The Wilbur surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 9,527 people carried this name — #3,719 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 31,000 people counted. That is down 2% from 9,722 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Wilbur surname

A surname originating as a matronymic.

From an Old English female given name Wilburg, from wil (“will”) + burh (“fortress”).

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

In print

Wilbur in American newspapers,
1905–1920.

Newspaper page from Evening Times-republican carrying the name Wilbur
Evening Times-republican 1905-01-25
Newspaper page from Evening Times-republican carrying the name Wilbur
Evening Times-republican 1905-05-23
Newspaper page from The Independent-reporter carrying the name Wilbur
The Independent-reporter 1920-08-12

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 16,163 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Wilbur in Australian newspapers,
1850s–1990s.

17,769 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Wilbur. The most, 6,401, date from the 1930s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Victoria, at 2.7 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Victoria 8,186
New South Wales 3,231
Queensland 1,924
Western Australia 1,892
South Australia 1,546
Tasmania 759
ACT (Canberra) 133
Northern Territory 12

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

Who carried it

People named Wilbur,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Julia Wilbur
    Julia Wilbur 1815–1895 · teacher
  • Edward Payson Wilbur
    Edward Payson Wilbur 1831–1901 · politician
  • Curtis D. Wilbur
    Curtis D. Wilbur 1867–1954 · judge
  • Curtis D. Wilbur
    Curtis D. Wilbur 1867–1954 · judge
  • Sibyl Wilbur
    Sibyl Wilbur 1871–1946 · writer
  • Esther Wilbur 1791–1859 · abolitionist

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 Wilbur,
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 States1,059 records

1,059 records of the Wilbur name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 377
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 274
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 181
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 148
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 54
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 19
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 3
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 1
  • Ramsey County (Minnesota) Memorial Hall, war dead 1
  • Sacramento County historic burials 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Roscoe J. Wilbur

    Born 1916 in Vermont. Enlisted 1942 at Rutland; mechanic from Rutland County. U.S. Army Air Forces veteran of World War II; died 1997, buried at Tinmouth Cemetery, Rutland, Vermont.

    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 Dennis Wilbur

    Born 1948; from Killington, Vermont. U.S. Army, infantryman; killed in action 1967 in Gia Dinh, 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 Ellen Wilbur

    Arrived at Boston in 1885 aboard the Cephalonia from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 29; teacher. Bound for Massachusetts.

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

Showing 3 of 1,059 records for Wilbur 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, 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) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0). 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).

Canada11 records

11 records of the Wilbur name in Canada
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 5
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 4
  • City of Winnipeg cemetery records 2
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Gordon S. Wilbur

    Died 1913 in Halfway Cove, Guysborough, Nova Scotia.

    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 Emily Wilbur

    Died 1987; buried at Brookside Cemetery, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

    City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg.
  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 Clarence Joseph Gerald Wilbur

    Died in service in 1943.

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

Showing 3 of 11 records for Wilbur 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. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); 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).

Australia9 records

9 records of the Wilbur name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 8
  • State Library of Western Australia indexes 1
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record C. R. Wilbur

    Arrived in Victoria in 1908 aboard the Itonus, aged 37.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Biographical index George Wilbur

    In the Western Australian Biographical Index, of Perth.

    State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 2 of 9 records for Wilbur in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · State Library of Western Australia (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); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

France1 record

1 record of the Wilbur 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 George Hunt Wilbur

    Born 1908 in the United States; died 1995 in Paris.

    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).

Netherlands1 record

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

    In the population register of 's-Gravenhage; born 1904 in Haveford.

    Open Archives, Haags Gemeentearchief (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).

Germany1 record

1 record of the Wilbur 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 Bernhard Wilbur

    From Lüdinghausen, Münster. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 22 May 1918.

    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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Wilbur.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Wilbur 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.

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