I took a trip through my family tree...

…and this is what I found. :slight_smile: Enjoy!


WITH [name]HISTORY[/name]

(these were names I could trace back to “important” family members)

[name]Major[/name] (The family patriarch who fought in the Revolutionary War)

[name]Sophronia[/name] [name]Magnolia[/name] (daughter of [name]Major[/name], mother of Tellie, [name]Ressie[/name], [name]Fannie[/name], Lebbie, and [name]Mannie[/name] [name]Maybelle[/name])

[name]Marmaduke[/name] [name]John[/name] (Civil War soldier, wounded so badly in the battle of Maven [name]Hill[/name] that he had to leave the army for thirteen months before returning at the end of the war)

[name]Deveraux[/name] (Civil War soldier, died of small pox in [name]Virginia[/name], 1863. Brother of [name]Marmaduke[/name])

[name]Judd[/name] and [name]Obadiah[/name] (“the fighting preachers” - Brothers and preachers who fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War and apparently led a captured Union soldier to [name]Christ[/name] after the battle at Bull Run)

[name]Loretta[/name] and [name]Josephine[/name] Wilkins (a mother([name]Loretta[/name])/daughter ([name]Josephine[/name]) singing group who became famous in the NC/VA area for entertaining the soldiers…definitely the “black sheep” of the family)

Snowden and [name]Maude[/name] (twins) - The daughters of [name]Josephine[/name] and the granddaughters of [name]Loretta[/name]. [name]Maude[/name], a circus performer and dancer, was last seen boarding a ship bound for the Caribbean with her French lover.

[name]Artelia[/name] [name]Frances[/name] [name]Jane[/name] (The daughter of Snowden. She was later married to lifelong friend [name]Calvin[/name] Hawkins ____ by her stepbrother, [name]Hezekiah[/name] [name]Terry[/name]. My great-great-great-grandmother)

[name]Vivian[/name] [name]Roberta[/name] (My great-aunt. Fell into the fire at the age of 3 and was burned beyond recovery. She died three days later.)

[name]VIRTUE[/name] NAMES

Hasten, [name]Charity[/name], Loyalty, [name]Verity[/name], [name]Remember[/name]*, [name]Worth[/name], [name]Mercy[/name], Thankful, [name]Prudence[/name]

*Note: [name]Remember[/name] was born at the end of the Great Depression. She also had a brother named Slim [name]Hope[/name], who was born during the Depression (see “Honorable Mentions: [name]Male[/name]”)

FAMOUS NAMES

[name]George[/name] [name]Washington[/name] (x4), [name]Andrew[/name] [name]Jackson[/name] (x2), [name]Woodrow[/name] [name]Wilson[/name], [name]David[/name] [name]Livingston[/name], [name]Marie[/name] [name]Antoinette[/name] and [name]King[/name] [name]David[/name] (twins), [name]Artemus[/name], [name]Cleopatra[/name], [name]Bathsheba[/name], [name]Benjamin[/name] [name]Franklin[/name]

WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?

[name]Green[/name], Spright, Gattis, Bizzle, Beetsie (given because of her love of beets as a baby), Bidda Scoggins, Rozilla

THE BELLES

(apparently all the -belle variations were as popular in the 1880s-1900s as they are today)

Zenora [name]Belle[/name]/[name]Eliza[/name] [name]Belle[/name]/[name]Roberta[/name] [name]Belle[/name]/[name]Fanny[/name] [name]Belle[/name] (real name [name]Frances[/name] [name]Isabella[/name])/[name]Alberta[/name] [name]Belle[/name]/[name]Mozella[/name] [name]Belle[/name]
[name]Isabelle[/name] [name]Irene[/name]/[name]Isabel[/name] [name]Jo[/name]/[name]Isobel[/name] [name]Nancy[/name]
[name]Cornelia[/name] [name]Isabella[/name] (x2)

TWINS

[name]Alonzo[/name] and Alonzolette
[name]Artelia[/name] Catheron and [name]Parthena[/name] [name]Jane[/name]
[name]Florence[/name] [name]Virginia[/name] and [name]Eleanora[/name] [name]Virginia[/name]
[name]Marie[/name] [name]Antoinette[/name] and [name]King[/name] [name]David[/name] (I’m serious)
[name]Viola[/name] [name]Lillian[/name] [name]Alison[/name] and [name]Lola[/name] [name]Mae[/name] [name]Gwynn[/name]
[name]Lottie[/name] [name]Mae[/name] and [name]Vera[/name] [name]Mae[/name]
[name]Cornelia[/name] [name]Frances[/name] and [name]Cornelia[/name] [name]Jane[/name] (one went by “[name]Connie[/name]” and the other “[name]Nellie[/name]”)
[name]Ebenezer[/name] [name]Bartlett[/name] and [name]Eula[/name] [name]Beatrice[/name]
[name]Josephine[/name] and [name]Pello[/name] ([name]Pello[/name] later married a girl named Coma [name]Luann[/name])

BEST OF THE GIRLS

[name]Josephine[/name]
[name]Mabel[/name]
[name]India[/name]
[name]Clara[/name]
[name]Susannah[/name]
[name]Beatrice[/name]
[name]Rosemary[/name]
[name]Emeline[/name]
[name]Margaret[/name]
[name]Mary[/name]
[name]Ruby[/name]
[name]Pearl[/name]
[name]Vivian[/name]
[name]Sadie[/name]
Letitita “[name]Lettie[/name]”
[name]Nora[/name]/[name]Norah[/name]
[name]Eleanor[/name]/[name]Eleanora[/name]
[name]Nell[/name] /[name]Nellie[/name]
[name]Florence[/name]/[name]Flora[/name]
[name]Catherine[/name]
[name]Abigail[/name]
[name]Magnolia[/name]
[name]Cornelia[/name]

BEST OF THE BOYS

[name]Charles[/name] (the most widespread name in our family, used at least 25 times)
[name]Henry[/name]
[name]Moses[/name]
[name]Alonzo[/name]
[name]John[/name]
[name]Ephraim[/name]
[name]Oliver[/name]
[name]Nathaniel[/name]
[name]Jasper[/name]
[name]William[/name]
[name]Franklin[/name]

HONORABLE MENTIONS: FEMALE

[name]Euphemia[/name] (mother of [name]Sophronia[/name] [name]Magnolia[/name])
[name]Nora[/name] [name]Ell[/name]
[name]Ruby[/name] [name]Pearl[/name] (died at the age of 6, the daughter of [name]Nora[/name] [name]Ell[/name])
[name]Flora[/name] (married [name]Leon[/name] Flowers at the age of 17 (!), becoming [name]Flora[/name] Flowers)
[name]Henrietta[/name]
[name]Pansy[/name] [name]June[/name]
[name]Lillian[/name] [name]Helen[/name] [name]Delight[/name]
[name]Caroline[/name] [name]Alice[/name]
[name]Sadie[/name] [name]Maude[/name] (my great-grandmother)
Lutilda [name]Clementine[/name] (she later had 18 children)
[name]Magnolia[/name] [name]Jane[/name]
[name]Lula[/name] (x18)
[name]Susannah[/name] [name]Claire[/name] (so sweet)/[name]Susannah[/name] [name]Verity[/name]
[name]Clara[/name] [name]Iris[/name]
[name]Stella[/name] [name]Ruth[/name]/[name]Stella[/name] [name]Jane[/name]
[name]Dorothy[/name] [name]Louise[/name]
[name]Ophelia[/name] Casnora/[name]Ophelia[/name] [name]Edna[/name]/[name]Ophelia[/name] [name]Elsie[/name]
Zilphy [name]Ann[/name]
[name]Posey[/name] Astor
Hazeltine (x7 times, mostly as a middle name)
[name]Narcissus[/name] [name]Jane[/name] (for some reason I love this combo)
Nicey [name]Painter[/name] ([name]Painter[/name] later showed up as a middle name three times)
Xenie [name]Violet[/name]
Clarky [name]Jane[/name] (love it )

HONORABLE MENTIONS: [name]MALE[/name]

[name]Noel[/name] (all male)
[name]Charles[/name] (x 25)
[name]Lorenzo[/name] (nn Ranza)
[name]Jesse[/name] Theopphilus
[name]Oliver[/name]
[name]Rocky[/name] [name]Monroe[/name] (a rock star born in the 1920s!)
Slim [name]Hope[/name] (male, born during the Great Depression. Brother of [name]Remember[/name])
[name]Commodore[/name] [name]Dewey[/name] (his father was a [name]Commodore[/name] in the navy)
[name]Percival[/name] [name]James[/name] [name]Louis[/name] [name]Maximus[/name] (”[name]Percy[/name]”, father of [name]Commodore[/name] [name]Dewey[/name])
[name]Fletcher[/name] [name]Holden[/name] [name]Thaddeus[/name]
[name]Beauregard[/name] [name]Patrick[/name] (love love love)
[name]Edgar[/name] [name]Knox[/name] (this combo pops up twice, but the name [name]Knox[/name] comes up at least nine times)
[name]Abraham[/name] Venable (x5)
[name]Dewey[/name] [name]Lane[/name] (born on a “dewey country lane” early one morning)
[name]Nathaniel[/name] Wise
[name]Weldon[/name] [name]Jasper[/name]
[name]Oscar[/name] Fitzalot (according to the notes, he threw a lot of fits as a child, hence his middle name)
Cleophus

Wow, entertaining names! Much more interesting than my family tree. The most interesting from my tree:

Married couple [name]Chris[/name] and [name]Christina[/name] Christianson.
First names:
[name]Ingeborg[/name]
Cattager
[name]Flora[/name]
[name]Eldora[/name] - my grandmother
[name]Alma[/name]

Catheron - I’ve never seen this spelling before, and [name]Catherine[/name] has more familiar variant spellings than any other name I can think of.

[name]Painter[/name] - I thought this was ultra-modern, like [name]Sailor[/name]. Apparently not.

Snowden - Oh, I can see this coming back, and people will think it’s entirely new.

[name]Just[/name] one question: [name]How[/name] many relatives in total did you go through?

I easily went through +2,000 plus names during this search (according to our geneology and family bibles, my family settled in Massachusetts in the early 1630s, so I had a lot of history to dig through).

I’m very fortunate to have the resources avalible to learn more about my family in such an intimate way. It sounds silly, but I feel so much closer to them, even though they’ve been dead (in some cases) for hundreds of years.

PS - An interesting side note here…but remember how [name]Savannah[/name] was a daring choice in the 1980s and 90s? Well, through this search I discovered a [name]Savannah[/name] [name]Jane[/name] who was born in the 1780s – talk about being ahead of your time!