Popular baby names in Massachusetts, 1950

The most popular baby names in Massachusetts in 1950 were Linda for girls (2,109 babies) and Robert for boys (3,212). Robert ranked #2 nationally for boys. Social Security records list 91,636 babies born in Massachusetts in 1950 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in Massachusetts in 1950

Names given at least 15 times in Massachusetts that year and at least twice as common as in the US as a whole.

Girls

Claire: 129 babies, 4.8× the national rate
Maryellen: 32 babies, 4.8× the national rate
Maureen: 490 babies, 4.7× the national rate
Meredith: 30 babies, 3.8× the national rate
Lesley: 25 babies, 3.8× the national rate
Noreen: 47 babies, 3.3× the national rate
Faith: 39 babies, 3.3× the national rate
Heather: 26 babies, 3.3× the national rate
Joanne: 453 babies, 3.2× the national rate
Anne: 364 babies, 3.2× the national rate

Boys

Gerard: 142 babies, 4.6× the national rate
Denis: 59 babies, 4.6× the national rate
Kevin: 547 babies, 4.3× the national rate
Francis: 466 babies, 4.3× the national rate
Bradford: 59 babies, 3.9× the national rate
Peter: 849 babies, 3.8× the national rate
Dana: 115 babies, 3.6× the national rate
Edmund: 46 babies, 3.1× the national rate
Paul: 1,729 babies, 3× the national rate
Brian: 334 babies, 2.8× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in Massachusetts, 1950

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1949	US rank
1	Linda	2,109	–	1
2	Mary	1,711	–	2
3	Susan	1,660	–	5
4	Patricia	1,493	–	3
5	Kathleen	1,373	–	10
6	Nancy	1,156	–	6
7	Donna	1,097	–	13
8	Barbara	1,020	–	4
9	Deborah	947	↑5	7
10	Carol	922	↓1	9
11	Diane	840	↓1	16
12	Karen	782	↑1	12
13	Judith	700	↓1	21
14	Christine	684	↑2	28
15	Sandra	680	↓4	8
16	Elizabeth	641	↓1	24
17	Janet	621	↑1	18
18	Margaret	557	↓1	15
19	Janice	545	↑1	22
20	Gail	502	↑6	42
21	Ann	493	–	45
22	Maureen	490	↓3	89
23	Sharon	482	↓1	11
24	Cynthia	477	↑1	23
25	Jane	454	↓2	39
26	Joanne	453	↓2	67
27	Joan	449	↑4	40
28	Jean	427	↑1	48
29	Cheryl	419	↑3	29
30	Elaine	418	↓3	60
31	Pamela	401	↓3	17
32	Paula	393	↓2	54
33	Catherine	390	↑1	34
34	Ellen	377	↑2	66
35	Anne	364	–	84
36	Joyce	354	↓3	27
37	Marie	317	–	72
38	Marilyn	293	–	37
39	Jeanne	281	↑1	95
40	Denise	279	new	82
41	Beverly	269	↓2	31
42	Eileen	252	↑2	91
43	Dorothy	246	↓2	35
44	Virginia	242	↓2	43
45	Martha	240	↑2	32
46	Ruth	224	new	49
47	Sheila	216	new	70
48	Suzanne	215	↓5	71
49	Marcia	214	new	77
50	Brenda	209	new	14

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1949	US rank
1	Robert	3,212	–	2
2	John	3,077	–	3
3	Richard	2,251	–	7
4	James	2,213	–	1
5	William	2,089	–	6
6	David	1,927	–	5
7	Michael	1,866	–	4
8	Paul	1,729	–	18
9	Thomas	1,502	–	8
10	Stephen	1,295	–	19
11	Joseph	1,258	–	13
12	Charles	942	↑1	9
13	Edward	928	↓1	22
14	Peter	849	–	37
15	Donald	781	↑2	14
16	Kenneth	755	↑2	15
17	Ronald	732	↓2	12
18	George	674	↓2	20
19	Dennis	666	↑2	17
20	Steven	645	↑2	16
21	Daniel	641	↓2	21
22	Gary	600	↑5	10
23	Mark	577	↓3	23
24	Kevin	547	↑1	73
25	Bruce	540	↓2	26
26	Francis	466	↓2	86
27	Alan	422	↑1	41
28	Wayne	412	↑10	35
29	Raymond	392	↓3	31
30	Lawrence	391	↑1	33
31	Frank	352	↑1	29
32	Philip	347	↓2	53
33	Anthony	343	–	36
34	Arthur	336	↓5	46
35	Brian	334	↑4	79
36	Jeffrey	312	↑1	43
37	Douglas	307	↓3	28
38	Walter	283	↓2	40
39	Gerald	274	↓4	34
40	Roger	255	↑1	27
41	Frederick	233	↓1	75
42	Christopher	229	↑4	72
43	Ralph	226	↑2	52
44	Gregory	222	↓1	25
45	Russell	205	↓1	67
46	Timothy	199	↑2	32
47	Albert	194	↓5	56
48	Barry	179	↓1	74
49	Andrew	165	new	68
50	Glenn	160	new	59

← Massachusetts 1949 Massachusetts: all years · US 1950 Massachusetts 1951 →