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Chorley Family History

Chorley Surname Meaning

English: habitational name from any of several places notably those in Cheshire, Lancashire, and Staffordshire named Chorley, from Old English ceorla, genitive plural of ceorl ‘peasant’ + lēah ‘woodland clearing’.

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


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Where is the Chorley family from?

You can see how Chorley families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Chorley family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1841 and 1920. The most Chorley families were found in United Kingdom in 1891. In 1891 there were 252 Chorley families living in Lancashire. This was about 30% of all the recorded Chorley's in United Kingdom. Lancashire had the highest population of Chorley families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Chorley 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 Chorley 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 Chorley. 18% of Chorley men worked as a General Labourer and 73% of Chorley women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. Some less common occupations for Americans named Chorley were Farm Carter and Unpaid Domestic Duti.

View Census Data for Chorley | 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
    18%
  • Bricklayer
    12%
  • Incapacitated
    9%
  • Farm Carter
    8%

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    73%
  • Unpaid Domestic
    3%
  • Old Age Pensioner
    2%
  • Unpaid Domestic Duti
    2%

What Chorley family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 17,000 census records available for the last name Chorley. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Chorley census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search UK census records for Chorley

Passenger Lists

There are 2,000 immigration records available for the last name Chorley. 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 Chorley immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 1,000 military records available for the last name Chorley. For the veterans among your Chorley ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Chorley military records

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