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Finney Family History

Finney Name Meaning

English: habitational name from any of several places called from Old English and Old Norse finn ‘coarse grass’ + Old English (ge)hæg ‘enclosure’ or ēg ‘island land partly surrounded by water’ such as the lost place Fynney in Cheddleton Staffordshire (recorded as Fyneye in 1320) Fenay in Almondbury (Yorkshire) Finney in Croston (Lancashire) Finney Hill in Kingsley (Cheshire) and perhaps also Fenny Rough in Chaddesley Corbett (Worcestershire). Compare Feeney . English: habitational name perhaps also from Vinals Farm in Cuckfield or Vinehall in Mountfield (both in Sussex) or Viney's Wood in Crundale (Kent); or from some other place described in Middle English as a fin-haw (Old English fīn-haga) ‘wood-heap enclosure’. Irish: from Ó Fidhne see Feeney

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


Similar surnames: Binney, Finne, Sidney, Finley, Linney, Finner, Winney, Hanney, Finn

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Where is the Finney family from?

You can see how Finney families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Finney family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Finney families were found in USA in 1880. In 1911 there were 46 Finney families living in Ontario. This was about 44% of all the recorded Finney's in Canada. Ontario had the highest population of Finney families in 1911.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Finney 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 Finney ancestors do for a living?

In 1921, Farmer was the top reported job for people in the Canada named Finney. 38% of Finney men worked as a Farmer. .

View Census Data for Finney | 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
    38%
  • Labourer
    23%
  • Laborer
    12%
  • Carpenter
    9%
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What Finney family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 117,000 census records available for the last name Finney. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Finney census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

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Passenger Lists

There are 8,000 immigration records available for the last name Finney. 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.

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Draft Cards

There are 20,000 military records available for the last name Finney. For the veterans among your Finney ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

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What is the average Finney lifespan?

Between 1940 and 2004, in the United States, Finney life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1943, and highest in 2004. The average life expectancy for Finney in 1940 was 47, and 77 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Finney

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