2000
#10,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,894
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.07
Rare Last name
Featherston
A locational surname referring to someone from a town in Northumberland, England, likely derived from Old English for "feather stone."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,080 Americans carry the last name Featherston. That puts it at #11,250 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.90 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 111,284 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Featherston 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 Featherston with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.1K
1 in 111,284
Census rank
#11,250
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,686 bearers of the surname Featherston in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.90 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11250th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Featherston, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Featherston
The surname Featherston has its origins in England, with records dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to be a locational name, derived from the village of Featherstone in Yorkshire, or Featherston in Northumberland. The name likely originated from the Old English words "feother," meaning feather, and "stan," meaning stone or rock, suggesting a connection to a place with a notable rock formation or a landscape feature resembling a feather.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Featherston can be found in the Yorkshire Parish Records of 1594, which mention a Thomas Featherston. Additionally, the Hearth Tax returns of 1673 list several Featherston families residing in the village of Featherstone, Yorkshire.
The Featherston surname has historical ties to the noble families of England. In the 17th century, Sir Thomas Featherston was a prominent landowner and Justice of the Peace in Staffordshire. His son, Sir William Featherston, played a significant role in the English Civil War, serving as a colonel in the Parliamentarian army.
Another notable figure bearing the Featherston surname was Sir Harry Featherston (1755-1828), a British Army officer who served in the American Revolutionary War and later became a Member of Parliament. He was also appointed as the Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man in 1804.
In the 19th century, Isaac Featherston (1813-1876) was a New Zealand politician and surveyor. He played a crucial role in the establishment of the city of Wellington and served as a member of the New Zealand Parliament.
The Featherston surname has also been associated with various place names throughout history. For example, the town of Featherston in New Zealand's Wairarapa region was named after Isaac Featherston, the former Superintendent of the Wellington Province.
Other notable individuals with the Featherston surname include George Featherston (1788-1855), an English architect known for his work on the Birmingham Town Hall, and John Featherston (1840-1920), a Canadian businessman and politician who served as a Member of Parliament in the late 19th century.
While the Featherston surname has its roots in England, it has since spread to other parts of the world, with descendants of the original Featherston families now residing in various countries, including New Zealand, Canada, and the United States.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Featherston
Among Census respondents with the surname Featherston, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Featherston 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 Featherston surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.5% · 2,163
- Black or African American9.9% · 265
- Two or more races4.3% · 115
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 101
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 24
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Featherston
Featherston 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
#10,717
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,981
+87 bearers (+3.0%)
Per 100,000 1.01
Rank movement Down 496 places
2020
#11,250
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,686
-295 bearers (-9.9%)
Per 100,000 0.90
Rank movement Down 533 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,221 | 2,894 | 1.07 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,717 | 2,981 | 1.01 | +87 bearers (+3.0%) | Down 496 places |
| 2020 | #11,250 | 2,686 | 0.90 | -295 bearers (-9.9%) | Down 533 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 Featherston 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 | #10,717 | #11,250 | -5.0% |
| Count | 2,981 | 2,686 | -9.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.01 | 0.90 | -11.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Featherston bearers went from 2,981 to 2,686 (-9.9% change). The surname moved down 533 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,717 to #11,250.
FAQ
Featherston surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Featherston?
Name Census estimates that about 3,080 living Americans carry the surname Featherston. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 111,284 residents.
How common is Featherston?
Featherston ranks #11,250 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.90 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 2,686 people with the surname Featherston. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,080), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.9 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.90 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 Featherston.
Has Featherston become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Featherston went from 2,981 recorded bearers to 2,686. That is a decrease of 295 (-9.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,717 to #11,250.
What does the Census say about the background of Featherston?
Among Census respondents with the surname Featherston, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Featherston in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.5% (2,163 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Featherston appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.5%), Black (9.9%), Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Featherston (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 Featherston mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from a town in Northumberland, England, likely derived from Old English for "feather stone." 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 Featherston (0.90 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 many people have the last name Featherston?
You can see how many Americans have the surname Featherston on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.