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Cato Family History

Cato Surname Meaning

Scottish and English: variant of Catoe. Swedish: perhaps a soldier's name bestowed with reference to Cato the Roman statesman.

Bosniak, Serbian, and Croatian (Ćato in Bosnia and Herzegovina also Čato): occupational name from Bosnian, Serbian, and Croatian ćato ‘scribe, clerk’.

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


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Where is the Cato family from?

You can see how Cato families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Cato family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Cato families were found in USA in 1880. In 1911 there were 26 Cato families living in Quebec. This was about 72% of all the recorded Cato's in Canada. Quebec had the highest population of Cato families in 1911.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Cato 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 Cato ancestors do for a living?

In 1921, Labourer and Modiste were the top reported jobs for men and women in the Canada named Cato. 34% of Cato men worked as a Labourer and 100% of Cato women worked as a Modiste.

View Census Data for Cato | 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

  • Labourer
    34%
  • Cultivateur
    34%
  • Farmer
    34%

Top Female Occupations In 1921

  • Modiste
    100%

What Cato family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 40,000 census records available for the last name Cato. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Cato census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search Canadian census records for Cato

Passenger Lists

There are 3,000 immigration records available for the last name Cato. 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 Cato immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 8,000 military records available for the last name Cato. For the veterans among your Cato ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Cato military records

You've only scratched the surface of Cato family history

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What is the average Cato lifespan?

Between 1944 and 2004, in the United States, Cato life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1953, and highest in 2002. The average life expectancy for Cato in 1944 was 27, and 73 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Cato

An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your Cato ancestors lived in harsh conditions. A short lifespan might also indicate health problems that were once prevalent in your family. The SSDI is a searchable database of more than 70 million names. You can find birthdates, death dates, addresses and more.

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