2000
#9,475
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,147
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.17
Rare Last name
Wetmore
A habitational surname referring to someone living near a wet moor or marsh.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,447 Americans carry the last name Wetmore. That puts it at #10,207 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.01 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 99,436 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wetmore 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
3.4K
1 in 99,436
Census rank
#10,207
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,006 bearers of the surname Wetmore in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.01 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10207th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wetmore, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wetmore
The surname Wetmore is of English origin and can be traced back to the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words 'waet' meaning wet and 'mor' meaning moor or marsh, likely referring to someone who lived near a wetland or marshy area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wetmore appears in the Hundredorum Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1273, where it is listed as 'Wettemore'. The Hundredorum Rolls were administrative records compiled during the reign of King Edward I.
In the 14th century, the name was also found in various forms such as 'Watmore', 'Whetmore', and 'Whytmore' in various records across different counties in England, including Yorkshire, Worcestershire, and Somerset.
The Wetmore family established roots in several regions of England, including Oxfordshire, where they held lands and properties for several centuries. One notable member of the family was Sir Thomas Wetmore (1555-1636), a prominent landowner and Member of Parliament for Woodstock in the early 17th century.
Another important figure bearing the Wetmore surname was Reverend Thomas Wetmore (1672-1746), an Anglican clergyman and educator who served as the headmaster of Eton College from 1720 to 1735.
In the 16th century, the name Wetmore was also found in the records of the nearby village of Withington, which was formerly known as 'Wettemore Inge' or 'Wetmore Inge', likely derived from the surname itself.
As the Wetmore family spread across England, some members eventually migrated to the American colonies in the 17th and 18th centuries. One notable early settler was Thomas Wetmore (1605-1670), who arrived in Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1635 and became a prominent figure in the Connecticut River Valley.
Other notable individuals with the Wetmore surname include William Bache Wetmore (1801-1862), an American businessman and philanthropist who co-founded the Astor Library in New York City, and George Peabody Wetmore (1846-1921), a prominent American lawyer and politician who served as the 45th Governor of Rhode Island from 1917 to 1921.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wetmore
Among Census respondents with the surname Wetmore, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Wetmore 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 Wetmore surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.7% · 2,788
- Two or more races3.5% · 104
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 75
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 29
- Black or African American0.2% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wetmore
Wetmore 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
#10,228
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,152
+5 bearers (+0.2%)
Per 100,000 1.07
Rank movement Down 753 places
2020
#10,207
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,006
-146 bearers (-4.6%)
Per 100,000 1.01
Rank movement Up 21 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,475 | 3,147 | 1.17 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,228 | 3,152 | 1.07 | +5 bearers (+0.2%) | Down 753 places |
| 2020 | #10,207 | 3,006 | 1.01 | -146 bearers (-4.6%) | Up 21 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 Wetmore 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 | #10,228 | #10,207 | 0.2% |
| Count | 3,152 | 3,006 | -4.6% |
| Per 100K | 1.07 | 1.01 | -6.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wetmore bearers went from 3,152 to 3,006 (-4.6% change). The surname moved up 21 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,228 to #10,207.
FAQ
Wetmore surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wetmore?
Name Census estimates that about 3,447 living Americans carry the surname Wetmore. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 99,436 residents.
How common is Wetmore?
Wetmore ranks #10,207 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.01 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 3,006 people with the surname Wetmore. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,447), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.01 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.01 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 Wetmore.
Has Wetmore become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wetmore went from 3,152 recorded bearers to 3,006. That is a decrease of 146 (-4.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,228 to #10,207.
What does the Census say about the background of Wetmore?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wetmore, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Wetmore in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.7% (2,788 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wetmore appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.7%), Two or More Races (3.5%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Wetmore (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 Wetmore mean?
A habitational surname referring to someone living near a wet moor or marsh. 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 Wetmore (1.01 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 Wetmore?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the last name Wetmore on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.