I'm not sure I have a favorite name among my ancestors. There are certainly common ones that are passed down through many generations. I must have a dozen Williams...maybe more. And, Elizabeth and Maria appear numerous times.
The name that popped into my head as memorable and unusual is Matilda Fleet Hinton Percival Goodridge. No, those were not married names. Fleet, Hinton and Percival are middle names. It is said Matilda was named after women present at her birth. She is not my direct ancestor, but instead was the oldest sister of my great-great grandmother, Louisa Jane Goodridge (1842-1908). Hinton was the maiden name of Matilda and Louisa Jane's paternal grandmother, Catherine Martin Hinton who married William Goodridge (1769-1850). Matilda married a Samuel Harrison. They share a headstone which reads, in part, "his wife Matilda F. H. P."
The second daughter born in the family was Veranda Hedges Goodridge. It seems likely an aunt may have been present at her birth.Veranda's father, William Goodridge (1800-1859) had a sister, Veranda Goodridge, who married a man named Hedges. It seems naming children "back in the day" was as tricky as it is today!
Other siblings of Matilda, Louisa Jane, and Veranda, were William Arnold (maiden name of his mother), John Ellis (killed in the Civil War), Marelda S., James Thomas, Sylvanus Marion (went by "Uncle Bob"....what???), and Clara Ann.
My favorites? Veranda and Marelda.
