Babies named for “Old Rough and Ready”

U.S. President Zachary Taylor (1784-1850)
Zachary Taylor

Gen. Zachary Taylor acquired the nickname “Old Rough and Ready” during the Second Seminole War (1835-1842) in Florida. He garnered even more national attention a few years later, during the Mexican-American War (1846-1848).

He rode his popularity all the way to the White House, though he was only in office for sixteen months (March 1849 to July 1850) before unexpectedly dying of a gastrointestinal illness on July 9th.

According to the 1850 U.S. Census, many baby boys were named Zachary Taylor (and, less often, Zachariah Taylor) in the late 1840s. Even more interesting, though, is the fact that about a dozen boys were listed as “Rough & Ready” (or some variation thereof):

  • Rough & Ready Hickey, a 3-year-old in Alabama.
  • Rough & Ready Reece, a newborn in Tennessee.
  • Rough & Ready Saunders, a 3-year-old in Virginia.
  • Rough & Ready Watson, a 2-year-old in Mississippi.
  • Rough & Ready Sansing, a 3-year-old in Mississippi
  • Rough & Ready Payne, a 1-year-old in Louisiana.
  • Rough & Ready Shutes, a 2-year-old in Wisconsin.
  • Rough & Ready Morton, a newborn in Tennessee.
  • Rough & Ready Justice, a 1-year-old in Texas.
  • Rough & Reddy Calloway, a 1-year-old in Georgia.
  • Rough & Readdy Worthington, a 5-year-old in Maryland.

In some cases, “Rough & Ready” was just a nickname for Zachary/Zachariah Taylor. In other cases, though, “Rough and Ready” really was the name — though, over time, “Rough &” often morphed into “Ruffin.”

Sources:

The 15 children of John Tyler

10th U.S. President John Tyler (1790-1862)
John Tyler: 10th president, 15 children

John Tyler became the unexpected 10th president of the United States in 1841, upon the sudden death of William Henry Harrison.

He wasn’t a particularly impressive commander-in-chief, but he was notable for at least one thing: having more legitimate children than any other U.S. president.

He married this first wife, Letitia Christian, in 1813. They had eight children:

  • Mary (b. 1815)
  • Robert (b. 1816)
  • John (b. 1819)
  • Letitia (b. 1821)
  • Elizabeth (b. 1823)
  • Anne Contesse (1825-1825) – John Tyler’s paternal grandmother’s maiden name was Contesse.
  • Alice (b. 1827)
  • Tazewell, called “Taz” (b. 1830) – He “was named by the older children after the Tyler family’s close friend, Littleton W. Tazewell.”

Letitia had a stroke in 1839, and died in 1842.

John married his second wife, Julia Gardiner, in 1844. They had seven more children:

  • David (b. 1846)
  • John (b. 1848)
  • Julia (b. 1849)
  • Lachlan (b. 1851) – Julia’s mother’s maiden name was McLachlan.
  • Lyon (b. 1853) – Probably named in honor of Julia’s ancestor Lion Gardiner.
  • Robert Fitzwalter, called “Fitz” (b. 1856) – He was “[n]amed Robert Fitzwalter in honor of Julia Tyler’s ancestor of thirteenth-century England.” (I found several contenders, but my guess is this guy.)
  • Pearl (b. 1860) – She “was originally to be named Margaret, but she was christened Pearl instead.”

The grand total? 15.

Which of the Tyler kids’ names do you like best?

Sources:

Where did the baby name Myzel come from in 2003?

myzel, television, baby name, 2000s

The rare name Myzel debuted impressively in the U.S. baby name data in 2003:

  • 2005: unlisted
  • 2004: 5 baby boys named Myzel
  • 2003: 20 baby boys named Myzel [debut]
  • 2002: unlisted
  • 2001: unlisted

Where did it come from?

A TV commercial.

Specifically, one of the four 2003 Nike shoe commercials that were built around the tagline, “There’s more fast out there.”

Three of the commercials featured professional athletes, but the fourth featured 14-year-old actor Myzel Robinson confidently rattling off all the people/things he’d race, and beat:

I’ll race my coach. I’ll race my dog. I’ll race any dog. I’ll race your dog. Pick the animal, I’ll race it and beat it. I’ll race you, your cousin, your auntie, your mom, your dad, your nephew, your nieces, whoever. You name somebody, and I’ll race ’em. I’ll race an all-American, all-state, world-class athlete. Point him out to me. I’ll race Lance Armstrong on his bike — 100 meters. 200 meters. Anybody. Anywhere. Anytime. Put ’em next to me, you say ‘go,’ I’ll race ’em. And I’ll beat ’em.”

His full name is on the screen for the first few seconds of the commercial:

Do you like the name Myzel?

Sources:

Popular baby names in Tasmania, 2020

According to the Tasmanian Government, the most popular baby names in Australia’s island state last year were Willow and Charlie.

Here are Tasmania’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names of 2020:

Girl Names

  1. Willow
  2. Grace
  3. Ruby
  4. Lucy
  5. Matilda
  6. Ava
  7. Ivy
  8. Hazel
  9. Charlotte
  10. Isla

Boy Names

  1. Charlie
  2. Oliver
  3. Noah
  4. Henry
  5. Elijah
  6. Theodore
  7. Jack
  8. Archie
  9. Mason
  10. Arlo

In the girls’ top 10, Grace, Matilda, and Hazel replaced Amelia, Evie, and Harper.

In the boys’ top 10, Elijah, Mason, and Arlo replaced George, Leo, and Harrison.

In 2019, the top two names were Willow and Oliver.

Source: Tasmanian top baby names – Tasmanian Government