Show ContentsDorris History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Dorris family

The surname Dorris was first found in Dauphiny (French: Dauphiné or Dauphiné Viennois), a former province in southeastern France, where the family has been a prominent family for centuries, and held a family seat with lands and manor. They held a family seat in D'Oris, in the department of Isere, in the canton of Entraigues a community from which they take their name. The name was connected with an ancient Indo Euopean Swiss race which migrated to the region from Thessalie in the 13th century. The family were well established in the region of the Rhone in south eastern France and several members of the family distinguished themselves through their contributions toward the community in which they lived and were rewarded with lands, titles and letters patent confirming their nobility.

Early History of the Dorris family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dorris research. Another 92 words (7 lines of text) covering the year 1708 is included under the topic Early Dorris History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dorris Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: D'Oris, Doris, Dorris, Dorries, Dorrisse, Dorais, De Oris, De Orris and many more.

Early Notables of the Dorris family

Notable amongst the family at this time was

  • Dorris of Dauphine

Dorris Ranking

In the United States, the name Dorris is the 4,028th most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 1


Dorris migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Dorris Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Manuel Dorris, who settled in Puerto Rico in 1881
  • Barney Dorris, aged 15, who arrived in New York in 1892 aboard the ship "Teutonic" from Liverpool & Queenstown 2
  • John Dorris, aged 27, who arrived in New York in 1893 aboard the ship "Furnessia" from Glasgow, Scotland 2
Dorris Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Leon Dorris, aged 2, originally from Antwerp, who arrived in New York City, New York in 1900 aboard the ship "Lucania" from Liverpool, England 2
  • Thomas P. Dorris, aged 58, who arrived in New York in 1920 aboard the ship "President Wilson" from Algiers, Algeria 2
  • Mary Anne Dorris, aged 19, originally from Esker, Co. Longford, Ireland, who arrived in New York in 1920 aboard the ship "Celtic" from Queenstown, Ireland 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Dorris (post 1700) +

  • George Dorris (b. 1930), American dance historian, educator, editor, and writer
  • Andy Dorris (b. 1951), retired American professional football player
  • Michael Anthony Dorris (1945-1997), American novelist and scholar, the first Chair of the Native American Studies program at Dartmouth
  • George Preston Dorris, American founder of The Dorris Motor Car Company in 1906, the company closed in 1926
  • Harry W. Dorris, American fighter pilot and flying ace in the U.S. Army Air Forces, during World War II, credited with 5 aerial victories
  • Danielle Dorris (b. 2002), Canadian Paralympic swimmer, two-time gold medalist at the 2020 and 2024 Paralympics
  • Catherine Dorris Norrell (1901-1981), American politician, U.S. Representative from Arkansas (1961-1963), the wife of her predecessor William F. Norrell
  • Catherine Dorris Norrell (1901-1981), American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Arkansas, 1940; U.S. Representative from Arkansas 6th District, 1961-63 3
  • Dorris Estelle Bowdon (1914-2005), American actress, best known for her role as Rosasharn in The Grapes of Wrath (1940)


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. Ellis Island Search retrieved 15th November 2022. Retrieved from https://heritage.statueofliberty.org/passenger-result
  3. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 11) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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