2000
#1,692
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,399
First available Census row
Per 100,000 7.19
Uncommon Last name
Goodrich
An English locational surname derived from a place name meaning "good ridge" or "at the good ridge."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 21,328 Americans carry the last name Goodrich. That puts it at #1,895 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.22 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 16,071 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Goodrich 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Goodrich with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
21K
1 in 16,071
Census rank
#1,895
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
19K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 18,599 bearers of the surname Goodrich in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.22 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1895th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Goodrich, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Black (4.7%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Goodrich
The surname Goodrich has its origins in England, believed to have first emerged during the Anglo-Saxon period in the 7th to 11th centuries. It is thought to derive from the Old English words "gōd" meaning good and "ric" meaning rich or powerful, suggesting that the name may have initially referred to someone who was wealthy or held a position of authority.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, a comprehensive survey of landowners and property in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The entry lists a person named Godric, which is likely an earlier spelling variation of Goodrich.
In the 13th century, the name appeared in various historical records, including the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which documented landowners and tax records. One notable entry from this period was for a John Godrich, who held lands in Oxfordshire.
During the Middle Ages, the Goodrich family was associated with the village of Goodrich in Herefordshire, which may have derived its name from an early landholder with the surname. The village is known for its imposing Goodrich Castle, constructed in the late 11th century and held by several generations of the Goodrich family.
Notable individuals with the Goodrich surname throughout history include:
1. Sir Henry Goodrich (c. 1480-1553), an English lawyer and diplomat who served as Lord Chancellor under Edward VI.
2. Thomas Goodrich (c. 1494-1554), an English Protestant martyr who was burned at the stake during the Marian persecutions.
3. Jeremiah Goodrich (1605-1693), an early settler in New England and one of the founders of the town of Wethersfield, Connecticut.
4. Elizur Goodrich (1734-1797), an American lawyer and politician who served as the Secretary of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
5. Samuel Griswold Goodrich (1793-1860), an American author and publisher, best known for his popular children's books published under the pseudonym "Peter Parley".
The Goodrich surname has been present throughout various regions of England and has since spread to other parts of the world, particularly through British colonization and immigration. While the name has evolved over time, its origins can be traced back to the Anglo-Saxon period and the concept of wealth and status.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Goodrich
Among Census respondents with the surname Goodrich, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Black (4.7%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Goodrich 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 Goodrich surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.4% · 16,065
- Black or African American4.7% · 867
- Two or more races4.1% · 769
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 628
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 142
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 128
Timeline
Historical Census data for Goodrich
Goodrich 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
#1,838
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,487
+88 bearers (+0.5%)
Per 100,000 6.61
Rank movement Down 146 places
2020
#1,895
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,599
-888 bearers (-4.6%)
Per 100,000 6.22
Rank movement Down 57 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,692 | 19,399 | 7.19 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,838 | 19,487 | 6.61 | +88 bearers (+0.5%) | Down 146 places |
| 2020 | #1,895 | 18,599 | 6.22 | -888 bearers (-4.6%) | Down 57 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 Goodrich 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 | #1,838 | #1,895 | -3.1% |
| Count | 19,487 | 18,599 | -4.6% |
| Per 100K | 6.61 | 6.22 | -5.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Goodrich bearers went from 19,487 to 18,599 (-4.6% change). The surname moved down 57 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,838 to #1,895.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Goodrich
FAQ
Goodrich surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Goodrich?
Name Census estimates that about 21,328 living Americans carry the surname Goodrich. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 16,071 residents.
How common is Goodrich?
Goodrich ranks #1,895 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.22 per 100,000 residents, which is about 6 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 18,599 people with the surname Goodrich. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (21,328), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.22 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.22 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 6 of them to have the surname Goodrich.
Has Goodrich become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Goodrich went from 19,487 recorded bearers to 18,599. That is a decrease of 888 (-4.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,838 to #1,895.
What does the Census say about the background of Goodrich?
Among Census respondents with the surname Goodrich, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Black (4.7%) and Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Goodrich in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.4% (16,065 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Goodrich appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.4%), Black (4.7%), Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Goodrich (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 Goodrich mean?
An English locational surname derived from a place name meaning "good ridge" or "at the good ridge." 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 Goodrich (6.22 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 are called Goodrich?
If you just want to know how many Americans have the surname Goodrich, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.