2000
#9,744
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,061
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.13
Rare Last name
Blackstock
A locational surname referring to someone who lived by a place called Blackstock, likely derived from "black stump."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,542 Americans carry the last name Blackstock. That puts it at #9,968 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 96,769 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Blackstock surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Blackstock with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.5K
1 in 96,769
Census rank
#9,968
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,089 bearers of the surname Blackstock in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9968th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Blackstock, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.8%. The next largest groups are Black (16.3%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Blackstock
The surname Blackstock originated in Scotland, with records dating back to the late 16th century. It is a locational name derived from the lands of Blackstock, a small village located near Ayr in Ayrshire, Scotland. The name is believed to be a combination of the Old English words "blæc" meaning black and "stoc" meaning stock or trunk, referring to a dark or black piece of land.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name is found in the Register of the Privy Council of Scotland in 1592, where a Robert Blackstock is mentioned as a resident of Ayrshire. Another early record is from the Parish Register of Lochwinnoch, Renfrewshire, Scotland, which lists the marriage of John Blackstock and Marjorie Wilson in 1647.
In the late 17th century, the Blackstock name appears in the records of the Presbytery of Ayr, with several individuals bearing the name serving as elders or ministers in various parishes within the region. One notable figure was Reverend William Blackstock, who was minister of the parish of Ochiltree in Ayrshire from 1681 to 1721.
The Blackstock surname can also be found in historical records from other parts of Scotland, such as the Borders region. In the 18th century, a James Blackstock from Berwickshire served as a surgeon in the British Navy and was involved in the exploration of the Pacific Ocean under the command of Captain James Cook.
Other notable individuals bearing the Blackstock surname include:
1. Sir Nigel Blackstock (1895-1975), a British military officer who served in both World War I and World War II.
2. Alexander Blackstock (1784-1853), a Scottish-born merchant and politician who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada (now Ontario).
3. John Blackstock (1815-1899), a Canadian businessman and politician who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.
4. William Blackstock (1834-1910), a Canadian businessman and politician who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.
5. George Blackstock (1869-1944), a Canadian lawyer and judge who served as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Alberta.
While the Blackstock name has its roots in Scotland, it has since spread to various parts of the world, including England, Ireland, Canada, and the United States, as a result of migration and settlement patterns over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Blackstock
Among Census respondents with the surname Blackstock, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.8%. The next largest groups are Black (16.3%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Blackstock bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Blackstock surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White75.8% · 2,341
- Black or African American16.3% · 504
- Two or more races5.0% · 154
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 63
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 15
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Blackstock
Blackstock appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#10,429
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,085
+24 bearers (+0.8%)
Per 100,000 1.05
Rank movement Down 685 places
2020
#9,968
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,089
+4 bearers (+0.1%)
Per 100,000 1.03
Rank movement Up 461 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,744 | 3,061 | 1.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,429 | 3,085 | 1.05 | +24 bearers (+0.8%) | Down 685 places |
| 2020 | #9,968 | 3,089 | 1.03 | +4 bearers (+0.1%) | Up 461 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Blackstock surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #10,429 | #9,968 | 4.4% |
| Count | 3,085 | 3,089 | 0.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.05 | 1.03 | -1.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Blackstock bearers went from 3,085 to 3,089 (+0.1% change). The surname moved up 461 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,429 to #9,968.
FAQ
Blackstock surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Blackstock?
Name Census estimates that about 3,542 living Americans carry the surname Blackstock. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 96,769 residents.
How common is Blackstock?
Blackstock ranks #9,968 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,089 people with the surname Blackstock. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,542), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Blackstock.
Has Blackstock become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Blackstock went from 3,085 recorded bearers to 3,089. That is an increase of 4 (+0.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,429 to #9,968.
What does the Census say about the background of Blackstock?
Among Census respondents with the surname Blackstock, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.8%. The next largest groups are Black (16.3%) and Two or More Races (5.0%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Blackstock in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.8% (2,341 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Blackstock appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (75.8%), Black (16.3%), Two or More Races (5.0%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Blackstock (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Blackstock mean?
A locational surname referring to someone who lived by a place called Blackstock, likely derived from "black stump." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Blackstock (1.03 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How common is the surname Blackstock?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Blackstock, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.