2000
#10,591
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,777
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.03
Rare Last name
Truesdell
A locational surname derived from a place name meaning "Truda's valley" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,050 Americans carry the last name Truesdell. That puts it at #11,338 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.89 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 112,378 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Truesdell 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.
Bearers in the US
3.0K
1 in 112,378
Census rank
#11,338
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,660 bearers of the surname Truesdell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.89 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11338th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Truesdell, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Black (5.9%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Truesdell
The surname Truesdell has its origins in England, tracing back to the late 16th century. It is believed to be a locational name, derived from a place called Truesdell or Truesdail, which was likely a small hamlet or village in the northern regions of England. The name may have evolved from the Old English words "trēow" meaning "tree" and "dell" meaning "valley" or "hollow," suggesting it originated from a wooded valley or a place with a distinctive tree-lined dell.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Truesdell surname can be found in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Beverley, Yorkshire, dated 1598, where a certain John Truesdell was mentioned. The spelling variations in historical records include Trewsdell, Trewsdale, and Truesdale, reflecting the phonetic adaptations and regional dialects of the time.
In the 17th century, the Truesdell surname appeared in the Hearth Tax Rolls of 1662-1666, which recorded households and occupants for taxation purposes. This suggests that the Truesdell family had established itself across various regions of England by that time.
One notable individual bearing the Truesdell surname was Sir William Truesdell (1640-1707), a prominent English lawyer and Member of Parliament who served as the Chief Justice of the Common Pleas from 1701 until his death. He played a significant role in several landmark legal cases of his era.
Another historical figure was Thomas Truesdell (1736-1819), an English-born settler who emigrated to the American colonies in the mid-18th century. He served as a militiaman during the American Revolutionary War and later became a respected landowner and farmer in the state of Vermont.
In the 19th century, the Truesdell surname gained prominence in the United States, with several individuals making notable contributions. Reverend John Truesdell (1802-1876) was a prominent Methodist minister and author who served as the president of the Wesleyan Female College in Wilmington, Delaware.
Erastus Truesdell (1826-1897) was a successful businessman and inventor from New York, best known for his patented improvements to the agricultural seed drill, which revolutionized farming techniques of the time.
While the exact origins of the Truesdell surname may be shrouded in the mists of history, it remains a name with deep roots in England and a fascinating journey across continents and centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Truesdell
Among Census respondents with the surname Truesdell, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Black (5.9%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Truesdell 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 Truesdell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.5% · 2,274
- Black or African American5.9% · 157
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 97
- Two or more races3.6% · 97
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 23
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Truesdell
Truesdell 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
#11,327
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,786
+9 bearers (+0.3%)
Per 100,000 0.94
Rank movement Down 736 places
2020
#11,338
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,660
-126 bearers (-4.5%)
Per 100,000 0.89
Rank movement Down 11 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,591 | 2,777 | 1.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,327 | 2,786 | 0.94 | +9 bearers (+0.3%) | Down 736 places |
| 2020 | #11,338 | 2,660 | 0.89 | -126 bearers (-4.5%) | Down 11 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 Truesdell 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 | #11,327 | #11,338 | -0.1% |
| Count | 2,786 | 2,660 | -4.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.94 | 0.89 | -5.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Truesdell bearers went from 2,786 to 2,660 (-4.5% change). The surname moved down 11 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,327 to #11,338.
FAQ
Truesdell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Truesdell?
Name Census estimates that about 3,050 living Americans carry the surname Truesdell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 112,378 residents.
How common is Truesdell?
Truesdell ranks #11,338 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.89 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 2,660 people with the surname Truesdell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,050), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.89 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.89 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 Truesdell.
Has Truesdell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Truesdell went from 2,786 recorded bearers to 2,660. That is a decrease of 126 (-4.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,327 to #11,338.
What does the Census say about the background of Truesdell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Truesdell, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Black (5.9%) and Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Truesdell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.5% (2,274 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Truesdell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.5%), Black (5.9%), Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Truesdell (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 Truesdell mean?
A locational surname derived from a place name meaning "Truda's valley" 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 Truesdell (0.89 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 Americans have the surname Truesdell?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.