Show ContentsWester Surname History

Wester Ranking

In the United States, the name Wester is the 4,210th most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 1 However, in Netherlands, the name Wester is ranked the 977th most popular surname with an estimated 2,116 people with that name. 2


United States Wester migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Wester Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Johan Wester, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1727 aboard the ship "William and Sarah" 3
  • Willis Wester, who landed in Georgia in 1737 3
  • Johann Georg Wester, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1751 3
Wester Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Ferdinand Wester, aged 28, who arrived in St Louis, Missouri in 1848 3
  • Anna Maria Wester, who landed in America in 1854 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Wester (post 1700) +

  • Peter Jansen Wester (1887-1931), Swedish-American botanist
  • Keith A. Wester (1940-2002), American six-time Academy Award nominated sound engineer
  • John Charles Wester (b. 1950), American prelate of the Catholic Church, the twelfth Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe
  • Jennifer Nicole Wester (b. 1985), American former competitive ice dancer, the 2007 Nebelhorn Trophy champion and 2008 World Championship first alternates for Team USA
  • Curtis Wester (1951-1995), American football all-star guard in the Canadian Football League
  • August Wester Jr. (1882-1960), American silver medalist wrestler at the 1904 Summer Olympics
  • Robert C. Wester, American politician, Mayor of Las Vegas, New Mexico, 1956 4
  • Carl Wester, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from North Carolina, 1948 4
  • C. F. Wester, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from North Carolina, 1944 4
  • Oscar Wester (b. 1995), Swedish freestyle skier
  • ... (Another 4 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Arrow Air Flight 1285
  • Mr. John Charles Wester (1966-1985), American Private 1st Class from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA who died in the Arrow Air Flight 1285 crash 5


  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 Netherlands." Forebears, https://forebears.io/netherlands/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. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 4) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
  5. American War Memorials - Flight 1285. (Retrieved 2016, August 24) . Retrieved from http://www.uswarmemorials.org/html/monument_details.php?SiteID=317&MemID=550


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