Popular baby names of 1896

In 1896, the most popular baby names in the United States were Mary for girls (13,811 babies) and John for boys (8,138). Social Security records show 357,483 babies with a name given to at least five children of the same sex that year, sharing 1,825 girls' names and 1,266 boys' names.

1896 at a glance

The top 10 girls' names went to 20.3% of girls recorded.
The top 10 boys' names went to 35.2% of boys recorded.
New in the girls' top 100: Lucille, Leona, Hilda.
New in the boys' top 100: Milton, Isaac.

Top 100 girls' and boys' names, 1896

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1895
1	Mary	13,811	–
2	Anna	5,860	–
3	Helen	4,392	–
4	Margaret	4,050	–
5	Ruth	3,905	↑1
6	Ethel	3,502	↑2
7	Elizabeth	3,471	↓2
8	Florence	3,323	↓1
9	Marie	3,087	–
10	Emma	2,872	–
11	Lillian	2,702	↑5
12	Alice	2,651	↑5
13	Edna	2,604	↑1
14	Clara	2,582	↓2
15	Bertha	2,565	↓4
16	Minnie	2,530	↓3
17	Grace	2,485	↑1
18	Bessie	2,435	↓3
19	Annie	2,358	–
20	Rose	2,341	↑1
21	Mabel	2,283	↓1
22	Hazel	2,226	–
23	Gertrude	2,221	↑1
24	Ida	2,159	↓1
25	Pearl	2,101	↑1
26	Martha	2,022	↓1
27	Esther	1,964	↑4
28	Frances	1,964	↑1
29	Edith	1,932	↓2
30	Myrtle	1,928	↓2
31	Elsie	1,878	↑1
32	Eva	1,779	↑2
33	Gladys	1,757	↑8
34	Nellie	1,696	↓4
35	Sarah	1,691	↓2
36	Ella	1,683	↓1
37	Laura	1,665	↓1
38	Agnes	1,654	↑2
39	Mildred	1,620	–
40	Catherine	1,594	↓2
41	Irene	1,593	↑2
42	Louise	1,531	↓5
43	Lillie	1,483	↑1
44	Julia	1,407	↑1
45	Carrie	1,388	↓3
46	Dorothy	1,366	↑11
47	Hattie	1,320	↓1
48	Lena	1,318	↑2
49	Mattie	1,288	↑2
50	Josephine	1,256	↓3
51	Alma	1,243	↑4
52	Cora	1,204	↓3
53	Jennie	1,178	–
54	Blanche	1,150	–
55	Mae	1,148	↓3
56	Maude	1,104	–
57	Jessie	1,103	↓9
58	Mamie	1,081	↑1
59	Lucy	1,074	↑2
60	Stella	1,054	–
61	Katherine	1,047	↑4
62	Viola	1,047	↑1
63	Ada	1,041	↓5
64	Lula	1,012	–
65	Fannie	1,001	↓3
66	Ruby	994	–
67	Marion	987	↑2
68	Dora	874	–
69	Maggie	871	↓2
70	Beatrice	870	↑3
71	Nora	844	↓1
72	Sadie	827	–
73	Ellen	811	↑2
74	Rosa	808	↓3
75	Pauline	756	↑1
76	Willie	755	↑2
77	Beulah	750	↓3
78	Marguerite	725	↑3
79	Susie	718	↑4
80	Effie	716	↓1
81	Vera	675	↓4
82	May	671	↓2
83	Daisy	661	↑1
84	Evelyn	646	↑3
85	Della	642	↑1
86	Lucille	637	new
87	Nettie	628	↓5
88	Kathryn	625	↑2
89	Virginia	621	↓1
90	Olive	583	↑1
91	Lydia	580	↓6
92	Lottie	574	↑3
93	Georgia	562	↑1
94	Leona	556	new
95	Hilda	549	new
96	Emily	527	↓7
97	Flora	527	↓1
98	Nancy	527	↓5
99	Katie	516	↑1
100	Lizzie	508	↓1

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1895
1	John	8,138	–
2	William	7,747	–
3	James	5,206	–
4	George	4,286	–
5	Charles	3,639	–
6	Joseph	3,051	↑1
7	Frank	2,845	↓1
8	Robert	2,719	–
9	Edward	2,296	↑1
10	Henry	2,183	↓1
11	Harry	2,091	↑1
12	Thomas	2,088	↓1
13	Walter	2,017	–
14	Arthur	1,821	–
15	Albert	1,434	↑1
16	Fred	1,393	↓1
17	Clarence	1,254	–
18	Willie	1,092	–
19	Roy	1,027	–
20	Paul	964	–
21	Earl	892	↑2
22	Louis	871	↓1
23	Harold	862	↑6
24	Raymond	859	↑2
25	Carl	852	↓3
26	Richard	834	↑5
27	Joe	767	↑1
28	David	765	↑4
29	Ernest	764	↓5
30	Ralph	746	–
31	Samuel	734	↓6
32	Charlie	714	↓5
33	Howard	677	–
34	Herbert	635	↑2
35	Jesse	586	–
36	Elmer	576	↓2
37	Andrew	566	–
38	Daniel	561	↑2
39	Francis	551	↑6
40	Jack	539	↑6
41	Oscar	539	↓2
42	Alfred	527	↓4
43	Sam	518	–
44	Will	508	–
45	Eugene	507	↑5
46	Lawrence	499	↓5
47	Leo	497	↓5
48	Lee	455	↓1
49	Herman	427	–
50	Ray	426	↑6
51	Benjamin	416	↓3
52	Peter	402	↑1
53	Michael	399	↓1
54	Claude	398	↑1
55	Floyd	396	↓4
56	Lewis	386	↑2
57	Frederick	381	↓3
58	Clyde	372	↑1
59	Edwin	351	↑1
60	Leonard	350	↑1
61	Martin	343	↑4
62	Tom	339	–
63	Chester	329	↓6
64	Russell	327	↑2
65	Lester	318	↑3
66	Clifford	311	↑6
67	Lloyd	308	↑8
68	Edgar	306	↓4
69	Ben	299	↓6
70	Harvey	292	–
71	Jim	281	–
72	Leroy	278	↑6
73	Anthony	276	↑13
74	Luther	265	↓1
75	Hugh	263	↑5
76	Eddie	262	↑9
77	Guy	262	↓1
78	Stanley	259	↑5
79	Homer	258	↓12
80	Otto	250	↓11
81	Ed	246	↑3
82	Bernard	241	↓5
83	Jacob	241	↓9
84	Theodore	241	↑9
85	Leslie	237	↓4
86	Leon	235	↑1
87	Alexander	232	↑10
88	Archie	230	↑1
89	Jessie	229	↓10
90	Everett	224	↑4
91	Allen	219	↑7
92	Philip	218	–
93	Patrick	214	↓11
94	Donald	211	↑2
95	Horace	204	↓5
96	Victor	201	↑3
97	Cecil	200	↑3
98	Milton	194	new
99	Oliver	194	↓11
100	Isaac	191	new

Every name given in 1896

All 3,091 names Social Security recorded for 1896, with their rank and count. Type to filter.

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