What's In A Name?

Recently, a newspaper article was located that referenced the estate of my GG Grandfather, Alfred Burnett.¹ This newspaper article was a legal notice in which his eldest son Sherrod V. Burnett petitioned to be appointed administrator of Alfred Burnett’s estate. The newspaper article shows his name to be Alfret A. Burnett. To my knowledge, this is the only known reference to Alfred Burnett’s middle initial. I am confident the Alfret is a misspelling of Alfred; however the “A” as middle name makes sense when you look at his grandchildren’s names.

Alfred Burnett’s eldest son, Sherrod named his first born son Alfred Alexander Burnett.

Alfred Burnett’s daughter, Dorinda and her husband John Morrogh named their second born son Alfred Alexander Morrogh.

Naming the firstborn son after his paternal grandfather and second born son after the maternal grandfather was a common American naming convention in the 1800’s. The naming pattern is often referred to as the “Old Jones Naming Pattern”. ² An example of this is John and Dorinda Morrogh named their first born son after John’s father, John Francis Morrogh, and the second son after Dorinda’s father, Alfred Alexander Burnett.

Although we have not uncovered any conclusive evidence that my GG Grandfather, Alfred A. Burnett’s middle name was indeed Alexander; I am of the opinion it was Alexander and the name Alexander could have significance in our search for Alfred’s parents.

Lake Charles Echo, 19-Aug-1869

1 “Estate of Alfret A. Burnett”, Lake Charles Echo Newspaper, 19-Aug-1869, Page 2., from microfilm at Southwest Louisiana Genealogical and Historical Library.

2 “Naming Traditions in the United States”, http://wiki.name.com/en/Naming_Traditions_In_The_United_States accessed 09-Sep-14.