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Carter Family History

Carter Surname Meaning

English: occupational name for a transporter of goods from Middle English carter(e) ‘carter’ (Anglo-Norman French car(e)tier Old French charetier medieval Latin carettarius carettator). The Old French word coalesced with the earlier Middle English word cart(e) ‘cart’ which is from either Old Norse kartr or Old English cræt, both of which, like the Late Latin word, were probably derived from Celtic.

This surname is also very common among African Americans.

Irish: shortened form of McCarter.

Americanized form of German Karter ‘carder’.

Americanized form (translation into English) of French Cartier.

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


Similar surnames: 

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Where is the Carter family from?

You can see how Carter families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Carter family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Carter families were found in USA in 1880. In 1891 there were 8,249 Carter families living in London. This was about 16% of all the recorded Carter's in United Kingdom. London had the highest population of Carter families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Carter 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 Carter 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 Carter. 7% of Carter men worked as a General Labourer and 64% of Carter women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. Some less common occupations for Americans named Carter were Gardener and Incapacitated.

View Census Data for Carter | 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
    7%
  • Builders Labourer
    3%
  • Bricklayer
    2%
  • Gardener
    2%

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    64%
  • Housewife
    3%
  • Unpaid Domestic
    3%
  • Incapacitated
    2%

What Carter family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 2 million census records available for the last name Carter. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Carter census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search UK census records for Carter

Passenger Lists

There are 213,000 immigration records available for the last name Carter. 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 Carter immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 350,000 military records available for the last name Carter. For the veterans among your Carter ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Carter military records

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