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Smelt Family History

Smelt Surname Meaning

from Middle English smelt ‘smelt’ denoting a type of small fish related to the salmon perhaps for someone who caught or sold such fish.

Richard Smelt 1347 in Patent Rolls was London fishmonger.

from an unrecorded Middle English personal name *Smelt a survival of Old English Smelt which was perhaps originally a nickname from the word in (i).

Source: The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland, 2016


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Where is the Smelt family from?

You can see how Smelt families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Smelt family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Smelt families were found in United Kingdom in 1891. In 1891 there were 118 Smelt families living in Yorkshire. This was about 62% of all the recorded Smelt's in United Kingdom. Yorkshire had the highest population of Smelt families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Smelt 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 Smelt ancestors do for a living?

In 1939, General Labourer and Unpaid Domestic Duties were the top reported jobs for men and women in the United Kingdom named Smelt. 34% of Smelt men worked as a General Labourer and 85% of Smelt women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. Some less common occupations for Americans named Smelt were Farm Labourer (incapacitated and Domestic Duties.

View Census Data for Smelt | 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

  • General Labourer
    34%
  • Electrical Engineer
    14%
  • Iron steel Rolling Foreman
    14%
  • Farm Labourer (incapacitated
    14%

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    85%
  • Unpaid Domestic Duti
    4%
  • Domestic Duties Unpaid
    3%
  • Domestic Duties
    3%

What Smelt family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 6,000 census records available for the last name Smelt. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Smelt census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search UK census records for Smelt

Passenger Lists

There are 738 immigration records available for the last name Smelt. 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 Smelt immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 464 military records available for the last name Smelt. For the veterans among your Smelt ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Smelt military records

You've only scratched the surface of Smelt family history

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What is the average Smelt lifespan?

Between 1969 and 2003, in the United States, Smelt life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1982, and highest in 1985. The average life expectancy for Smelt in 1969 was 74, and 85 in 2003.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Smelt

An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your Smelt 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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