The Spearman surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 8,199 people carried this name — #4,330 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 36,000 people counted. That is up 4% from 7,855 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Spearman surname

A surname originating as an occupation.

From spear + man, an occupational surname for a soldier armed with a spear.

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

In print

Spearman in American newspapers,
1922.

Newspaper page from The Dolores Star carrying the name Spearman
The Dolores Star 1922-07-07
Newspaper page from Sioux County Pioneer carrying the name Spearman
Sioux County Pioneer 1922-05-25
Newspaper page from The Ordway New Era carrying the name Spearman
The Ordway New Era 1922-06-23

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 23,113 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Spearman in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1970s.

2,005 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Spearman. The most, 411, date from the 1860s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Tasmania, at 5.7 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Tasmania 1,021
New South Wales 509
Victoria 233
Queensland 97
South Australia 85
Western Australia 41
ACT (Canberra) 11
Northern Territory 2

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

Who carried it

People named Spearman,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Sarah Brooke d. 1808
  • Marie Jane Louise Spearman d. 1937
  • Jane Spearman d. 1955
  • Augusta Herries Spearman d. 1907
  • Carrie Eastwood d. 1944
  • Robert Spearman 1703–1761 · theologian

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

In the public record

People named Spearman,
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 States529 records

529 records of the Spearman name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 240
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 118
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 101
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 24
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 20
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 14
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 7
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 3
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 2
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Hosea Spearman

    Born 1907 in North Carolina. Enlisted 1942 at Fort Jay Governors Island, New York; garage worker. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1968, buried at Long Island National Cemetery, New York.

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

    Arrived at New York in 1869 aboard the Alex Marshall from Liverpool, aged 16; servant. From Ireland; bound for New York.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)
  3. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record William T. Spearman

    Born 1949; from Chicago, Illinois. U.S. Army, infantryman; died in an accident 1969 in Binh Duong, South Vietnam.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)

Showing 3 of 529 records for Spearman 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, 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) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain).

Australia96 records

96 records of the Spearman name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 46
  • Tasmanian Names Index 42
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 6
  • 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 William Spearman

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Blenheim, sailing from Woolwich in 1837. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1845. Married 1845 in Launceston, Tasmania, aged 38.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record William Spearman

    Died 1870 in Launceston, Tasmania, aged 70. Will registered in Tasmania in 1870.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (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 Robt Spearman

    Arrived in Victoria in 1856 aboard the Shalimar, aged 30; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 96 records for Spearman 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). 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); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Canada9 records

9 records of the Spearman name in Canada
  • City of Winnipeg cemetery records 5
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 3
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 1
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Lillian Spearman

    Died 1985, aged 77; buried at Transcona Cemetery, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

    City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg.
  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 Gordon Douglas Spearman

    Died in service in 1944.

    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 Minnie Spearman

    Buried in 1909 at Union Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta.

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

Showing 3 of 9 records for Spearman in Canada.

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

New Zealand2 records

2 records of the Spearman name in New Zealand Christchurch City cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Jessie Evelyn Spearman

    Died 1967, aged 75; buried at Ruru Lawn, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Chalres Lawrence Alexander Spearman

    Died 1965, aged 74; buried at Ruru Lawn, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

United Kingdom2 records

2 records of the Spearman 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 W. Spearman

    York and Lancaster Regiment. 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 E. Spearman

    Sapper, Royal Engineers. 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 Spearman.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Spearman 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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