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Sears Family History

Sears Name Meaning

Irish (Kerry): Anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Saoghair ‘son of Saoghar’ a borrowing in Anglo-Norman Ireland of the Anglo-Norman French and Middle English personal name Saher Seier (Old French Seheri) from ancient Germanic Sigeheri Sighari composed of the elements sig‘victory’ + hari heri ‘army’. See Sayer 5. English: variant of Sayers . Americanized form of French (or French Canadian) Cyr and French Saint-Cyr (see St. Cyr ) with the addition of excrescent -s a common feature of Americanized surnames.

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


Similar surnames: Hearn, Mears, Kearns, Pearl, Sens, Mars, Sealy, Sas, Sari, Neary

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Hint: Try searching for a relative alive in 1940.

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Where is the Sears family from?

You can see how Sears families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Sears family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Sears families were found in USA in 1880. In 1911 there were 163 Sears families living in Ontario. This was about 35% of all the recorded Sears's in Canada. Ontario had the highest population of Sears families in 1911.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Sears 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 Sears ancestors do for a living?

In 1921, Farmer and Servant were the top reported jobs for men and women in the Canada named Sears. 33% of Sears men worked as a Farmer and 22% of Sears women worked as a Servant. Some less common occupations for Americans named Sears were Laborer and Farmer. .

View Census Data for Sears | 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
    33%
  • Fisherman
    13%
  • Labourer
    13%
  • Laborer
    9%

Top Female Occupations In 1921

  • Servant
    22%
  • Student
    18%
  • Nurse
    14%
  • Farmer
    14%
Black & white image of two construction labourers

What Sears family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 200,000 census records available for the last name Sears. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Sears census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search Canadian census records for Sears

Passenger Lists

There are 17,000 immigration records available for the last name Sears. 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 Sears immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 38,000 military records available for the last name Sears. For the veterans among your Sears ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Sears military records

You've only scratched the surface of Sears family history

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What is the average Sears lifespan?

Between 1941 and 2004, in the United States, Sears life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1941, and highest in 2000. The average life expectancy for Sears in 1941 was 34, and 73 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Sears

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