The Sturgis surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 5,885 people carried this name — #5,863 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 50,000 people counted. That is up 1% from 5,799 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Sturgis surname

From the Old Norse personal name Þorgils, composed of the elements Þórr (“Thor”) + gils (“hostage, pledge”). The initial s- is not explained.

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

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a baptismal name, from a given name: ‘the son of Thurgis or Turgis’.

An early record he cites: Johannes Sturgys, 1379 — Poll Tax, West Riding of Yorkshire.

His entry covers Sturge, Sturges, Sturgess and Sturgis.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 725 · public domain.

In print

Sturgis in American newspapers,
1900–1901.

Newspaper page from Ottumwa Semi-weekly Courier carrying the name Sturgis
Ottumwa Semi-weekly Courier 1900-12-13
Newspaper page from The Denison Review carrying the name Sturgis
The Denison Review 1901-11-26
Newspaper page from Ottumwa Semi-weekly Courier carrying the name Sturgis
Ottumwa Semi-weekly Courier 1900-12-18

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 111,019 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Sturgis in Australian newspapers,
1850s–1970s.

540 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Sturgis. The most, 132, date from the 1920s.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 208
Queensland 97
Victoria 83
South Australia 61
Western Australia 38
Tasmania 35
ACT (Canberra) 16

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

Who carried it

People named Sturgis,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Elizabeth Sturgis
    Elizabeth Sturgis d. 1781
  • Russell Sturgis
    Russell Sturgis 1750–1826 · businessperson
  • Elizabeth Perkins Sturgis
    Elizabeth Perkins Sturgis 1756–1843
  • Joan Meredith Sturgis d. 1986
  • Edward Sturgis 1639–1678
  • Thomas Sturgis 1659–1708

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 9 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Sturgis,
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 States465 records

465 records of the Sturgis name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 198
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 116
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 95
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 24
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 23
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 9
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Eugene S. Sturgis

    Born 1921 in Georgia. Enlisted 1942 at Fort Benning; porter from Fulton County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 2000, buried at South-View Cemetery, Atlanta, Georgia.

    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 Olive Sturgis

    Arrived at New York in 1892 aboard the Teutonic from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 14. From Surrey, England; bound for Boston.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)
  3. A U.S. Army record of death and interment, Camp Nelson, Kentucky, 1864
    Example: U.S. burial record, 1864
    Burial record Edward Sturgis

    U.S. Air Force veteran of the Korean War. Born 1932, died 1998; buried at Trinity Um Ch Cemetery, Pocomoke City, Maryland.

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

Showing 3 of 465 records for Sturgis 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). 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); Record of death and interment, Camp Nelson, Kentucky, 1864, U.S. National Archives (public domain).

Canada5 records

5 records of the Sturgis name in Canada Nova Scotia Archives name indexes
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record William Sturgis

    Died 1894 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Montague Sturgis

    Listed at Granville, Annapolis, Nova Scotia in the census and tax rolls of 1838.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Birth record Albert Edwin Sturgis

    Born 1872 in Walton, Hants, Nova Scotia.

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

Showing 3 of 5 records for Sturgis in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Australia5 records

5 records of the Sturgis name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 3
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 2
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record James G. Sturgis

    Of Glendore, New South Wales; died 1918.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record A. J. Sturgis

    Of Mayfield, New South Wales; died 1897.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)

Showing 2 of 5 records for Sturgis in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

New Zealand3 records

3 records of the Sturgis 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 John Henry Sturgis

    Died 1917, aged 50; buried at Sydenham Cemetery, 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 Eliza Sturgis

    Died 1928, aged 85; buried at Bromley Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record William Sturgis

    Died 1925, aged 56; buried at Sydenham Cemetery, 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 Kingdom1 record

1 record of the Sturgis 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 S. H. Sturgis

    Somerset 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)

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 Sturgis.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Sturgis 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 Sturgis volume
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