The Most Popular Baby Names in Missouri

The year St. Louis Cardinals legend (and former Ladue resident) Stan Musial was born, 96 newborn Missouri babies got the name Stanley. The high-water mark for "Stanleys" in Missouri was 1954, with 226 baby Stanleys born to Show-Me State moms and dads.

That little tidbit comes from our searchable database of Missouri baby names from 1910 to 2011.

How about this: Lester's sports bar is a popular hangout in Ladue along Clayton Road. The restaurant was "born" at that location in 2007. How many other Lesters were born in Missouri in 2007? Well, that would be a big goose egg. Lester hit the height of its popularity in Missouri in 1918, with 148.

Curious about what people were named in Missouri? You can use the tools above to search by name, year or gender to explore questions such as:

• How many Missouri babies got my name the year I was born?
• What was the most popular year for my name in Missouri?
• Any babies of the opposite sex get my name?

The data comes from the Social Security Administration, which released baby name data for all 50 states and the District of Columbia for the same period.

The government excluded names used fewer than five times in a year in order to protect privacy.

The information comes from people who applied for Social Security cards and were born in the United States after 1879. As the SSA notes, "many people born before 1937 never applied for a Social Security card, so their names are not included in our data. For others who did apply, our records may not show the place of birth, and again their names are not included in our data."

So, what did Missouri moms and dads most often dub their babies in 1910, the first year of this database? Well, that would be William and Mary. And 101 years later, in 2011? Happy birthday to Mason and Emma.

(NOTE: Viewing this on a mobile device and can't see the search tools above? Click here instead.)