Popular baby names in Pennsylvania, 1939

The most popular baby names in Pennsylvania in 1939 were Mary for girls (3,879 babies) and Robert for boys (5,322). Social Security records list 146,168 babies born in Pennsylvania in 1939 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in Pennsylvania in 1939

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

Girls

Maryanne: 40 babies, 3.7× the national rate
Roseann: 48 babies, 3.5× the national rate
Regina: 152 babies, 3.3× the national rate
Ruthann: 40 babies, 3.1× the national rate
Maryann: 238 babies, 2.9× the national rate
Bernadette: 65 babies, 2.8× the national rate
Bernadine: 63 babies, 2.7× the national rate
Rosemarie: 177 babies, 2.5× the national rate
Dolores: 639 babies, 2.4× the national rate
Antoinette: 123 babies, 2.4× the national rate

Boys

Regis: 49 babies, 10.8× the national rate
Clair: 100 babies, 7.2× the national rate
Carmen: 58 babies, 4.3× the national rate
Marlin: 79 babies, 3.2× the national rate
Barry: 274 babies, 3× the national rate
Elwood: 56 babies, 3× the national rate
Francis: 669 babies, 2.7× the national rate
Nicholas: 176 babies, 2.6× the national rate
Dominic: 42 babies, 2.5× the national rate
Harry: 718 babies, 2.3× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in Pennsylvania, 1939

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1938	US rank
1	Mary	3,879	–	1
2	Barbara	2,933	–	2
3	Patricia	2,836	–	3
4	Nancy	1,982	–	7
5	Carol	1,616	↑3	6
6	Joan	1,604	↓1	11
7	Margaret	1,475	–	10
8	Shirley	1,364	↓2	5
9	Dorothy	1,296	–	9
10	Judith	1,281	↑6	8
11	Janet	1,116	↓1	17
12	Betty	997	↓1	4
13	Sandra	995	↑2	13
14	Ruth	968	–	22
15	Elizabeth	935	↓3	18
16	Helen	886	↓3	16
17	Donna	854	–	20
18	Joyce	770	↑5	12
19	Jean	731	↑1	32
20	Anna	669	↓1	43
21	Marie	655	↑1	37
22	Dolores	639	↓4	58
23	Beverly	633	↓2	25
24	Catherine	603	↑3	49
25	Frances	598	–	26
26	Lois	582	↑3	35
27	Virginia	580	↑3	21
28	Joanne	576	↑4	53
29	Doris	573	↓5	29
30	Ann	545	↓4	33
31	Rose	544	↓3	42
32	Elaine	537	↑2	45
33	Phyllis	534	↓2	30
34	Linda	514	new	15
35	Eleanor	503	↑4	63
36	Alice	496	–	31
37	Geraldine	493	↑7	41
38	Marlene	489	↓5	64
39	Janice	487	↓2	24
40	Carolyn	479	↑2	14
41	Carole	476	↓3	47
42	Jane	469	↓2	46
43	Kathleen	468	new	48
44	Marilyn	459	↓9	19
45	Evelyn	417	↑3	40
46	Sally	416	↑3	52
47	Gloria	415	↓2	36
48	Judy	410	new	28
49	Arlene	393	new	69
50	Martha	385	↓9	27

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1938	US rank
1	Robert	5,322	–	1
2	John	5,075	–	3
3	James	3,934	–	2
4	William	3,926	–	4
5	Richard	3,133	–	5
6	Joseph	2,628	–	12
7	Thomas	2,267	↑1	9
8	Charles	2,245	↓1	6
9	Ronald	2,024	↑1	10
10	Donald	1,923	↓1	8
11	David	1,844	↑1	7
12	George	1,687	↓1	11
13	Edward	1,642	–	15
14	Paul	1,216	–	17
15	Kenneth	1,058	–	13
16	Frank	925	–	20
17	Michael	916	↑1	18
18	Raymond	792	↓1	22
19	Harry	718	–	45
20	Larry	706	↑6	14
21	Gerald	703	↓1	19
22	Francis	669	↓1	53
23	Walter	619	–	25
24	Anthony	597	↑1	48
25	Carl	588	↓3	30
26	Harold	549	↑3	23
27	Eugene	526	↓3	37
28	Daniel	507	–	38
29	Albert	506	↓2	41
30	Jack	469	–	26
31	Lawrence	451	↑2	36
32	Arthur	444	–	32
33	Fred	437	↑1	40
34	Gary	436	↑2	21
35	Ralph	424	↓4	35
36	Louis	395	↑3	49
37	Stanley	373	↑4	57
38	Henry	363	↑2	31
39	Wayne	354	↑5	39
40	Norman	344	↑3	44
41	Samuel	341	↓4	63
42	Bernard	339	↓4	76
43	Leonard	339	↓1	54
44	Peter	339	↑5	46
45	Dennis	310	new	34
46	Stephen	307	↑1	65
47	Howard	306	↓12	47
48	Andrew	301	–	84
49	Frederick	301	↓4	71
50	Earl	275	↓4	50

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