 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 Pearsall volume
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