Willard Family History

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Willard Name Meaning

English: from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements wil ‘will’, ‘desire’ + hard ‘hardy’, ‘brave’, ‘strong’. Probably an Americanized form of the German cognate Willhardt (see Willert).

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names ©2013, Oxford University Press


Similar surnames: Millard, Billard, Villard, Gillard, Willert, Wiard, Mallard, Willer

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Willard Ethnicity Estimate

What are the common regions with the Willard name?

These results combine data from everyone in the AncestryDNA® database with the last name Willard. The Ancestry® ethnicity regions shown are top five most common on average for these people.

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  • England & Wales

    53%

  • Ireland & Scotland

    19%

  • Germanic Europe

    8%

  • Norway

    3%

  • Eastern Europe & Russia

    3%

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Willard Family Origin

Where is the Willard family from?

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You can see how Willard families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Willard family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Willard families were found in the USA in 1880. In 1911 there were 282 Willard families living in Ontario. This was about 46% of all the recorded Willard's in Canada. Ontario had the highest population of Willard families in 1911.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Willard surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

View Census Data for Willard

Willard Family Occupations

What did your Willard ancestors do for a living?

In 1881, the most common Willard occupation in Canada was Farmer. 26% of Willard's were Farmers. A less common occupation for the Willard family was Cultivateur. Farmer, Painter and Scholar were the top 3 reported jobs worked by Willard.

View Census data for Willard | Data not to scale

  • Farmer

    26%

  • Painter

    4%

  • Scholar

    4%

  • Cultivateur

    3%

Census records can tell you a lot of little known facts about your Willard ancestors, such as occupation. Occupation can tell you about your ancestor's social and economic status.

Willard Historical Records

What Willard family records will you find?

Census Record

There are 134,000 census records available for the last name Willard. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Willard census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search 1881 Canadian census records for Willard

Passenger List

There are 12,000 immigration records available for the last name Willard. 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 Willard immigration records

Draft Card

There are 27,000 military records available for the last name Willard. For the veterans among your Willard ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Willard military records

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Willard Life Expectancy

What is the average Willard lifespan?

Between 1944 and 2004, in the United States, Willard life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1944, and highest in 1992. The average life expectancy for Willard in 1944 was 30, and 73 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Willard

An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your Willard 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.

Famous Willard Family Ancestors

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