Show ContentsRush History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Rush family

The surname Rush was first found in Austria, where this family name became a prominent contributor to the development of the district from ancient times. Always prominent in social affairs, the name became an integral part of that turbulent region as it emerged to form alliances with other families within the Feudal System and the nation.

Early History of the Rush family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Rush research. Another 143 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1342, 1523, 1539, 1570, 1604, 1609, 1618 and 1808 are included under the topic Early Rush History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Rush Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Rausch, Rauscher, Rausche, Rauschert, Rusch, Rusche, Ruschle, Ruscher, Raush and many more.

Early Notables of the Rush family

During this period prominent bearers of the name Rush were Johann Martin Rausch, who was a court painter and art-gallery inspector at the Austrian courts and was ennobled, taking on the title von Traubenberg. Christina Rauscher (1570-1618) was a German official and critic of witchcraft persecutions. She was the daughter of the rich textile merchant and brewer Martin Gerber of Horb and Anna Kurner, and the rich hotelier Horber Johann Rauscher of Innsbruck. In 1604, she was arrested and accused of witchcraft following political conflicts between the political elite families of the city. She was...
Another 94 words (7 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Rush Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Rush Ranking

In the United States, the name Rush is the 706th most popular surname with an estimated 42,279 people with that name. 1 However, in New Zealand, the name Rush is ranked the 729th most popular surname with an estimated 986 people with that name. 2


United States Rush migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Rush Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Clinion Rush, aged 13, who landed in Virginia in 1623 aboard the ship "Truelove" 3
  • John Rush, who settled in Virginia in 1642
  • Jasper Rush, who landed in Dorchester, Massachusetts in 1644 3
  • William Rush, who landed in Virginia in 1650 3
  • George Rush, who settled in Virginia in 1654
Rush Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Mary Rush, who arrived in Virginia in 1705 3
  • Nicholas Rush, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1749 3
  • Anthony Rush, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1752 3
  • Conrad Rush, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1761 3
  • Henry Rush, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1765 3
Rush Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Michael Rush, who landed in America in 1812 3
  • George Rush, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1844 3
  • Adam Rush, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1844 3
  • Andrew Rush, aged 16, who landed in New York in 1854 3
  • James Rush, aged 18, who landed in New York in 1854 3
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Canada Rush migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Rush Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • Mr. Martin Rush U.E. who settled in Canada c. 1784 4
  • Mr. Martin Rush Jr., U.E. who settled in Midland District [Lennox & Addington], Ontario c. 1784 4
  • Mr. Martin Rush Sr., U.E. (b. 1732) born in Duchess County, New York, USA from Bergen County, New Jersey, USA who settled in Digby, Nova Scotia c. 1784, then Fredericktown, New Brunswick, resettled in 1798 in Midland District [Lennox & Addington], Ontario, then Prince Edward County, Ontario he was a Carpenter in the Engineer Department, married to Abigail Lockwood having 5 children, he died in 1827 4
Rush Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • John Rush, who arrived in Canada in 1800
  • Ms. Mary Rush who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec but died on Grosse Isle in 1847 5
  • Mr. Patrick Rush, aged 60 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Covenanter" departing from the port of Cork, Ireland but died on Grosse Isle in August 1847 5
  • Mr. Peter Rush, aged 3 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Naomi" departing from the port of Liverpool, England but died on Grosse Isle in August 1847 5
  • Mr. B. Rush who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Naomi" departing 15th June 1847 from Liverpool, England; the ship arrived on 10th August 1847 but he died on board 6
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Australia Rush migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Rush Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Francis Rush, English convict from Middlesex, who was transported aboard the "Agamemnon" on April 22, 1820, settling in New South Wales, Australia 7
  • Mr. James Rush, (b. 1800), aged 20, Irish labourer who was convicted in Dublin, Ireland for life for felony, transported aboard the "Dorothy" on 5th May 1820, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
  • Mr. Charles Rush, English convict who was convicted in London, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Atlas" on 27th April 1833, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 9
  • Catherine Rush, English convict from Lancaster, who was transported aboard the "Arab" on December 14, 1835, settling in Van Diemen's Land, Australia 10
  • Isaac Rush, who arrived in Holdfast Bay, Australia aboard the ship "Katherine Stewart Forbes" in 1837 11
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

New Zealand Rush migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Rush Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Mr. Rush, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Stately" arriving in Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 5th February 1854 12

West Indies Rush migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 13
Rush Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • Mr. William Rush, (b. 1615), aged 20, British settler traveling aboard the ship "Matthew" arriving in St Christopher (Saint Kitts) in 1635 14

Contemporary Notables of the name Rush (post 1700) +

  • Barbara Rush (1927-2024), American Golden Globe Award winning stage, film, and television actress, known for her roles in Peyton Place, All My Children, The Young Lions, The Young Philadelphians and many more
  • Stockton Rush III (1962-2023), American founder of OceanGate which provides crewed submersibles for tourism, industry, research and exploration, one of the five people inside a submersible that went missing in the North Atlantic while en route to view the wreckage of the Titanic on 18 June 2023
  • Richard Rush (1929-2021), American Academy Award nominated film director, scriptwriter, and producer, best known for directing The Stunt Man
  • Christopher Rush (1965-2016), American illustrator, best known for his work on Magic: The Gathering
  • Major-General Hugo Peoples Rush (1900-1979), American Commanding General Western Air Defense Command (1949-1951) 15
  • Kenneth Rush, American Lawyer
  • Benjamin Rush (1745-1813), American signer of Declaration of Independence
  • William Rees Rush, American officer in the United States Navy
  • Bobby Rush (b. 1940), American blues and R&B musician
  • Bennie Rush, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Illinois, 1948 16
  • ... (Another 38 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

RMS Titanic
  • Mr. Alfred George John Rush (d. 1912), aged 16, English Third Class passenger from Strood, Kent who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking 17
USS Arizona
  • Mr. Richard Perry Rush, American Seaman First Class from Texas, USA working aboard the ship "USS Arizona" when she sunk during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7th December 1941, he died in the sinking 18


Suggested Readings for the name Rush +

  • Haese History (also Rush Family) by Lora Rabenhorst Klug.

  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. "Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
  3. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  4. Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
  5. Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 54)
  6. Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 94)
  7. State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Agamemnon voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1820 with 179 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/agamemnon/1820
  8. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 12th July 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/dorothy
  9. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 14th July 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/atlas
  10. State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2015, January 8) Arab voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1835 with 132 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/arab/1835
  11. State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) KATHERINE STEWART FORBES 1837 arrived Holdfast Bay, near Adelaide, on October 17, 1837. . Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1837KatherineStewartForbes.htm
  12. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  13. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
  14. Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's (Retrieved October 4th 2021 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
  15. Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2014, March 26) Hugo Rush. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Rush/Hugo_Peoples/USA.html
  16. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, February 12) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
  17. Titanic Passenger List - Titanic Facts. (Retrieved 2016, July 13) . Retrieved from http://www.titanicfacts.net/titanic-passenger-list.html
  18. Pearl Harbour: USS Arizona Casualties List Pearl Harbour December 7, 1941. (Retrieved 2018, July 31st). Retrieved from http://pearl-harbor.com/arizona/casualtylist.html


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