The Waldo surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 4,699 people carried this name — #7,120 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 62,900 people counted. That is up 1% from 4,651 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Waldo surname

A surname transferred from the given name.

English surname, from the obsolete English given name Waltheof, from Old English weald (“power”) + þēof (“thief”), as in "one who snatched victory from battle." Comparable to, or ultimately Anglicized from, the Old Norse equivalent Valthiófr, from vald + *ᚦᛖᚢᛒᚨᛉ (*þeubaʀ).

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Waldo» (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 Waldeve’.

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

His entry covers Waldy, Waldie, Waldo and Wilthew.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 789 · public domain.

In the Nordic population registers

43 people named Waldo is counted in Sweden.

Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published.

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 43

Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown).

In the first U.S. census, 1790

38 families named Waldo, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 233 people lived in those households, 6.1 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 16
Massachusetts 8
New Hampshire 4
Vermont 4
New York 4
Maine 2

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

In print

Waldo in American newspapers,
1912.

Newspaper page from The Sun carrying the name Waldo
The Sun 1912-09-14
Newspaper page from The Evening World carrying the name Waldo
The Evening World 1912-09-06
Newspaper page from The Evening World carrying the name Waldo
The Evening World 1912-09-23

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 6,277 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Waldo in Australian newspapers,
1840s–1990s.

2,210 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Waldo. The most, 491, 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 Western Australia, at 2.7 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 643
Victoria 514
Western Australia 487
Queensland 277
South Australia 150
Tasmania 102
ACT (Canberra) 27
Northern Territory 1

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

Who carried it

People named Waldo,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Peter Waldo
    Peter Waldo 1140–1205 · merchant
  • Sir Edward Waldo
    Sir Edward Waldo 1631–1707
  • Samuel Waldo
    Samuel Waldo 1696–1759 · military leader
  • Samuel Waldo
    Samuel Waldo 1723–1770 · politician
  • Daniel Waldo
    Daniel Waldo 1762–1864 · missionary
  • Grace Waldo d. 1729

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 Waldo,
in the records of 6 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 States396 records

396 records of the Waldo name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 158
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 93
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 77
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 28
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 23
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 14
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 2
  • Ramsey County (Minnesota) Memorial Hall, war dead 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Herbert E. Waldo

    Born 1917 in Minnesota. Enlisted 1941 at Sacramento, California; auto mechanic. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1977, buried at Willamette National Cemetery, Oregon.

    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 Istvan Waldo

    Arrived at New York in 1904 aboard the Blucher from Hamburg, aged 31; laborer. From Sarlo, Hungary.

    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 Herbert Eugene Waldo

    U.S. Army veteran of World War I. Born 1887, died 1965; buried at Los Angeles National Cemetery, California.

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

Showing 3 of 396 records for Waldo in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · Ramsey County, Minnesota (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).

Canada6 records

6 records of the Waldo name in Canada
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 5
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 1
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Earl Raymond Waldo

    Buried in 1961 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 46.

    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 William Waldo

    Died 1911 in Lequille, Annapolis, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Walter Harvey Waldo

    Buried in 1948 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta.

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

Showing 3 of 6 records for Waldo in Canada.

Counts: City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. 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).

Australia4 records

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

    Arrived in Victoria in 1906 aboard the Orient, aged 27.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  2. The first page of an emigration file from Gündlingen, Baden, 1883
    Example: German emigration file, 1883
    Emigration record Charles Waldo

    Left Hobart Town in 1852 aboard the Moscheto, bound for Geelong, as crew.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 2 of 4 records for Waldo in Australia.

Counts: Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Public Record Office Victoria (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); Emigration file, Gündlingen, 1883, Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg, Staatsarchiv Freiburg B 694/1 Nr. 1389 (CC BY 4.0).

Germany3 records

3 records of the Waldo 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 Hubert Waldo

    From Haselünne, Meppen. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 22 August 1916 (Infantry Regiment No. 78).

    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 Karl Waldo

    From Gerbitz, Nienburg. Reported missing in the Prussian casualty list of 17 September 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 Erich Waldo

    From Gnesen, Posen. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 28 August 1917.

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

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).

Norway2 records

2 records of the Waldo name in Norway Norway's 1910 census
  1. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record Grete Waldo

    Census of 1910: Munkedamsveien, Kristiania; "artistinde", born 1884 in Leipzig.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)

Showing 1 of 2 records for Waldo in Norway.

Counts: Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

Netherlands1 record

1 record of the Waldo name in the Netherlands Dutch population registers
  1. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Population register Hendrik Waldo

    In the population register of Spannum; born 1898 in Spannum.

    Open Archives, AlleFriezen (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Waldo.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Waldo 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 Waldo volume
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