Bloomer
An occupational surname for someone who worked at a bloomery or bloom-iron furnace.
The #7,827 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 72,972 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Bloomer is generally explained as an occupational surname from Middle English bloom, meaning a mass of spongy iron produced in a bloomery, plus the agent suffix -er, “one who works with.” In that sense, a Bloomer was a worker at a bloomery or bloom-smithy, where iron was smelted from ore. Older sources also mention related forms such as Blomer and Blumer.
History
19th-century surname dictionaries place Bloomer among industrial occupational names from northern England, especially areas with early ironworking. The name appears in old parish-register material alongside other furnace- and woodland-industry surnames. It is less common than some other occupational names and has been preserved in a few spelling variants.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Bardsley links the name with the old ironworking world of the bloomery, where ore was smelted into workable iron blooms.
From the historical record
“primitive period when iron ore was smelted in the woods, whose trees supplied the fuel ; see Bloomer and Collier. Instances from the Fumess church registers are need- less ; they abound on every page. ■ 545' BapL— JohnAsbonier: S(.Mu7'«,”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances