The Towner surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 3,813 people carried this name — #8,626 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 77,500 people counted. That is up 3% from 3,692 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Towner surname

As an English and Welsh surname

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

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 760 · public domain.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

26 families named Towner, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 138 people lived in those households, 5.3 to a family on average. The table counts it together with one other spelling. 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

Connecticut 18
Vermont 3
New York 2
New Hampshire 1
Massachusetts 1
North Carolina 1

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

In print

Towner in American newspapers,
1877–1909.

Newspaper page from The Leon Reporter carrying the name Towner
The Leon Reporter 1909-09-16
Newspaper page from The Leon Reporter carrying the name Towner
The Leon Reporter 1909-09-23
Newspaper page from The Cincinnati Daily Star carrying the name Towner
The Cincinnati Daily Star 1877-07-23

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

In print

Towner in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1990s.

7,198 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Towner. The most, 1,358, date from the 1940s. New South Wales 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 Queensland, at 1.8 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 3,367
Queensland 2,501
Victoria 844
Tasmania 331
South Australia 82
Western Australia 47
ACT (Canberra) 17

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

Who carried it

People named Towner,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Daniel B. Towner
    Daniel B. Towner 1850–1919 · composer
  • Horace Mann Towner
    Horace Mann Towner 1855–1937 · judge
  • Edgar Towner
    Edgar Towner 1890–1972 · geographer
  • James E. Towner 1851–1935 · politician
  • Xarifa Hamilton Towner 1881–1918 · painter
  • Elwood Towner 1897–1954 · lawyer

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 Towner,
in the records of 4 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 States380 records

380 records of the Towner name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 114
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 101
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 69
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 49
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 34
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 10
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 2
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Claude E. Towner

    Born 1917 in New York. Enlisted 1942 at Rochester; farm hand from Steuben County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1998, buried at Bath National Cemetery, New York.

    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 Allen Ray Towner

    Born 1949; from Sunfield, Michigan. U.S. Army, administrative specialist; died in service 1970 in Tay Ninh, 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 Horace Towner

    Arrived at New York in 1885 aboard the Helvetia from Liverpool, aged 18; laborer. From Peuge, England.

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

Showing 3 of 380 records for Towner in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · 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, 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).

Australia122 records

122 records of the Towner name in Australia
  • Tasmanian Names Index 38
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 33
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 32
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 11
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 7
  • Canberra cemetery and marriage records 1
  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 John Towner

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the James Pattison, arriving 1837; certificate of freedom 1843.

    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 Frederick Towner

    Arrived in Victoria in 1853 aboard the John Melhuish, 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 Henry James Towner

    Retired of Bairnsdale, Victoria; died 1980.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 122 records for Towner in Australia.

Counts: Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (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); 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).

Canada45 records

45 records of the Towner name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 40
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 3
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 1
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 1
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Ernest Towner

    Buried in 1950 at Burnsland Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Susan Towner

    Died 1871 in Green Harbour, Shelburne, Nova Scotia.

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

    Died in service in 1918.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada.

Showing 3 of 45 records for Towner in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · 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. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Canadian First World War circumstances-of-death register (scan by Scottgraham87 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0).

United Kingdom4 records

4 records of the Towner 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 J. Towner

    Royal Field Artillery. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    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 H. Towner

    Border Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    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 C. Towner

    Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. 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 4 records for Towner in the United Kingdom.

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 Towner.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Towner 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 Towner volume
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