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Church Family History

Church Name Meaning

English: topographic name mostly found in southern and midland England for someone who lived near a church or possibly an occupational name for someone who worked at a church such as a verger or sexton from Middle English chirche ‘church’. The word comes from Old English cyrice ultimately from medieval Greek kyrikon for earlier kyriakōn (dōma) ‘(house) of the Lord’ from kyrios ‘lord’. Compare Kirk . Americanized form (translation into English) of German Kirch .

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


Similar surnames: Churchey, Court, Chuck, Churches, Crouch, Thurn, Horch, Upchurch

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Hint: Try searching for a relative alive in 1940.

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Where is the Church family from?

You can see how Church families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Church family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Church families were found in USA in 1880. In 1911 there were 531 Church families living in Ontario. This was about 51% of all the recorded Church's in Canada. Ontario had the highest population of Church families in 1911.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Church surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.
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What did your Church ancestors do for a living?

In 1921, Farmer and Housekeeper were the top reported jobs for men and women in the Canada named Church. 40% of Church men worked as a Farmer and 15% of Church women worked as a Housekeeper. Some less common occupations for Americans named Church were Clerk and Stenographer. .

View Census Data for Church | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1921

  • Farmer
    40%
  • Labourer
    10%
  • Laborer
    8%
  • Clerk
    3%

Top Female Occupations In 1921

  • Housekeeper
    15%
  • Teacher
    10%
  • Clerk
    10%
  • Stenographer
    9%
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What Church family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 364,000 census records available for the last name Church. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Church census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search Canadian census records for Church

Passenger Lists

There are 33,000 immigration records available for the last name Church. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in Canada, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Church immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 64,000 military records available for the last name Church. For the veterans among your Church ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Church military records

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What is the average Church lifespan?

Between 1941 and 2004, in the United States, Church life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1945, and highest in 2000. The average life expectancy for Church in 1941 was 40, and 73 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Church

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