Thornton Family History

Thornton Surname Meaning

English and Scottish: habitational name from any of numerous places throughout England and Scotland so called from Old English thorn ‘thorn tree’ + tūn ‘farmstead estate’. The placename is most frequent in northern England especially Yorkshire where there are at least 16 possible sources for the surname.

Irish: Anglicized (translated) form of Gaelic Mac Sceacháin ‘son of Sceachán’ (see Skehan).

Irish: shortened Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Draighneáin ‘descendant of Draighneán’ (see Drennan).

Irish: possibly a translated form of Gaelic Ó Muineacháin (see Monahan).

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

Similar surnames: Horton, Thorton, Houston, Thorington, Thurston, Charlton, Harton, Norton, Holton, Shotton

888K	Birth, Marriage, and Deaths
89K	Military Records
83K	Immigration Records
624K	Census and Voter Lists
1M	Member Trees

Search for a relative to learn more about your family history.

Where is the Thornton family from?

You can see how Thornton families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Thornton family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Thornton families were found in USA in 1880. In 1911 there were 492 Thornton families living in Ontario. This was about 52% of all the recorded Thornton's in Canada. Ontario had the highest population of Thornton families in 1911.

Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Thornton surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

View Census Data for Thornton

What did your Thornton ancestors do for a living?

In 1921, Farmer and Housekeeper were the top reported jobs for men and women in the Canada named Thornton. 32% of Thornton men worked as a Farmer and 16% of Thornton women worked as a Housekeeper. Some less common occupations for Americans named Thornton were Clerk and Income.

View Census Data for Thornton

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.

Farmer

32%

Labourer

11%

Laborer

Clerk

Housekeeper

16%

Stenographer

16%

Farmer

Income

What Thornton family records will you find?

Census Record

There are 624K census records available for the last name Thornton. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Thornton census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search Canadian census records for Thornton

Passenger List

There are 83K immigration records available for the last name Thornton. 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 Thornton immigration records

Military Records

There are 89K military records available for the last name Thornton. For the veterans among your Thornton ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Thornton military records

You've only scratched the surface of Thornton family history

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What is the average Thornton lifespan?

Between 1943 and 2004, in the United States, Thornton life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1944, and highest in 2004. The average life expectancy for Thornton in 1943 was 41, and 74 in 2004.

Discover the unique achievements of ancestors in the Thornton family tree

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Thornton Surname Meaning

Irish: Anglicized (translated) form of Gaelic Mac Sceacháin ‘son of Sceachán’ (see Skehan).

Irish: shortened Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Draighneáin ‘descendant of Draighneán’ (see Drennan).

Irish: possibly a translated form of Gaelic Ó Muineacháin (see Monahan).

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

Where is the Thornton family from?

What did your Thornton ancestors do for a living?

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.

Farmer

32%

Labourer

11%

Laborer

Clerk

Housekeeper

16%

Stenographer

16%

Farmer

Income

What Thornton family records will you find?

What is the average Thornton lifespan?

Between 1943 and 2004, in the United States, Thornton life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1944, and highest in 2004. The average life expectancy for Thornton in 1943 was 41, and 74 in 2004.

Thornton Family History

Thornton Surname Meaning

3 million record(s) for Thornton

Search for a relative to learn more about your family history.

Where is the Thornton family from?

What did your Thornton ancestors do for a living?

Top Male Occupations In 1921

Top Female Occupations In 1921

What Thornton family records will you find?

Census Record

Passenger List

Military Records

You've only scratched the surface of Thornton family history

What is the average Thornton lifespan?

Discover the unique achievements of ancestors in the Thornton family tree

Search for another surname

Thornton Surname Meaning

3 million record(s) for Thornton

Search for a relative to learn more about your family history.

Where is the Thornton family from?

What did your Thornton ancestors do for a living?

Top Male Occupations In 1921

Top Female Occupations In 1921

What Thornton family records will you find?

Census Record

Passenger List

Military Records

You've only scratched the surface of Thornton family history

What is the average Thornton lifespan?

Discover the unique achievements of ancestors in the Thornton family tree

Search for another surname