The Ragsdale surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 12,227 people carried this name — #2,932 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 24,100 people counted. About the same as in 2000 (12,195).

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Where the name comes from

The origin of the Ragsdale surname

Variant of Ragdale.

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

30 families named Ragsdale, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 135 people lived in those households, 4.5 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 3 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

North Carolina 14
Virginia 11
South Carolina 5

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. 258 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Ragsdale in American newspapers,
1913.

Newspaper page from The Washington Herald carrying the name Ragsdale
The Washington Herald 1913-12-19
Newspaper page from The Washington Times carrying the name Ragsdale
The Washington Times 1913-07-26
Newspaper page from The Washington Times carrying the name Ragsdale
The Washington Times 1913-08-03

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain.

In print

Ragsdale in Australian newspapers,
1870s–1930s.

38 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Ragsdale. The most, 11, date from the 1870s.

Articles, by state

Queensland 13
South Australia 9
New South Wales 8
Victoria 5
Tasmania 1
Western Australia 1

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

Who carried it

People named Ragsdale,
with a public archive behind them.

  • William P. Ragsdale
    William P. Ragsdale 1837–1877 · lawyer
  • J. Willard Ragsdale
    J. Willard Ragsdale 1872–1919 · lawyer
  • Ray Waldo Ragsdale 1909– · writer
  • Beatrice Alice Waller 1922–2001
  • Eleanor Ragsdale 1926–1998 · teacher
  • Edwin H. Ragsdale 1929–2017 · politician

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 Ragsdale,
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 States702 records

702 records of the Ragsdale name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 468
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 189
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 28
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 6
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 5
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 5
  • Sacramento County historic burials 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Edward A. Ragsdale

    Born 1919 in Indiana. Enlisted 1944 at Fort Benjamin Harrison; cotton farmer from Madison County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1998, buried at Bethel Cemetery, Washington, Indiana.

    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 Donald Ray O. Ragsdale

    Born 1948; from Dewey, Oklahoma. U.S. Army, infantryman; killed in action 1970 in Thua Thien, South Vietnam.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)
  3. A U.S. Army record of death and interment, Camp Nelson, Kentucky, 1864
    Example: U.S. burial record, 1864
    Burial record Andrew J. Ragsdale

    Confederate Army veteran. Born 1837, died 1908; buried at Neal Chapel Cemetery, Owens Cross Roads, Alabama.

    U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)

Showing 3 of 702 records for Ragsdale 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, 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) · 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); Record of death and interment, Camp Nelson, Kentucky, 1864, U.S. National Archives (public domain).

Norway5 records

5 records of the Ragsdale name in Norway Norway's 1910 census
  1. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record Lillian Maud Annie Ragsdale

    Census of 1910: Akersbakken, Kristiania; "hjem", born 1909 in Kristiania.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)
  2. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record George Laurence Ragsdale

    Census of 1910: Akersbakken, Kristiania; "skole", born 1899 in Nottingham England.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)
  3. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record George J. Ragsdale

    Census of 1910: Akersbakken, Kristiania; born 1873 in Worksop England.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)

Showing 3 of 5 records for Ragsdale in Norway.

Counts: Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

Canada3 records

3 records of the Ragsdale name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 2
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 1
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Thaddeus Joseph Ragsdale

    Died 1983; buried at Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, British Columbia.

    City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver.
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Effie May Ragsdale

    Married 1910 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Earl James Wilson Ragsdale

    Married 1910 in Halifax, 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. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

Australia3 records

3 records of the Ragsdale name in Australia
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 2
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 1
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Albert Ragsdale

    Arrived in Queensland in 1890 aboard the Quetta, aged 17.

    Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Arthur W. Ragsdale

    Chef of St Kilda, Victoria; died 1951.

    Public Record Office Victoria (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 Albert Ragsdale

    Arrived in Queensland in 1890 aboard the Quetta.

    Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: 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 Kingdom1 record

1 record of the Ragsdale 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 M. Ragsdale

    Corporal, Royal Warwickshire Regiment. 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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Ragsdale.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Ragsdale 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 Ragsdale volume
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