Tennessee family with 19 children

kinderfest

A couple of weeks ago, Gil and Kelly Bates of Lake City, Tennessee — and also of the reality TV show United Bates of America — welcomed their 19th child.

Here are the names and ages of all 19:

  1. Zachary Gilvin, called “Zach,” 23
  2. Michaella Christian, called “Michael,” 22
    • Her name is pronounced “like the male version [of] Michael with [an] “uh” sound on the end.”
  3. Erin Elise, 20
  4. William Lawson, called “Lawson,” 19
  5. Kenneth Nathaniel, called “Nathan,” 18
  6. Alyssa Joy, 17
  7. Tori Layne, 16
  8. Trace Whitfield, 15
  9. Carlin Brianne, 13
  10. Josie Kellyn, 12
  11. Katie Grace, 11
  12. Jackson Ezekiel, 9
  13. Warden Justice, 8
  14. Isaiah Courage, 7
  15. Addallee Hope, 5
    • “The double letters in her name remind us that God gave her a second chance in life when she was born with complications that caused her breathing and her heart to stop.”
  16. Ellie Bridget, 4
  17. Callie-Anna Rose, 2
  18. Judson Wyatt, 1
  19. Jeb Colton, newborn

Have any favorites?

P.S. They also have a dog named Johnny and a cat named Kitty.

Sources: Gil and Kelly Bates Welcome Baby No. 19, America’s largest family, the Bates, on miracle 19th child who survived after failing to breathe on his own at birth, About Our Family – The Bates Family, Update on Michael – The Bates Family

4 thoughts on “Tennessee family with 19 children

  1. Hmm, interesting! Usually, I associate larger families with more old-fashioned baby names… Though I suppose the Duggars did have some interesting ones (Jinger, anyone?).

    None of them are *quite* my style, but I really like Trace. It’s not something I would usually pick, but it’s interesting and I’ve never heard it before.

  2. I *love* Carlin. I thought it would make a nice name, but had never heard of anyone using it. I also love that these folks haven’t “themed” their kids names.

  3. @ARC – I also appreciate it when parents don’t use an obvious theme. I mean, nothing wrong with themed baby names, but…I do think overt, simple themes (e.g., names that are alphabetical, names that start with the same letter, names that rhyme) can come across as a bit silly sometimes. Especially when there are lots of kids.

  4. Tori and Trace are my favorites. I’ve long liked Trace/Tracy on a boy. I wonder about the story behind Addallee, since it’s so different from the rest.

    There are a lot of -in/-an names and ends in -ee names.

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