2000
#11,964
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,395
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.89
Rare Last name
Wickersham
A habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "homestead with a dairy farm" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,742 Americans carry the last name Wickersham. That puts it at #12,402 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.80 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 125,002 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wickersham 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
2.7K
1 in 125,002
Census rank
#12,402
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,391 bearers of the surname Wickersham in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.80 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12402nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wickersham, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wickersham
The surname Wickersham originated in England, and its earliest records date back to the late 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "wicce" meaning a witch or sorcerer, and "ham" meaning a homestead or village. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived in a village associated with witchcraft or occult practices.
One of the earliest known references to the name Wickersham can be found in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Beddington, Surrey, where a certain John Wickersham was recorded as a resident in 1592. The name also appears in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1628, indicating that the family had spread to other parts of southern England by that time.
In the 17th century, the Wickersham family seems to have established itself in the county of Worcestershire. A notable figure from this period was Edward Wickersham, a prosperous landowner who was born in 1642 and died in 1714. His son, also named Edward Wickersham (1674-1747), was a prominent lawyer and served as the High Sheriff of Worcestershire in 1715.
As the centuries progressed, some members of the Wickersham family migrated to other parts of the world, including the American colonies. One of the earliest recorded Wickershams in America was John Wickersham, who arrived in Philadelphia from England in 1753. His descendants went on to establish themselves in various parts of the United States, with some achieving notable positions in politics and law.
Another notable figure with the surname Wickersham was James Aloysius Wickersham (1857-1939), an American lawyer and politician who served as a judge and district attorney in Alaska during the early 20th century. He was also a delegate to the United States Congress from the Alaska Territory.
Other historical figures with the surname Wickersham include:
1. Thomas Wickersham (1586-1667), an English clergyman and author who wrote a treatise on the Sabbath.
2. George Wickersham (1858-1936), an American lawyer and politician who served as the United States Attorney General under President William Howard Taft.
3. Victor Wickersham (1879-1945), an American military officer who played a significant role in the development of aviation in the United States Army.
4. James Pyle Wickersham (1825-1891), an American educator and politician who served as the Chancellor of the University of Pennsylvania.
While the surname Wickersham has its roots in England, it has since spread to various parts of the world, with notable bearers contributing to fields such as law, politics, education, and the military.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wickersham
Among Census respondents with the surname Wickersham, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Wickersham 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 Wickersham surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.0% · 2,152
- Two or more races4.2% · 101
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 100
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 11
- Black or African American0.4% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wickersham
Wickersham 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
#12,720
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,427
+32 bearers (+1.3%)
Per 100,000 0.82
Rank movement Down 756 places
2020
#12,402
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,391
-36 bearers (-1.5%)
Per 100,000 0.80
Rank movement Up 318 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,964 | 2,395 | 0.89 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,720 | 2,427 | 0.82 | +32 bearers (+1.3%) | Down 756 places |
| 2020 | #12,402 | 2,391 | 0.80 | -36 bearers (-1.5%) | Up 318 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 Wickersham 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 | #12,720 | #12,402 | 2.5% |
| Count | 2,427 | 2,391 | -1.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.82 | 0.80 | -2.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wickersham bearers went from 2,427 to 2,391 (-1.5% change). The surname moved up 318 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,720 to #12,402.
FAQ
Wickersham surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wickersham?
Name Census estimates that about 2,742 living Americans carry the surname Wickersham. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 125,002 residents.
How common is Wickersham?
Wickersham ranks #12,402 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.80 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 2,391 people with the surname Wickersham. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,742), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.8 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.80 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 Wickersham.
Has Wickersham become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wickersham went from 2,427 recorded bearers to 2,391. That is a decrease of 36 (-1.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #12,720 to #12,402.
What does the Census say about the background of Wickersham?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wickersham, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (4.2%). 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 Wickersham in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.0% (2,152 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wickersham appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.0%), Two or More Races (4.2%), Hispanic (4.2%). 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 Wickersham (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 Wickersham mean?
A habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "homestead with a dairy farm" 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 Wickersham (0.80 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 surname Wickersham?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.