When William M Rutherford was born on 5 September 1861, in Alabama, United States, his father, William J Rutherford, was 24 and his mother, Elizabeth Caldwell, was 22. He died on 26 April 1888, in his hometown, at the age of 26, and was buried in Helena, Shelby, Alabama, United States.
Scottish and northern English: habitational name from Rutherford in Maxton (Roxburghshire), apparently named with Old English hrīther, hrȳther ‘ox’ + ford ‘ford’, though a British Celtic origin of the type ro- ‘great’ + dubr- ‘water, river’ is also possible for the first element. Places named Rutherford in West Linton (West Lothian) and Barningham (North Yorkshire) are less likely sources of the name.
As a nonprofit, we offer free help to those looking to learn the details of their family story.