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Carpenter Family History

Carpenter Surname Meaning

English (southern): occupational name for a worker in wood Norman French carpentier (from Late Latin carpentarius ‘cartwright’).

Americanized form (translation into English) of German Zimmermann French Charpentier Italian Carpentieri or cognates and equivalents in various other languages.

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


Similar surnames: 

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Where is the Carpenter family from?

You can see how Carpenter families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Carpenter family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Carpenter families were found in USA in 1880. In 1840 there were 870 Carpenter families living in New York. This was about 30% of all the recorded Carpenter's in USA. New York had the highest population of Carpenter families in 1840.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Carpenter surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.
  • 1840
  • 1880
  • 1920
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What did your Carpenter ancestors do for a living?

In 1940, Farmer and Housekeeper were the top reported jobs for men and women in the USA named Carpenter. 17% of Carpenter men worked as a Farmer and 7% of Carpenter women worked as a Housekeeper. Some less common occupations for Americans named Carpenter were Truck Driver and Stenographer.

View Census Data for Carpenter | 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 1940

  • Farmer
    17%
  • Laborer
    15%
  • Salesman
    5%
  • Truck Driver
    3%

Top Female Occupations In 1940

  • Housekeeper
    7%
  • Housewife
    7%
  • Teacher
    6%
  • Stenographer
    5%

What Carpenter family records will you find?

Census Records

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

Search US census records for Carpenter

Passenger Lists

There are 53,000 immigration records available for the last name Carpenter. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the USA, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Carpenter immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 149,000 military records available for the last name Carpenter. For the veterans among your Carpenter ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Carpenter military records

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