Find out how popular the last name Chesters is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Chesters.

Chesters, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Chesters surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Chesters in America

Chesters is the 157234th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Chesters surname appeared 103 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Chesters.

We can also compare 2010 data for Chesters to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Chesters

The surname Chesters is believed to have originated in England, with its roots traced back to the medieval period. It is thought to be a locational name, derived from the Old English word "ceastre," which means "a Roman town or walled city." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this surname may have resided in or near a town with Roman origins.

One possible source of the name Chesters is the village of Chesters in Northumberland, located near the remains of the Romanfort of Cilurnum on Hadrian's Wall. This settlement was mentioned in the Boldon Book, a survey of land ownership in the region, compiled in 1183.

The earliest recorded instance of the surname Chesters can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Bedfordshire from 1273, which lists a Richard de Chesters. Another early reference appears in the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire from 1297, mentioning a William de Chestres.

In the 14th century, the name appears in various records, such as the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1342, which includes a John de Chestres, and the Poll Tax Returns of Yorkshire from 1379, listing a John Chestres.

Notably, in the 16th century, a prominent figure bearing this surname was Thomas Chesters (c. 1490-1558), an English ecclesiastic who served as the Abbot of Peterborough from 1537 until the monastery's dissolution in 1539.

Another individual of note was John Chesters (1656-1724), a British architect and surveyor who worked on various projects, including the rebuilding of St. Paul's Cathedral in London after the Great Fire of 1666.

In the 18th century, William Chesters (1726-1806) was a prominent English portraitist and landscape painter, known for his works depicting the English countryside and rural life.

Moving into the 19th century, Charles Chesters (1810-1884) was a British architect who designed several notable buildings, including the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London.

Lastly, in the early 20th century, George Chesters (1882-1942) was a British politician and member of Parliament, representing the Labour Party in the House of Commons from 1923 to 1931.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Chesters

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Chesters.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Chesters was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Chesters has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Chesters was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Chesters, please contact us.

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