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Garfield Family History

Garfield Surname Meaning

English (Midlands): topographic name from Middle English gor(e) gar(e) ‘triangular piece’ + feld ‘open country field’ (Old English gār + feld) for someone who lived by a triangular piece of land.

English: alternatively sometimes perhaps a variant of Carville (a name of Norman origin) with excrescent final -d.

Americanized form of one or more similar (like-sounding) Jewish surnames.

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


Similar surnames: 

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Where is the Garfield family from?

You can see how Garfield families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Garfield family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Garfield families were found in USA in 1880. In 1891 there were 105 Garfield families living in Worcestershire. This was about 19% of all the recorded Garfield's in United Kingdom. Worcestershire had the highest population of Garfield families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Garfield 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 Garfield 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 Garfield. 14% of Garfield men worked as a General Labourer and 78% of Garfield women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. Some less common occupations for Americans named Garfield were Incapacitated and Household Duties.

View Census Data for Garfield | 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
    14%
  • Wood Machinist
    7%
  • Motor Engineer
    7%
  • Incapacitated
    7%

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    78%
  • Domestic Duties
    5%
  • Unpaid Domestic
    3%
  • Household Duties
    3%

What Garfield family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 36,000 census records available for the last name Garfield. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Garfield census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search UK census records for Garfield

Passenger Lists

There are 3,000 immigration records available for the last name Garfield. 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 Garfield immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 5,000 military records available for the last name Garfield. For the veterans among your Garfield ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Garfield military records

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