The Riggins surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 12,218 people carried this name — #2,934 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 24,200 people counted. That is up 7% from 11,385 in 2000.

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Where the name comes from

The origin of the Riggins surname

Unexplained, but possibly a variant of Higgins.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Riggins» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

In print

Riggins in American newspapers,
1913–1929.

Newspaper page from The Washington Daily News carrying the name Riggins
The Washington Daily News 1929-07-31
Newspaper page from The Roundup Record carrying the name Riggins
The Roundup Record 1913-09-12
Newspaper page from Evening Star carrying the name Riggins
Evening Star 1929-10-14

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 5,784 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Riggins in Australian newspapers,
1850s–1960s.

280 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Riggins. The most, 83, date from the 1910s. Victoria 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 Western Australia, at 1.8 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Victoria 79
New South Wales 68
Western Australia 44
South Australia 36
Queensland 33
Tasmania 16
ACT (Canberra) 1

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

In the public record

People named Riggins,
in the records of 3 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 States550 records

550 records of the Riggins name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 333
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 123
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 57
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 17
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 7
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 5
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 4
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 3
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 1
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record James Patrick Riggins

    Born 1949; from Los Fresnos, Texas. U.S. Army, infantryman; killed in action 1969 in Kien Tuong, South Vietnam. Buried at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery, Texas.

    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 Rubin S. Riggins

    Born 1921 in Maryland. Enlisted 1944 at Fort George G Meade; driver. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 2001, buried at Eastern Shore Veterans Cemetery, Hurlock, Maryland.

    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 Peter Riggins

    Arrived at New York in 1849 aboard the Calcutta from Liverpool, aged 36; laborer. From Great Britain.

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

Showing 3 of 550 records for Riggins 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) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain). 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).

Canada5 records

5 records of the Riggins name in Canada
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 4
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 1
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Donnie Ethel Riggins

    Buried in 1987 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 95.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  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 Glenn Riggins

    Died in service in 1918.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record James Lawrence Riggins

    Buried in 1968 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 24.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.

Showing 3 of 5 records for Riggins in Canada.

Counts: City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. 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).

Australia3 records

3 records of the Riggins name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 2
  • Tasmanian Names Index 1
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Annie Riggins

    Arrived in Victoria in 1863 aboard the Marco Polo, aged 30.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 1 of 3 records for Riggins in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Riggins.

When the index is not enough

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