5,190 documented Nelson ancestors, drawn from public records such as death indexes and county histories. Every name below is a real person in the public record.
English & Scandinavian patronymic — 'son of Neil' (or Nell).
Where the records place them: Iowa (100%), out of 5,179 Nelson records with a known place.
The most common first names among them: John, Mary, Robert, Carl and Harold.
Of the 5,165 with both a birth and a death year, the median lifespan was 79 years.
The earliest recorded birth is George Nelson, born 1827 in Virginia.
Documented Nelson families on this page come from Past and present of Mahaska County, Iowa, History of Cooper County, Missouri (1919) and Centennial Biographical Record of Richland County, Ohio.
Real Nelson family groups pieced together from the public record — parents, spouse, and children, each with the source that proves it. Recognize your line? Tap a family and we’ll start your documented tree from it.
+4 more documented Nelson families in the record. Find yours →
Deceased Nelson ancestors, earliest first. Living family members are deliberately omitted.
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English & Scandinavian patronymic — 'son of Neil' (or Nell).
The documented line here reaches back to 1827. Most Nelson lines can be traced to the end of the surviving public record.
No. Deceased ancestors only, from public records. Living people are excluded for privacy.
If a name here matches your family, it may well be. A full documented build confirms exactly how your line connects.
Part of a network of documented family histories: