Names That Peaked In 1894

These names hit their all-time highest U.S. ranking in 1894 and have never ranked as high since — the sound of that moment, frozen in the data. (The #1 names that year were Mary and John — reigning champions usually peak in a different year than they reign.)

Peaked in 1893 Peaked in 1895 Full 1894 top 100 The 1890s as a whole

Name & meaning	Babies 2025 · rank	5-year rank movement	Peak year
Carl	187#1,134	Down 321 rank positions in five years	1956
Earl	63#2,236	Down 161 rank positions in five years	1921
Edith	595#499	Down 27 rank positions in five years	1918
Myrtle	8#11,607	new	1918
Lela	76#2,374	Down 560 rank positions in five years	1921
Sherman	19#5,168	Down 1,836 rank positions in five years	1950
Iva	117#1,740	Up 125 rank positions in five years	1918
Nola	331#822	Down 269 rank positions in five years	2020
Isiah	120#1,480	Down 123 rank positions in five years	2001
Petra	161#1,372	Down 94 rank positions in five years	1927
Earle	—Unranked	—	1918
Vesta	—Unranked	—	1918
Ima	7#12,399	Up 1,709 rank positions in five years	1927
Valentine	89#1,807	Up 736 rank positions in five years	1918
Lacy	—Unranked	—	1924
Golda	65#2,665	Up 638 rank positions in five years	1915
Hortense	—Unranked	—	1919
Dorsey	—Unranked	—	1916
Eldridge	6#11,037	Down 43 rank positions in five years	1924
Alvie	5#12,104	Down 4,584 rank positions in five years	1921
Levy	96#1,705	Up 6 rank positions in five years	2021
Viva	22#5,710	Up 6,365 rank positions in five years	1921
Urban	18#5,372	Down 1,111 rank positions in five years	1924
Alston	16#5,615	Down 2,634 rank positions in five years	2017
Genoveva	7#12,335	Down 3,761 rank positions in five years	1925
Vester	—Unranked	—	1922
Thora	20#6,092	Down 2,698 rank positions in five years	1916
Chesley	11#7,279	Down 579 rank positions in five years	1923
Edyth	5#15,545	Down 5,797 rank positions in five years	1918
Nat	—Unranked	—	1915
Verner	—Unranked	—	1917
Etha	—Unranked	—	1920
Algie	—Unranked	—	1919
Clemon	—Unranked	—	1919
Henretta	—Unranked	—	1916
Essie	—Unranked	—	1919
Hervey	—Unranked	—	1917
Vinton	—Unranked	—	1916
Hebert	—Unranked	—	1928
Clemmie	—Unranked	—	1930
Elfreda	—Unranked	—	1917
Gurney	—Unranked	—	1928
Ovid	—Unranked	—	1915
Bessie	—Unranked	—	1928
Audley	—Unranked	—	1924
Murl	—Unranked	—	1918
Helma	—Unranked	—	1916
Seward	—Unranked	—	1915

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How this list is built

A name “peaked” in 1894 when that year holds its best-ever position in the national rankings — rank, not raw count, because raw counts track how many babies were born and would pile every “peak” into the boom years. To qualify, a name must have reached the top 1,000 at its height and have at least 500 all-time applications. Lists are ordered by that peak rank.

Ranks come from U.S. births, counted separately for girls and boys. “Unranked” today means fewer than 5 applications in the latest year — uncommon, never invalid.