The Whitten surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 14,054 people carried this name — #2,571 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 21,000 people counted. That is up 1% from 13,876 in 2000.

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Where the name comes from

The origin of the Whitten surname

Variant of Whitton.

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

In the first U.S. census, 1790

85 families named Whitten, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 412 people lived in those households, 4.8 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 8 other spellings. 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

Maine 29
Massachusetts 29
Virginia 6
North Carolina 6
New Hampshire 4
Pennsylvania 4
South Carolina 4
Rhode Island 1
Connecticut 1
New York 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. 268 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Whitten in American newspapers,
1907–1920.

Newspaper page from The Chattanooga News carrying the name Whitten
The Chattanooga News 1920-01-03
Newspaper page from The Chattanooga News carrying the name Whitten
The Chattanooga News 1920-01-03
Newspaper page from The Washington Herald carrying the name Whitten
The Washington Herald 1907-11-29

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 63,066 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Whitten in Australian newspapers,
1830s–2000s.

4,547 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Whitten. The most, 674, date from the 1930s. 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 Victoria, at 1.3 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 1,927
Victoria 1,244
Queensland 670
South Australia 259
Western Australia 192
Tasmania 82
ACT (Canberra) 47
Northern Territory 1

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

Who carried it

People named Whitten,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Jamie Whitten
    Jamie Whitten 1910–1995 · lawyer
  • Marguerite Whitten
    Marguerite Whitten 1913–1990 · actor
  • Mary Whitten 1740–1820
  • Louis G. Whitten 1873–1936 · businessperson
  • Norman Whitten 1881–1969 · actor
  • Kathryn Marion Whitten 1882–1951 · writer

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 8 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Whitten,
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 States940 records

940 records of the Whitten name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 495
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 195
  • Other U.S. records 250
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Patrick Anthony Whitten

    Born 1950; from Hanford, California. U.S. Marine Corps, rifleman; died in an accident 1969 in Quang Tri, South Vietnam. Buried at Alexandria National Cemetery, Louisiana.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Mays K. Whitten

    Born 1922 in Texas. Enlisted 1942 at Tyler; secretary from Tyler County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1998, buried at Laneville Cemetery, Texas.

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

    Arrived at New York in 1850 aboard the Queen of the West from Liverpool, aged 25; farmer. From Ireland.

    U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain)

Showing 3 of 940 records for Whitten 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) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · City of Asheville (public domain, PDDL). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Australia269 records

269 records of the Whitten name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 132
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 83
  • Other Australian records 54
  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 Whitten

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Equestrian, sailing from London in 1845. Native of Westminster, Middlesex.

    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 Joseph Whitten

    Arrived in Victoria in 1853 aboard the Athlone, aged 25; 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 Anne Whitten

    Gentlewoman of Ararat, Victoria; died 1930.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 269 records for Whitten 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) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · State Library of Western Australia (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).

Canada59 records

59 records of the Whitten name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 48
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 4
  • Other Canadian records 7
  1. The first page of an emigration file from Gündlingen, Baden, 1883
    Example: German emigration file, 1883
    Emigration record Nancy Whitten

    Left New York in 1783 aboard the L'Abondence, bound for Port Roseway, aged 32.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Harold William Whitten

    Buried in 1973 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 67.

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

    Died in service in 1916.

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

Showing 3 of 59 records for Whitten 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. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · City of Niagara Falls. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Niagara Falls. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Emigration file, Gündlingen, 1883, Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg, Staatsarchiv Freiburg B 694/1 Nr. 1389 (CC BY 4.0); 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).

United Kingdom10 records

10 records of the Whitten name in the United Kingdom
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 6
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 4
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Ann Whitten

    Buried in 1803 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 45.

    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 A. Whitten

    Royal Munster Fusiliers. 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 page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Robert Whitten

    Buried in 1822 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 42.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Showing 3 of 10 records for Whitten in the United Kingdom.

Counts: MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). 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).

New Zealand1 record

1 record of the Whitten name in New Zealand Thames-Coromandel District cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Herbert Edward Whitten

    Died 1992, aged 78; buried at Totara Memorial Park Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Thames-Coromandel 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).

Netherlands1 record

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

    In the population register of Utrecht; born in Deventer.

    Open Archives, Het Utrechts Archief (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 Whitten.

When the index is not enough

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