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Bailey Family History

Bailey Name Meaning

English: status name for a steward or official from Middle English bailli ‘manager administrator’ (Old French baillis from Late Latin baiulivus an adjectival derivative of baiulus ‘attendant carrier porter’). English: habitational name from Bailey in Little Mitton Lancashire named with Old English beg ‘berry’ + lēah ‘woodland clearing’. English: occasionally a topographic name for someone who lived by the outer wall of a castle from Middle English (Old French) bailli ‘outer courtyard of a castle’ (Old French bail(le) ‘enclosure’ a derivative of bailer ‘to enclose’). This term became a placename in its own right denoting a district beside a fortification or wall as in the case of the Old Bailey in London which formed part of the early medieval outer wall of the city. Altered form of French Bailly .

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


Similar surnames: Barley, Bailes, Bagley, Batley, Baile, Gailey, Badley, Brailey, Paley

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Hint: Try searching for a relative alive in 1940.

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Where is the Bailey family from?

You can see how Bailey families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Bailey family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Bailey families were found in USA in 1880. In 1840 there were 466 Bailey families living in New York. This was about 15% of all the recorded Bailey's in USA. New York had the highest population of Bailey families in 1840.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Bailey surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

What did your Bailey ancestors do for a living?

In 1940, Laborer and Maid were the top reported jobs for men and women in the USA named Bailey. 16% of Bailey men worked as a Laborer and 7% of Bailey women worked as a Maid. Some less common occupations for Americans named Bailey were Truck Driver and Teacher. .

View Census Data for Bailey | 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

  • Laborer
    16%
  • Farmer
    16%
  • Salesman
    4%
  • Truck Driver
    3%

Top Female Occupations In 1940

  • Maid
    7%
  • Housewife
    7%
  • Housekeeper
    6%
  • Teacher
    5%
Black & white image of two construction labourers

What Bailey family records will you find?

Census Records

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

Search US census records for Bailey

Passenger Lists

There are 138,000 immigration records available for the last name Bailey. 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.

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Draft Cards

There are 307,000 military records available for the last name Bailey. For the veterans among your Bailey ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

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What is the average Bailey lifespan?

Between 1940 and 2004, in the United States, Bailey life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1942, and highest in 2001. The average life expectancy for Bailey in 1940 was 43, and 73 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Bailey

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