The largest concentration, over two-thirds, in the USA is undoubtedly distorted by mass immigraton from European states during the 19th century. The statistics for the USA will include the descendants of Germanic ‘Fischers’, a group that is outside the scope of this study, and most probably contributes to the very high frequency of the surname compared to the rest of the world.

USA

Most associate American immigration with Ellis Island but the first English immigrants arrived almost 300 years earlier. According to the “Passenger & Immigration Lists Index” (P W Filby & M K Mayer) the earliest reference to the surname is Robert Fisher in Virginia, 1611—a mere four years after the establishment of Jamestown. The early years of the settlement were inauspicious and it almost foundered. The portents for the new colony were to improve with the arrival of the Puritan settlers, mainly from the West Country and East Anglia in 1620’s. In the following decade some 20,000 Englishmen were transported to New England in organised convoys.

Although the first decennial census took place in 1790 it was not until 1850 that all the members of a household were recorded. At the first census over 500 heads of household held the surname Fisher, within fifty years this had increased sevenfold. In 1850 the total number of Fishers recorded was over 26, 800 thirty years later the number had reached 66,800 — almost double that of the British Isles in 1881.

How was such a phenomenal growth achieved? Clearly mass immigration was largely responsible but where did they all come from? The substantial numbers involved could not be supported by an exclusively British origin. The 1850 census offers a clue. Each person was recorded with their birthplace; this revealed that over 2000 (almost 8%) were born in Germanic states compared to 772 in the British Isles (373 Irish, 322 English, 74 Scottish and 3 Welsh). If this pattern is typical of earlier immigration and, more importantly, continued throughout the 19th century we could conclude that less than half of American Fishers today originate in the British Isles.

Canada

British immigration to Canada began with large numbers of pioneers in the 1760’s. These were joined after the American War of Independence by thousands of loyalist settlers. Today the Canadian Fisher population is estimated at 24,800. [4366 in 1901 census]

Australia

Transportation of convicts began with the First Fleet in 1788. But it was not until 1821 that transportation was increased and during the next twenty years over 100,000 transportees would arrive. The 1820’s also saw the start of free immigration, which by the late 183o’s had become a flood. Now it is estimated there are about 18,700 Fishers living in Australia.

• Andrew Fisher, born 1862 in Crosshouse, Ayrshire, Scotland, emigrated to Australia in 1885. A coalminer (from the age of 10) who went on to become the first Labour Prime Minister of Australia, serving three terms 1908—15 and who famously made the pledge “……..we will stand by the Mother Country to help and defend her to the last man and the last shilling” in October 1914.

New Zealand

Immigration to New Zealand did not begin until the late 1830’s in North Island. Today an estimated 2,800 Fishers live in New Zealand.

Caribbean and Bermudas

We know that the islands of the West Indies were settled by Englishmen from the 17th century but do not have any data on the process or today’s Fisher population.

South Africa

Immigration started much later in the 1820’s but again we do not have any data on the process but estimate today’s Fisher population to be about 3,600.

South America

There may be Fishers in the South American countries from the 19th century. But we expect the numbers to be very small.

Contact: fisher@one-name.org