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Spinney Family History

Spinney Name Meaning

English: from Middle English spyn(n)eye ‘spinney’ i.e. a small patch of woodland clump of trees (Old French espinei ‘place where thorn trees grow’). The surname may be topographic for someone who lived by a thicket or small copse or habitational from a place so named such as Spinney Abbey in Wicken (Cambridgeshire).

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


Similar surnames: Spinner, Binney, Pinner, Linney, Skinner, Winney, Pitney, Finney

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

Hint: Try searching for a relative alive in 1940.

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Where is the Spinney family from?

You can see how Spinney families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Spinney family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Spinney families were found in USA in 1880. In 1891 there were 54 Spinney families living in Dorset. This was about 30% of all the recorded Spinney's in United Kingdom. Dorset had the highest population of Spinney families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Spinney surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

What did your Spinney ancestors do for a living?

In 1939, Coal Merchant and Unpaid Domestic Duties were the top reported jobs for men and women in the United Kingdom named Spinney. 50% of Spinney men worked as a Coal Merchant and 78% of Spinney women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. Some less common occupations for Americans named Spinney were Incapacitated and None. .

View Census Data for Spinney | 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 1939

  • Coal Merchant
    50%
  • Incapacitated
    50%

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    78%
  • Private Means
    7%
  • Domestic Duties
    5%
  • None
    5%
Black & white image of two construction labourers

What Spinney family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 20,000 census records available for the last name Spinney. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Spinney census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search UK census records for Spinney

Passenger Lists

There are 3,000 immigration records available for the last name Spinney. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the UK, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Spinney immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 3,000 military records available for the last name Spinney. For the veterans among your Spinney ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Spinney military records

You've only scratched the surface of Spinney family history

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What is the average Spinney lifespan?

Between 1950 and 2004, in the United States, Spinney life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1953, and highest in 1978. The average life expectancy for Spinney in 1950 was 46, and 75 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Spinney

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