2000
#6,972
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,432
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.64
Rare Last name
Truesdale
A habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "valley of the River Trǣw" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,049 Americans carry the last name Truesdale. That puts it at #7,301 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.47 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 67,886 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Truesdale 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 Truesdale with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.0K
1 in 67,886
Census rank
#7,301
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,403 bearers of the surname Truesdale in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.47 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7301st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Truesdale, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.4%. The next largest groups are Black (37.7%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Truesdale
The surname Truesdale is believed to have originated in the northern English county of Cumberland, now part of modern-day Cumbria. The name is thought to date back to the 12th or 13th century and is derived from the Old English words "trew" meaning true or loyal, and "dale" meaning a valley or small valley.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Truesdale can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Cumberland from 1195, where a Richard de Truesdale is mentioned as a landowner. The name is also found in various other medieval records from the region, such as the Feet of Fines and the Assize Rolls, indicating that the Truesdale family had established roots in the area.
The name is believed to have originally referred to someone who lived in a particular valley or dale, possibly one known for its trustworthiness or loyalty to a local lord or ruler. This could have been a reference to the family's character or a description of the location itself.
In the 14th century, a John Truesdale is recorded as being a member of the Guild of Corpus Christi in York, which was a prominent religious and social organization at the time. This suggests that the Truesdale family had spread beyond Cumberland and established themselves in other parts of northern England.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, several notable individuals bearing the Truesdale name can be found in historical records. One such person was William Truesdale (c.1540-1618), who was a wealthy merchant and landowner in Newcastle upon Tyne. Another was Thomas Truesdale (1608-1679), a Puritan minister who served as a chaplain in the English Civil War.
In the late 17th century, a branch of the Truesdale family emigrated to Ireland, where they settled in County Antrim. One of the earliest recorded Truesdale in Ireland was John Truesdale (c.1670-1742), who was a successful linen merchant in Ballycastle.
Over the centuries, the Truesdale name has spread to various parts of the English-speaking world, including North America, Australia, and New Zealand. Some notable Truesdales in more recent history include:
1. John Truesdale (1797-1868), an American politician who served as a U.S. Congressman from New York.
2. Walter Truesdale (1910-1997), a Canadian lawyer and judge who served on the Supreme Court of British Columbia.
3. William Truesdale (1869-1949), an American railroad executive who served as the president of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad.
4. Herbert Truesdale (1905-1985), an American artist and illustrator known for his work in children's books.
5. Clive Truesdale (1931-2020), a British journalist and broadcaster who worked for the BBC and other media outlets.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Truesdale
Among Census respondents with the surname Truesdale, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.4%. The next largest groups are Black (37.7%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Truesdale 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 Truesdale surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White55.4% · 2,441
- Black or African American37.7% · 1,658
- Two or more races3.8% · 169
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 107
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 20
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Truesdale
Truesdale 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
#7,038
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,757
+325 bearers (+7.3%)
Per 100,000 1.61
Rank movement Down 66 places
2020
#7,301
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,403
-354 bearers (-7.4%)
Per 100,000 1.47
Rank movement Down 263 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,972 | 4,432 | 1.64 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,038 | 4,757 | 1.61 | +325 bearers (+7.3%) | Down 66 places |
| 2020 | #7,301 | 4,403 | 1.47 | -354 bearers (-7.4%) | Down 263 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 Truesdale 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 | #7,038 | #7,301 | -3.7% |
| Count | 4,757 | 4,403 | -7.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.61 | 1.47 | -8.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Truesdale bearers went from 4,757 to 4,403 (-7.4% change). The surname moved down 263 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,038 to #7,301.
FAQ
Truesdale surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Truesdale?
Name Census estimates that about 5,049 living Americans carry the surname Truesdale. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 67,886 residents.
How common is Truesdale?
Truesdale ranks #7,301 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.47 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 4,403 people with the surname Truesdale. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,049), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.47 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.47 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 Truesdale.
Has Truesdale become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Truesdale went from 4,757 recorded bearers to 4,403. That is a decrease of 354 (-7.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,038 to #7,301.
What does the Census say about the background of Truesdale?
Among Census respondents with the surname Truesdale, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.4%. The next largest groups are Black (37.7%) and Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Truesdale in the 2020 Census, accounting for 55.4% (2,441 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Truesdale appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (55.4%), Black (37.7%), Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Truesdale (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 Truesdale mean?
A habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "valley of the River Trǣw" in Old English. 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 Truesdale (1.47 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 Truesdale?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the last name Truesdale at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.