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Wheeler Family History

Wheeler Surname Meaning

English: occupational name for a wheelwright, a maker of wheels (primarily for carts and other vehicles, but also other kinds of wheels for use in spinning or other manufacturing processes) from Middle English wheler, whegheler, a derivative of Old English hweogol, hweowol, hwēol ‘wheel’.

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


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Where is the Wheeler family from?

You can see how Wheeler families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Wheeler family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Wheeler families were found in USA in 1880. In 1891 there were 4,194 Wheeler families living in London. This was about 22% of all the recorded Wheeler's in United Kingdom. London had the highest population of Wheeler families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Wheeler 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 Wheeler 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 Wheeler. 7% of Wheeler men worked as a General Labourer and 66% of Wheeler women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. Some less common occupations for Americans named Wheeler were Gardener and Private Means.

View Census Data for Wheeler | 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
    4%
  • Bricklayer
    3%
  • Gardener
    3%

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    66%
  • Unpaid Domestic
    3%
  • Housewife
    3%
  • Private Means
    2%

What Wheeler family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 1 million census records available for the last name Wheeler. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Wheeler census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search UK census records for Wheeler

Passenger Lists

There are 73,000 immigration records available for the last name Wheeler. 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 Wheeler immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 165,000 military records available for the last name Wheeler. For the veterans among your Wheeler ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Wheeler military records

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