The Pointer surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 7,453 people carried this name — #4,752 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 39,500 people counted. That is up 6% from 7,004 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Pointer surname

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as an occupational name: ‘the pointer’.

An early record he cites: Vasse le Poynter, Cambridgeshire, 1273 — Hundred Rolls.

His entry covers Pointer, Poynter and Pointmaker.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 613 · public domain.

In print

Pointer in American newspapers,
1911–1922.

Newspaper page from The Gazette-times carrying the name Pointer
The Gazette-times 1918-06-27
Newspaper page from The Alaska Citizen carrying the name Pointer
The Alaska Citizen 1911-08-14
Newspaper page from Richmond Planet carrying the name Pointer
Richmond Planet 1922-12-02

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 778 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Pointer in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1970s.

4,029 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Pointer. The most, 960, date from the 1930s. Queensland has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in Tasmania, at 3.4 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Queensland 1,116
New South Wales 1,096
Tasmania 856
Victoria 519
South Australia 297
Western Australia 118
ACT (Canberra) 24

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

Who carried it

People named Pointer,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Joseph Pointer
    Joseph Pointer 1875–1914 · politician
  • Sidney Pointer
    Sidney Pointer 1889–1955 · singer
  • Sidney Pointer
    Sidney Pointer 1889–1955 · singer
  • Priscilla Pointer
    Priscilla Pointer 1924–2025 · actor
  • Dick Pointer d. 1827
  • John Pointer 1668–1754 · Anglican priest

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 Pointer,
in the records of 7 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 States422 records

422 records of the Pointer name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 199
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 121
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 48
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 27
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 12
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 10
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 3
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 1
  • 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 Melville L. Pointer

    Born 1915 in Virginia. Enlisted 1942 at Fort Myer; sales clerk from Washington, D.C. U.S. Army Air Forces veteran of World War II; died 2001, buried at Quantico National Cemetery, Virginia.

    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 Walter Leon Pointer

    Born 1950; from Sand Springs, Oklahoma. U.S. Army, heavy construction equipment operator; died in an accident 1970 in Binh Long, 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 Ann Pointer

    Arrived at New York in 1882 aboard the Alaska from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 30; matron. From England.

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

Showing 3 of 422 records for Pointer 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) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain). 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).

Australia98 records

98 records of the Pointer name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 52
  • Tasmanian Names Index 20
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 10
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 8
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 8
  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 Thomas Pointer

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the James Laing, arriving 1834; certificate of freedom 1840.

    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 Willm Pointer

    Arrived in Victoria in 1858 aboard the Kent, aged 30; 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 William Frederick Pointer

    Gentleman of Eden Park, Victoria; died 1997.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 98 records for Pointer 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); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

United Kingdom9 records

9 records of the Pointer name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 7
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 2
  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. T. Pointer

    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)
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record W. C. Pointer

    Labour Corps. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    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 W. Pointer

    Highland Light Infantry. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

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

Showing 3 of 9 records for Pointer 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).

Canada7 records

7 records of the Pointer name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 3
  • Ontario immigration records, 1865–1883 2
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 1
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 1
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Will'm Pointer

    Came to Ontario in 1874, bound for Belleville, Ontario; English.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  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 Stanley Augustus Pointer

    Died in service in 1916.

    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 Margaret Pointer

    Married 1880 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

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

Showing 3 of 7 records for Pointer in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); 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).

Netherlands3 records

3 records of the Pointer name in the Netherlands Dutch church registers before 1811
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Anna Pointer

    Buried in 1768 in Rotterdam.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Rotterdam (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Iacob Pointer

    Baptised in 1651 in Delft.

    Open Archives, Archief Delft (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Joseph Pointer

    Baptised in 1645 in Delft.

    Open Archives, Archief Delft (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Germany2 records

2 records of the Pointer name in Germany Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Johann Pointer

    From München. Reported missing in the Bavarian casualty list of 3 February 1919 (Reserve Infantry Regiment No. 3).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  2. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Joseph Pointer

    From Unterwohlbach, Oberb. Reported taken prisoner in the Bavarian casualty list of 16 January 1919.

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0).

France1 record

1 record of the Pointer 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 Jean Jules Auguste Pointer

    Born 1922 in Douai (Nord); died 1996 in Longuyon (Meurthe-et-Moselle).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Pointer.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Pointer 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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