2000
#12,052
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,376
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.88
Rare Last name
Towler
An occupational surname referring to a person who made or sold towels or bleached cloth.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,651 Americans carry the last name Towler. That puts it at #12,747 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.77 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 129,292 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Towler 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 Towler with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.7K
1 in 129,292
Census rank
#12,747
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,312 bearers of the surname Towler in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.77 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12747th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Towler, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.8%. The next largest groups are Black (18.8%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Towler
The surname Towler originates from England, where it first appeared in the late 13th century. It is derived from the Old English word "tolere," which means "one who collects toll or tax." The name likely referred to an individual who worked as a toll collector or tax gatherer.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire from 1297, where a John Toller is mentioned. This early spelling variation highlights the link to the occupation of toll collection.
In the 14th century, the surname appeared in various records, including the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1346, where a William Towlere is listed. This spelling variation, with the addition of the "-er" suffix, further solidified the surname's connection to the occupation.
The Towler surname was also present in the Hundred Rolls of Bedfordshire from 1279, which recorded landowners and tenants at the time. This suggests that some individuals with this surname may have held positions of modest prominence in their local communities.
One notable individual bearing the Towler name was Sir John Towler, a 15th-century English knight who served as a member of the Privy Council during the reign of King Henry VI. He was born around 1410 and died in 1472.
Another significant figure was William Towler, a 16th-century English merchant and shipowner from Bristol. He was involved in the early voyages of exploration and trade to the Americas, and his ships played a role in the establishment of English colonies in the New World.
In the 17th century, the Towler surname appeared in the parish records of Warwickshire, where a family by the name of Towler resided in the village of Aston Cantlow. One member of this family, Richard Towler, was born in 1624 and became a prominent landowner in the area.
During the 18th century, the Towler surname was present in various parts of England, with notable individuals including John Towler, a successful businessman from Yorkshire who was born in 1712 and made his fortune in the textile industry.
In the 19th century, the Towler surname continued to be found across England, with individuals such as William Towler, a prominent architect from London who was born in 1823. He designed several notable buildings, including the Royal Dramatic College in London.
Throughout its history, the Towler surname has been associated with a range of occupations and backgrounds, from toll collectors and merchants to knights and landowners. Its origins can be traced back to the late 13th century in England, where it emerged as an occupational surname related to the collection of tolls and taxes.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Towler
Among Census respondents with the surname Towler, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.8%. The next largest groups are Black (18.8%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Towler 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 Towler surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.8% · 1,684
- Black or African American18.8% · 435
- Two or more races4.5% · 105
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 60
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 16
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Towler
Towler 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
#12,238
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,542
+166 bearers (+7.0%)
Per 100,000 0.86
Rank movement Down 186 places
2020
#12,747
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,312
-230 bearers (-9.0%)
Per 100,000 0.77
Rank movement Down 509 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,052 | 2,376 | 0.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,238 | 2,542 | 0.86 | +166 bearers (+7.0%) | Down 186 places |
| 2020 | #12,747 | 2,312 | 0.77 | -230 bearers (-9.0%) | Down 509 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 Towler 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 | #12,238 | #12,747 | -4.2% |
| Count | 2,542 | 2,312 | -9.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.86 | 0.77 | -10.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Towler bearers went from 2,542 to 2,312 (-9.0% change). The surname moved down 509 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,238 to #12,747.
FAQ
Towler surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Towler?
Name Census estimates that about 2,651 living Americans carry the surname Towler. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 129,292 residents.
How common is Towler?
Towler ranks #12,747 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.77 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 2,312 people with the surname Towler. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,651), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.77 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.77 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 Towler.
Has Towler become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Towler went from 2,542 recorded bearers to 2,312. That is a decrease of 230 (-9.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,238 to #12,747.
What does the Census say about the background of Towler?
Among Census respondents with the surname Towler, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.8%. The next largest groups are Black (18.8%) and Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Towler in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.8% (1,684 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Towler appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (72.8%), Black (18.8%), Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Towler (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 Towler mean?
An occupational surname referring to a person who made or sold towels or bleached cloth. 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 Towler (0.77 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 Towler?
Want to know how many people are called Towler? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.