The True surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 8,261 people carried this name — #4,303 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 35,700 people counted. That is up 4% from 7,926 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the True surname

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a nickname: ‘the true’.

An early record he cites: Henry Trewe, Bedfordshire, 1273 — Hundred Rolls.

His entry covers True and Trew.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 767 · public domain.

In Argentina’s national register

At least 22 people named True live in Argentina.

RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Buenos Aires Province 22

RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

62 families named True, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 333 people lived in those households, 5.4 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

New Hampshire 29
Maine 20
Massachusetts 9
Virginia 2
New York 1
Maryland 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. 266 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

True in American newspapers,
1896–1904.

Newspaper page from The Portland Daily Press carrying the name True
The Portland Daily Press 1904-03-19
Newspaper page from The Portland Daily Press carrying the name True
The Portland Daily Press 1896-03-21
Newspaper page from Daily Kennebec Journal carrying the name True
Daily Kennebec Journal 1904-01-28

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 6,158 pages in all carry the name.

In print

True in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1990s.

12,028 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss True. The most, 2,228, date from the 1910s. 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 South Australia, at 1.3 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 4,014
Victoria 3,067
South Australia 1,758
Queensland 1,496
Western Australia 946
Tasmania 558
ACT (Canberra) 134
Northern Territory 8

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

Who carried it

People named True,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Henry True
    Henry True 1848–1906 · elder
  • Frederick W. True
    Frederick W. True 1858–1914 · curator
  • Clara D. True
    Clara D. True 1867–1935 · school teacher
  • George True d. 1864 · diplomat
  • John M. True 1838–1921 · politician
  • John Preston True 1859–1933 · writer

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 7 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named True,
in the records of 9 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 States629 records

629 records of the True name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 300
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 140
  • Other U.S. records 189
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Herman A. True

    Born 1925 in Maine. Enlisted 1944 at Fort Devens, Massachusetts; pattern maker from Sagadahoc County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 2000, buried at Gould Cemetery, Smithfield, Maine.

    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 Malcolm Roscoe True

    Born 1947; from Cocoa, Florida. U.S. Army, infantryman; killed in action 1968 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 Carl-August True

    Arrived at New York in 1849 aboard the Glasgow from Antwerp, aged 20; joiner. From Bavaria, Germany; bound for Baltimore.

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

Showing 3 of 629 records for True 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) · 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); 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).

Australia72 records

72 records of the True name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 32
  • Tasmanian Names Index 22
  • Other Australian records 18
  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 Charles True

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Thames, sailing from London in 1829. Native of Hoxton, Middlesex. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1837.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record William True

    Arrived in Victoria in 1885 aboard the Darling Downs, aged 24; 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 Josephine Mary G. True

    Nursing sister of Sth Melbourne, Victoria; died 1977.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 72 records for True 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) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). 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).

Germany29 records

29 records of the True name in Germany Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Karl True

    From Niederpleis, Siegkreis. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 31 May 1918.

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  2. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Peter True

    From Geistingen, Sieg. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 27 May 1918.

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  3. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Hermann True

    From Holtum, Stade. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 19 August 1916.

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)

Showing 3 of 29 records for True in Germany.

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0).

Canada7 records

7 records of the True name in Canada
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 4
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 2
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 1
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Laura Christine True

    Died 1965 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

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

    Died in service in 1918.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada.
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record John True

    Married 1865 in Wallace, Cumberland, Nova Scotia.

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

Showing 3 of 7 records for True in Canada.

Counts: Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: 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); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

United Kingdom3 records

3 records of the True name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 2
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Sarah True

    Buried in 1801 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 92.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record W. H. True

    Gunner, King's Own (Yorkshire Light Infantry). Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    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 W. True

    Gloucestershire Regiment. 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) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Netherlands3 records

3 records of the True name in the Netherlands Dutch church registers before 1811
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Luenis True

    Baptised in 1665 in Oost-Souburg.

    Open Archives, Zeeuws Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Joannis True

    Baptised in 1670 in Oost-Souburg.

    Open Archives, Zeeuws Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Joannis True

    Baptised in 1668 in Oost-Souburg.

    Open Archives, Zeeuws Archief (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

France2 records

2 records of the True name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Gustave Jean Barthelemy True

    Born 1907 in Vinsobres; died 1971 in Nyons (Drôme).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Hubertine Jeanne True

    Born 1904 in Piolenc; died 1975 in Orange (Vaucluse).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

New Zealand1 record

1 record of the True name in New Zealand Marlborough District cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Lavinia True

    Died 2001, aged 98; buried at Fairhall Cemetery, Marlborough.

    Marlborough District Council (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Marlborough District 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).

Belgium1 record

1 record of the True name in Belgium Belgian civil registers (births, marriages, deaths)
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Alphonse True

    Died 1881 in Kortijk.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Kortrijk (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to True.

When the index is not enough

This page says where True 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 True volume
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