NameCensus.

UK surname

Pinkerton

A locational surname referring to someone from a place called Pinkerton, likely meaning "Pynca's farmstead" in Old English.

In the 1881 census there were 736 people recorded with the Pinkerton surname, ranking it #4,976 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 768, ranked #7,143, down from #4,976 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Govan Combination, London parishes and Edinburgh. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include County Durham, Conwy and Wrexham.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Pinkerton is 846 in 1901. Compared with 1881, the name has stayed broadly stable by 4.3%.

1881 census count

736

Ranked #4,976

Modern count

768

2016, ranked #7,143

Peak year

1901

846 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Pinkerton had 736 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #4,976 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 768 in 2016, ranked #7,143.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 846 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Spacious Rural Living.

Pinkerton surname distribution map

The map shows where the Pinkerton surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Pinkerton surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Pinkerton over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 514 #4,864
1861 historical 648 #4,145
1881 historical 736 #4,976
1891 historical 783 #5,126
1901 historical 846 #5,379
1911 historical 335 #10,584
1997 modern 727 #7,035
1998 modern 749 #7,107
1999 modern 759 #7,078
2000 modern 776 #6,942
2001 modern 735 #7,086
2002 modern 745 #7,146
2003 modern 692 #7,449
2004 modern 711 #7,305
2005 modern 715 #7,202
2006 modern 722 #7,187
2007 modern 719 #7,277
2008 modern 723 #7,301
2009 modern 744 #7,297
2010 modern 766 #7,274
2011 modern 771 #7,161
2012 modern 757 #7,172
2013 modern 756 #7,297
2014 modern 772 #7,196
2015 modern 779 #7,082
2016 modern 768 #7,143

Geography

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Where Pinkertons are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Govan Combination, London parishes, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Paisley Abbey. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to County Durham, Conwy, Wrexham and Gateshead. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Govan Combination Lanark
2 London parishes London 3
3 Edinburgh Edinburgh
4 Glasgow Lanark
5 Paisley Abbey Renfrew

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 County Durham 009 County Durham
2 Conwy 013 Conwy
3 Wrexham 006 Wrexham
4 Gateshead 019 Gateshead
5 County Durham 027 County Durham

Forenames

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First names often paired with Pinkerton

These lists show first names that appear often with the Pinkerton surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Pinkerton

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Pinkerton, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Retired Professionals

Group

Spacious Rural Living

Nationally, the Pinkerton surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Spacious Rural Living, within Retired Professionals. This does not mean every Pinkerton household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These predominantly ageing households typically have no resident dependent children. Most are owner-occupiers and live in detached houses in low density residential developments (although renting is more common than in the rest of the Supergroup). White ethnicity predominates. Residents are typically beyond retirement age but those still in work have managerial, professional or skilled trade occupations. White ethnicity and Christian religious affiliation predominate. Neighbourhoods are located throughout rural UK.

Wider pattern

Typically married but no longer with resident dependent children, these well-educated households either remain working in their managerial, professional, administrative or other skilled occupations, or are retired from them – the modal individual age is beyond normal retirement age. Underoccupied detached and semi-detached properties predominate, and unpaid care is more prevalent than reported disability. The prevalence of this Supergroup outside most urban conurbations indicates that rural lifestyles prevail, typically sustained by using two or more cars per household.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Pinkerton is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers, part of The Greater London Mix. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Mainly located in Inner London, these neighbourhoods retain a diverse employment structure, with some concentration in associated professional and technical occupations rather than skilled trades or construction. Social renting is more common and levels of homeownership are low. Many residents identify as Black. There is a lower than average rate of marriage or civil partnership, few that are very old (85 or over) and higher than average incidence of disability.

Wider London pattern

A Supergroup embodying London's diversity in many respects, apart from low numbers of residents identifying as of Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani or Other (non-Chinese) Asian ethnicity. There is lower than average prevalence of families with dependent children, while there are above average occurrences of never-married individuals and single-person households. The age distribution is skewed towards younger, single residents and couples without children, with many individuals identifying as of mixed or multiple ethnicity. Social rented or private rented housing is slightly more prevalent than average, and many residents live in flats. Individuals typically work in professional and associated roles in public administration, education or health rather than in elementary occupations in agriculture, energy, water, construction or manufacturing. Incidence of students is slightly below average. Individuals declaring no religion are more prevalent than average and non-use of English at home is below average.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Pinkerton is most concentrated in decile 1 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the less healthy end of the index.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

1
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Pinkerton falls in decile 10 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the less deprived end of the index.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

10
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Pinkerton is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 30-40 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

6
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

This describes the area pattern most associated with Pinkerton, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Pinkerton

The surname Pinkerton originated in Scotland during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old English words "pinc" and "tun," meaning "enclosure for game or hunting park" and "farm or settlement," respectively. This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who lived near a hunting park or game reserve.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Pinkerton name can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which documented Scottish landowners swearing fealty to King Edward I of England. The entry "Johanne de Pynkertoun" likely refers to someone from the village of Pinkerton, located near Dunbar in East Lothian, Scotland.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, variations of the name such as Pinkertoun, Pynkerton, and Pynkertone appeared in Scottish records and parish registers. Notable bearers of the name include John Pinkerton (1758-1826), a Scottish antiquarian and author who wrote several works on Scottish history and literature.

In the 19th century, the Pinkerton name gained prominence through Allan Pinkerton (1819-1884), a Scottish-American detective who founded the Pinkerton National Detective Agency in 1850. The agency played a significant role in law enforcement and private security in the United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Other notable individuals with the Pinkerton surname include Robert Pinkerton (1786-1851), a Scottish-born merchant and politician who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Lower Canada, and John Pinkerton (1845-1908), a Scottish-American businessman and philanthropist who co-founded the American Steel and Wire Company.

Robert B. Pinkerton (1892-1967) was a Canadian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the House of Commons of Canada. William Pinkerton (1809-1876), a Scottish-born American detective and deputy sheriff, worked alongside his brother Allan in the Pinkerton National Detective Agency.

While the Pinkerton name has its roots in Scotland, it has since spread across the world, particularly to countries with significant Scottish immigration, such as Canada, the United States, and Australia.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Pinkerton families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Pinkerton surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Lanarkshire leads with 228 Pinkertons recorded in 1881 and an index of 9.81x.

County Total Index
Lanarkshire 228 9.81x
Lancashire 107 1.25x
Renfrewshire 89 15.97x
Midlothian 63 6.54x
Surrey 37 1.06x
Middlesex 36 0.50x
Ayrshire 29 5.39x
Yorkshire 17 0.24x
Dunbartonshire 16 8.28x
Cheshire 15 0.95x
Buteshire 11 25.25x
Perthshire 11 3.41x
Stirlingshire 11 4.15x
Durham 10 0.47x
Northumberland 10 0.93x
Essex 7 0.49x
Derbyshire 6 0.53x
Dumfriesshire 6 3.78x
Kent 5 0.20x
Gloucestershire 4 0.28x
Hertfordshire 4 0.81x
Hampshire 3 0.20x
Dorset 2 0.42x
Fife 2 0.47x
Warwickshire 2 0.11x
Angus 1 0.15x
Lincolnshire 1 0.09x
Northamptonshire 1 0.15x
Nottinghamshire 1 0.10x
West Lothian 1 0.92x
Wigtownshire 1 1.05x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Barony in Lanarkshire leads with 52 Pinkertons recorded in 1881 and an index of 8.84x.

Place Total Index
Barony 52 8.84x
Govan 50 8.70x
Glasgow 36 8.72x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 34 8.77x
Paisley High Church 23 51.85x
Kilmarnock 21 32.79x
Ardwick 18 23.39x
Hamilton 16 24.67x
Neilston 16 57.20x
Old Monkland 16 17.34x
Abbey 15 17.65x
Bothwell 14 22.20x
West Greenock 14 14.00x
Lambeth 13 2.07x
Rutherglen 13 38.11x
Shettleston 11 52.83x
Shoreditch London 11 3.53x
Manchester 10 2.61x
Blackley 9 60.20x
Paisley Low Church 9 51.02x
Byker 8 15.13x
Chorlton On Medlock 8 5.90x
Doncaster 8 15.37x
Ince In Makerfield 8 20.16x
Rothesay 8 37.93x
Witton 8 74.56x
Dumbarton 7 26.03x
Greencroft 7 178.57x
Maryhill 7 15.38x
Newton In Ashton Under 7 44.70x
Paisley Middle Church 7 21.58x
Reigate Foreign 7 18.46x
Spotland 7 7.38x
Campsie 6 41.24x
Carluke 6 28.42x
Lochmaben 6 86.21x
St George In East 6 12.27x
Battersea 5 1.89x
Bonhill 5 16.12x
Chesterfield 5 11.85x
Denny 5 35.46x
Edinburgh New North 5 59.67x
Greenwich 5 4.37x
Kingston On Thames 5 5.94x
Kinnoull 5 58.96x
Kirknewton East 5 124.07x
Pendleton In Salford 5 4.92x
Perth East Church 5 16.44x
St Luke London 5 4.34x
Thornaby 5 18.78x
Accrington 4 5.16x
Corstorphine 4 75.33x
Didsbury 4 35.30x
Hemel Hempstead 4 17.91x
Kilwinning 4 23.03x
Liverpool 4 0.77x
Pilkington 4 12.34x
Richmond 4 8.15x
West Ham 4 1.28x
Withington 4 14.56x
Ashton Under Lyne 3 1.61x
Birkenhead 3 2.37x
Bute North 3 101.69x
Currie 3 50.85x
Edinburgh Buccleuch 3 13.17x
Edinburgh Old Church 3 38.81x
Glassford 3 83.80x
Levenshulme 3 34.17x
Row 3 12.00x
Twickenham 3 9.73x
Bristol St Augustine 2 8.79x
Coylton 2 26.21x
Edinburgh Trinity 2 64.52x
Hyde 2 4.27x
Lanark 2 10.69x
Leckford 2 281.69x
St Andrew Holborn 2 8.21x
Stockport 2 2.45x
West Derby 2 0.80x
West Kilbride 2 38.99x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Pinkerton surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Mary 15
Margaret 8
Jane 6
Alice 5
Annie 5
Ellen 5
Louisa 5
Sarah 5
Eliza 4
Elizabeth 4
Hannah 4
Janet 4
Ann 3
Isabella 3
Martha 3
Ada 2
Charlotte 2
Emily 2
Ethel 2
Ruth 2
Susan 2
Amey 1
Bertha 1
Blanche 1
Caroline 1
Catherine 1
Dorothy 1
Edith 1
Elizth. 1
Euphemia 1
Evelyn 1
Frances 1
Georgina 1
Harriet 1
Helen 1
Jessamin 1
Julia 1
Kate 1
Lillian 1
Lily 1
Maggie 1
Margt. 1
Maria 1
Maud 1
Mercy 1
Millicent 1
Minnie 1
Nora 1
Norah 1
Thomas 1

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Pinkerton surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
James 22
John 16
William 13
David 9
George 8
Charles 7
Frederick 6
Robert 6
Henry 5
Thomas 4
Alexander 3
Hugh 3
Allan 2
Arthur 2
Joseph 2
Richard 2
Albert 1
Alexandre 1
Alexr. 1
Alfred 1
Campbell 1
Chas. 1
Daniel 1
Edward 1
Eustace 1
Frank 1
Geo. 1
Godfrey 1
H.Montgomery 1
Harold 1
Harry 1
Hartley 1
Herbert 1
Jas. 1
Mark 1
Obeson 1
Peter 1
Samuel 1
Thos 1
Walter 1
Wm 1
Wm. 1

FAQ

Pinkerton surname: questions and answers

How common was the Pinkerton surname in 1881?

In 1881, 736 people were recorded with the Pinkerton surname. That placed it at #4,976 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Pinkerton surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 768 in 2016. That gives Pinkerton a modern rank of #7,143.

What does the Pinkerton surname mean?

A locational surname referring to someone from a place called Pinkerton, likely meaning "Pynca's farmstead" in Old English.

What does the Pinkerton map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Pinkerton bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.