Popular baby names in Tennessee, 1959

The most popular baby names in Tennessee in 1959 were Mary for girls (976 babies) and James for boys (2,023). James ranked #3 nationally for boys. Social Security records list 76,449 babies born in Tennessee in 1959 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in Tennessee in 1959

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

Girls

Bettye: 20 babies, 8.6× the national rate
Robbie: 45 babies, 5.8× the national rate
Reba: 36 babies, 5.7× the national rate
Teressa: 20 babies, 5.2× the national rate
Mitzi: 42 babies, 5.1× the national rate
Angelia: 37 babies, 4.7× the national rate
Frankie: 27 babies, 4.6× the national rate
Freda: 37 babies, 4.5× the national rate
Shelia: 173 babies, 4.2× the national rate
Leigh: 51 babies, 4.2× the national rate

Boys

Stevie: 50 babies, 6× the national rate
Jackie: 123 babies, 4.5× the national rate
Rickey: 283 babies, 4.4× the national rate
Donnie: 134 babies, 4.4× the national rate
Mickey: 49 babies, 3.7× the national rate
Timmy: 105 babies, 3.6× the national rate
Doyle: 29 babies, 3.5× the national rate
Billy: 404 babies, 3.4× the national rate
Rickie: 47 babies, 3.4× the national rate
Ricky: 810 babies, 3.3× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in Tennessee, 1959

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1958	US rank
1	Mary	976	–	1
2	Donna	971	↑6	5
3	Teresa	816	↑1	24
4	Linda	747	↓1	3
5	Pamela	729	↑2	12
6	Patricia	727	↓1	6
7	Deborah	709	↓5	9
8	Brenda	682	↑1	16
9	Cynthia	631	↑5	8
10	Debra	627	↑1	7
11	Kathy	624	↓5	15
12	Lisa	622	↑5	10
13	Sandra	598	–	13
14	Karen	574	↓4	4
15	Sharon	527	–	17
16	Debbie	526	–	20
17	Susan	517	↓5	2
18	Tammy	478	↑20	31
19	Barbara	427	↓1	11
20	Carolyn	342	↑1	42
21	Elizabeth	325	↑3	21
22	Sheila	322	↑11	52
23	Cheryl	319	↓4	18
24	Vickie	317	↑2	90
25	Connie	309	↑10	48
26	Janice	309	↓3	37
27	Judy	308	↓7	41
28	Nancy	305	↓6	14
29	Janet	299	↓2	28
30	Kimberly	295	↑19	33
31	Carol	293	↑1	22
32	Sherry	290	↓7	58
33	Cindy	289	↑8	25
34	Wanda	289	↓6	65
35	Betty	284	↓4	59
36	Shirley	277	↑1	61
37	Rebecca	265	↓7	38
38	Beverly	257	↓4	55
39	Cathy	249	↓10	39
40	Angela	245	↑6	68
41	Joyce	231	↓2	50
42	Rhonda	230	↓6	45
43	Robin	208	↑7	32
44	Rita	203	↑3	98
45	Tina	203	new	53
46	Margaret	194	↓2	36
47	Phyllis	193	↓2	>100
48	Peggy	192	↓6	57
49	Anita	189	↓6	87
50	Martha	186	↓10	72

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1958	US rank
1	James	2,023	–	3
2	David	1,523	↑1	2
3	Michael	1,489	↓1	1
4	William	1,273	–	7
5	Robert	1,143	–	5
6	John	1,138	–	4
7	Charles	927	–	11
8	Mark	819	↑1	6
9	Ricky	810	↓1	34
10	Timothy	694	↑2	12
11	Terry	686	–	33
12	Richard	622	↓2	8
13	Kenneth	597	↑3	15
14	Larry	583	↓1	25
15	Thomas	583	↑2	9
16	Gary	549	↓1	20
17	Jerry	534	↓3	36
18	Steven	454	↑4	10
19	Jeffrey	449	↑9	16
20	Ronald	413	↓2	21
21	Donald	411	↓2	19
22	Billy	404	↑3	65
23	Gregory	392	↑1	23
24	Danny	388	↓3	48
25	Randy	377	↓5	31
26	Anthony	369	↓3	26
27	Johnny	348	↓1	64
28	Jimmy	343	↑5	69
29	Bobby	336	↓2	71
30	Tony	327	↑4	53
31	Joseph	314	↑4	13
32	Paul	312	↓1	17
33	Steve	309	↑6	41
34	Dennis	304	↓5	29
35	Rickey	283	↑1	>100
36	George	271	↓6	32
37	Jeffery	263	↑7	55
38	Roger	251	↑2	47
39	Ronnie	248	↓7	77
40	Stephen	248	↓3	28
41	Mike	239	↓3	37
42	Joe	230	↓1	57
43	Randall	230	↓1	59
44	Barry	213	new	73
45	Tommy	213	–	>100
46	Edward	211	↓3	27
47	Phillip	204	↑3	74
48	Keith	200	new	39
49	Douglas	189	new	30
50	Eddie	188	↓4	>100

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