The Wiser surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 4,002 people carried this name — #8,281 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 73,500 people counted. That is up 5% from 3,817 in 2000.

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In Switzerland’s population statistics

123 people named Wiser live in Switzerland.

They live in 8 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Jura.

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

Where they live today

Jura 42
Zurich 36
Vaud 12
Zug 10
Bern 8
Fribourg 6
Aargau 5
Schwyz 4

Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

31 families named Wiser, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 200 people lived in those households, 6.5 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 4 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

Pennsylvania 21
Virginia 3
New York 2
North Carolina 2
New Hampshire 1
Massachusetts 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. 269 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Wiser in American newspapers,
1909–1930.

Newspaper page from South Bend News-times carrying the name Wiser
South Bend News-times 1930-03-30
Newspaper page from Judith Gap Journal carrying the name Wiser
Judith Gap Journal 1909-06-11
Newspaper page from The New Haven Union carrying the name Wiser
The New Haven Union 1912-09-29

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 38,707 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Wiser in Australian newspapers,
1850s–1990s.

482 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Wiser. The most, 162, date from the 1910s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Victoria, at 1.4 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Victoria 148
New South Wales 143
Queensland 65
South Australia 56
Western Australia 32
Tasmania 27
ACT (Canberra) 6
Northern Territory 2

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

Who carried it

People named Wiser,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Franz Joseph von Wiser
    Franz Joseph von Wiser 1679–1755
  • Karl Wiser
    Karl Wiser 1800–1889 · mayor
  • David Friedrich Wiser
    David Friedrich Wiser 1802–1878 · chemist
  • John Philip Wiser
    John Philip Wiser 1825–1911 · politician
  • Maximilian Wiser
    Maximilian Wiser 1861–1938 · physician
  • Elsbetha Rutschmann d. 1701

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 9 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Wiser,
in the records of 7 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 States303 records

303 records of the Wiser name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 128
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 47
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 41
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 35
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 34
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 17
  • 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 Waymon W. Wiser

    Born 1916 in Oregon. Enlisted 1942 at Portland; driver from Lane County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1987, buried at Riverside National Cemetery, California.

    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 Marie Wiser

    Arrived at New York in 1882 aboard the Saint Germain from Havre, aged 24; weaver. From Zurich, Switzerland; bound for New York.

    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 Edwin R. Wiser

    U.S. Navy veteran of World War I. Born 1894, died 1988; buried at Wood National Cemetery, Wisconsin.

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

Showing 3 of 303 records for Wiser 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. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · 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, Famine Irish Passenger Records (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).

Switzerland453 records

453 records of the Wiser name in Switzerland Zürich marriage records, 16th–18th centuries
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Johann Jakob Wiser

    Married in 1779 in St. Peter, canton of Zürich; of Zürich.

    Staatsarchiv des Kantons Zürich, Zürcher Ehedaten (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Katharina Wiser

    Married in 1667 in Benken, canton of Zürich.

    Staatsarchiv des Kantons Zürich, Zürcher Ehedaten (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Hans Heinrich Wiser

    Married in 1785 in Wil, canton of Zürich; of Wasterkingen.

    Staatsarchiv des Kantons Zürich, Zürcher Ehedaten (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 453 records for Wiser in Switzerland.

Counts: Staatsarchiv des Kantons Zürich, Zürcher Ehedaten (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

Netherlands13 records

13 records of the Wiser name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch population registers 5
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 4
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 4
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Marie Claire Wiser

    Married in 1807 in Roermond.

    Open Archives, Regionaal Historisch Centrum Limburg (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Christiaan Nicolaas Wiser

    Died 1847 in Gouda.

    Open Archives, Streekarchief Midden-Holland (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Johannes Wiser

    Buried in 1773 in Heusden.

    Open Archives, Streekarchief Langstraat Heusden Altena (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 13 records for Wiser in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

Germany10 records

10 records of the Wiser 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 Wilhelm Wiser

    From Heidelberg. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 28 November 1914 (Field Artillery Regiment No. 84).

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

Showing 1 of 10 records for Wiser 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 Wiser name in Canada
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 3
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 2
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 1
  • Ontario immigration records, 1865–1883 1
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record George Henry Wiser

    Died 1963; buried at Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, British Columbia.

    City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver.
  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 Oscar Wiser

    Died in service in 1917.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada.
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record Frederick Wiser

    Listed at Halifax, Nova Scotia in the census and tax rolls of 1792.

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

Showing 3 of 7 records for Wiser in Canada.

Counts: City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: 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); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Australia7 records

7 records of the Wiser name in Australia Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Mary Wiser

    Arrived in Victoria in 1858 aboard the Marco Polo, aged 8.

    Public Record Office Victoria (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 Conrad Wiser

    Arrived in Victoria in 1858 aboard the Marco Polo, aged 11.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Cath Wiser

    Arrived in Victoria in 1858 aboard the Marco Polo, aged 24.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 7 records for Wiser in Australia.

Counts: 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).

France1 record

1 record of the Wiser 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 Andre Louis Wiser

    Born 1919 in Paris; died 1999 in Meaux (Seine-et-Marne).

    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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Wiser.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Wiser 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 Wiser volume
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