Project Requirements

The STIVERS surname project is open to anyone who has a Stivers ancestor anywhere in their background. Project requirements are as follows:

• Males having the Stivers surname in their paternal line are asked to take the Y-DNA test (mtDNA test if desired). The Family Finder test is highly recommended.
• Males and females who have a Stivers ancestor are asked to take the Family Finder test.

Surname History

The earliest known reference to the Stivers name in the US was in 1683, when Robert Stivers, a blacksmith, was granted lands in Elizabeth Town, New Jersey.

We also have records of several Stivers families who were living during the 1700s:

• Robert Stivers, blacksmith, first recorded in 1698 in Eastchester, NY. He may be the same as Robert of Elizabeth Town. His descendants first settled in Long Island. Some of his descendants use the surname Steves.
• Randal Stivers, weaver, of Middlesex and Sussex Counties, New Jersey; first known record is from 1778 when he was paid for services performed during the Revolution in Sussex County. He and his family later moved to Middlesex County. His descendants spread out westward and northward.
• Samuel Stivers, of Second River, NJ; had descendants but little is known about them.
• William Stivers of New York and Virginia; he possibly came to New York from Germany and he and wife Elizabeth later went to Virginia. Many of his descendants are to be found in Virginia and Kentucky.

No records have yet been found about the origin of these families. One story has it that several brothers came to Long Island from Holland in 1645; another that a Stivers came to Chester, Pennsylvania from Holland in 1714.