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Tuesday, February 18, 2014

WHAT WAS YOUR NAME AGAIN?

When a lot of men came West one of the first things they did was change their name. As Philip Ashton Rollins said in his book THE COWBOY, “Many a real name had been bucked from the saddle.” Men of the West recognized this common practice and therefore didn’t question it. If a man stated his name as John Smith it was just that. Sometimes a man only volunteered a first name and if he did it was widely accepted that he didn’t want to be known by any other.

They changed their names for a variety of reasons. If he wanted to disappear and leave no trace, a quick name change made it easy.

Hmmm…I’m wondering how many men had multiple wives under different names? And what about their kids? Lordy, what a mess!


Sometimes a man’s name, especially if he was an immigrant, was difficult to spell and pronounce. People in the West liked to keep things short and to the point. Short names just made things easier and didn’t muddy the water. A man could blend in better.

More often than not, a newcomer to the West was running from the law. A name change helped him hide in plain sight. He might change his name five or six times, adopting a new name for each section of the country.

Or a man simply might not have liked his name. Maybe it was too sissified or something. In my story in the Give Me an Outlaw anthology, my hero’s birth name was Marion Applebaum. He decides that no self-respecting outlaw would be caught dead with that name wrapped around him so he changes it to Johnny Diamond. He thinks that suits him much better and I happen to agree. Johnny Diamond is a much better fit.

Same thing in THE WIDOW’S HEART (the Hearts and Spurs anthology.) My hero changed his name to Cade Coltrain because he was a wanted man on the run.

*side note* John Wayne was sooooo much better than Marion Morrison.

A new name meant freedom and a fresh start. The slate was wiped clean.

A man could be whoever he wanted to be, especially in the vastness of the old West.

I can certainly understand this. My last name of Broday (pronounced as Bro-dee) is a made-up name. When my husband’s paternal grandfather emigrated from Germany during WWI, he changed Broka to Broday so that folks wouldn’t know where he came from. He wanted to protect his wife and kids from the harsh realities of war. He also shortened his first name from Albert to Bert. And the name change worked. They blended in and had a peaceful existence in America.

My husband’s maternal great grandfather also changed his name. He was born in Germany as Johann Louis Freese. Shortly after he arrived in America in the late 1800’s, he became Louis Walter. I never heard the reason behind his name change. I assume it was to be able to assimilate into American culture better.

Names were much easier to change back then. Today it would be near impossible with Social Security numbers, the Internet, and law enforcement capabilities.

These are just two true instances that I know happen to have taken place within the same family. It’s only a drop in the bucket to the thousands of people who changed their identities.


Maybe you have a similar story in your past? If not, tell me what you think of name changes. 

17 comments:

  1. Some years back, I saw the movie Summersby with Richard Here and Jodie Foster. After the Civil War, Gere, a disreputable teacher, takes on the identity of a plantation owner, wins the heart of Summersby's wife and the respect of the town's people--until a lawman comes looking for the real Summersby for murder. His life hinges on whether he defends himself by revealing his real name or maintaining his "borrowed" name which will cost him his life.
    As writers, many of us have pen names for various reasons. I was lucky enough to be named after an ancestor and have kept my real name. Many times while working in the ER, I saw kids with weird and ridiculous names. I often thought, if I had one of those horrible names, I would definitely change it.
    If I lived in the old west when name changes were so common, I have to say it would give me pause. I would want to know who that man really was.
    Very provocative post. I appreciate the favor, too.

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    1. Hi Sarah....Summersby was riveting. So full of emotions. And I felt so badly for Richard Gere who got caught in his own mess after he'd fallen in love with Jodie Foster. Such romance and passion.

      I would NEVER have published under my maiden name of Smith. That sounds like an alias itself. Broday is very difficult to pronounce but it's better than Smith. I've heard every pronunciation possible, even Broadway. For goodness sakes! There is no "W" in my name. Names are such sensitive things. I hate it when I don't know how to pronounce it. I'm so afraid I'll get it wrong.

      But the romantic in me loves the freedom the old West offered to be who you wanted to be. The possibilities were endless. I would definitely have embraced that.

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  2. Name changes also happened when you came through Ellis, they 'Americanized' the name because they couldn't spell or say the original name. It looks like that is what happened to my paternal great grandfathers family. Still working on that one.
    Fascinating post. Doris
    ps loved your stories in both books.

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    1. Thank you, Renaissance Women! I'm glad you like my post, but I'm thrilled you loved my stories. Interesting about the name changes at Ellis Island. I did not know that. What happened with my husband's paternal great grandfather was a personal choice. He wrote a letter to his children and future grandchildren explaining his reason and assuring them it wasn't to hide any illegitimate children of his. That must've been very common also back in those days because of how society looked down their noses at children born out of wedlock. I'm glad people today are more tolerant.

      Good luck with your genealogy pursuits. Mine have hit a brick wall. There are tons and tons of Smiths, Clarks, and Jones. Sheesh! But seeing as how I descended from outlaws and bootleggers I shouldn't be surprised. LOL

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  3. In my husband's family, a descendant changed his name when emigrating to America because of a crime. He took his neighbor's last name. I've always loved researching geneology. What confused me more is that all of the family eventually came to America (from Scotland) and they all took the new last name. Why would they do that? I still feel like I don't know the whole story. :-)

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  4. Hi Kristy.......When people wanted to cover up something in their past back then they made it nigh impossible to trace them. That's strange that ALL of the family took the new last name when they came over. I guess the family bonds were so strong they didn't want to do anything to sever them. I feel for you in your research. I've long despaired of ever tracing my roots. Smiths, Clarks and Joneses. But from what I can gather, my past is not all that glorious. Lots of criminals in my family. My dad had 13 brothers and sisters and only he and one brother were the only ones that never served time in prison.

    Good luck in your research. I hope you find answers to the questions you're asking.

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    1. So many criminals. Well, I would venture to say that it wasn't all violent crimes. Petty theft and accidents probably more prevalent. In my husband's ancestory, the perpetrator had a scuffle with a mine foreman and pushed him down a shaft. Did he deserve it? Was it truly a crime? All I have are the stories my father-in-law tells me. And, like many a clan, the McCaffrey men have a high BS factor. :-)

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  5. Great post Linda! My husband's family had a big rift a couple of generations back and some of them changed the spelling of their last name from Pearson to Pierson. I guess his part of the family were the ones who decided to forevermore be known as Piersons. My mom changed her name, though she kept it a secret. We didn't find out until she was on the brink of death, and I don't know that we still know the full story. She used to say her aunt, Cora, named her. In a way, she did, but not like we thought. Mom was named Wanda Lou when she was born--a fact none of us three girls ever knew until she was near death. The courthouse burned when Mom was a young teenager, and to re-do the birth certificates, a person had to bring someone who had known them and would swear they were who they were. So when Mom and Aunt Cora went to the courthouse, Mom changed her name from Wanda Lou to El Wanda--pretty daring for a young girl from a tiny town to do! I wish we could have talked to her about it--why she did it, etc. But she had Altzheimer's by then. One more name change story--my gr gr gr grandfather was kidnapped by the cavalry from his family and Indian village (along with several others) and he was given to a Presbyterian minister named Walls. Of course, his name was changed to David Walls, so we do not know his Indian name. He was Cherokee or Chickasaw. His story is what I based One Magic Night on--I gave him a happy ending in my story. Talk about a genealogical brick wall... Great post--loved it!
    Cheryl

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    1. Hi Cheryl...........Glad you enjoyed my post. I guess one way of cutting yourself off from family is changing your name. Sounds like that rift was a lasting one. Did you ever find out what it was about? Kinda odd about your mom. But, I guess she did not like Wanda Lou. It shows her spunk that she changed it to what she wanted. Good for her. And I loved your story about your three times grandfather who was an Indian. That kind of thing went on a lot back then. Lots and Lots of stories buried in graveyards.

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  6. I am grumbling right now. why did my comment completely disappear when I hit publish? GRRRRRRR.

    Great post, Linda! I so agree about Marion Applebaum and Marion Morrison both LOL.

    The only thing I can think of that fits is my grandfather coming through Elis Island. His Russian last name, ending in "ov" was changed by the officials to "off." Because that's how it sounds.

    Loved the post, Linda! xo

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    1. Hi Tanya.........Glad you liked my blog. Names are just so fascinating to me. Each one tells a story. I don't think officials should've changed the names of so many immigrants. That was wrong unless the person wanted it changed. I love those old Russian names.

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  7. Ps. Is the picture Duel McCall? I always fantasized getting snowbound with him. Not me, of course, My various heroines LOL.

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    1. Tanya, yep, that's Duel McCall. Thought his picture might wake people up if my blog was too boring. *very big grin* I used to fantasize about him too. My gosh, that man was handsome and tough and quite the stuff dreams are made from. His real name is Alex McArthur and he still gets bit parts now and then. What he needs to do is make another western series. He makes a great cowboy and gunslinger, and outlaw.

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  8. Linda, the name-hopping phenomenon opens so many possibilities to imaginative authors, doesn't it? In real-life, it throws all sorts of monkey wrenches into genealogical research.

    My great-grandmother's common name was completely made-up -- and therefore impossible to trace. She was American Indian; in her day, native blood was considered such a curse that even her children knew nothing about their mother's heritage (except that she was an Indian and they must never, never mention that outside the family). I've always resented the roadblock. I would like to have known something about her people.

    Great post, as always! :-)

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    1. Hi Kathleen.........I'm glad you enjoyed my post. This kind of thing really stirs my imagination and sets my mind whirling in real life and in fiction. We didn't know Broday was a made-up name until someone discovered a letter after Bert Broday passed away. In the letter, he told why he changed it and that it wasn't because of anything criminal. He made his fortune and I'm not sure he would have under the Broka name. Names sometimes really hamper a person. I'm sure that's why so many actors change their names.

      How neat (but a little sad) about your great-grandmother. But, back then no one wanted anyone to know they had American Indian blood running through their veins. I hated she felt had to hide it.

      I agree about all these genealogical roadblocks. It sure plays havoc with those who are trying to trace their roots.

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  9. Hi Linda, I feel like I'm stalking you today. :) When my great great grandfather came through Ellis they took the O from his name changing it to just Boden. His brother was right behind him in line and they kept the O so he was O'Boden. The O'Bodens went South and made their fortune, while the Bodens headed West and...well let's just say the fortune kind of past us by. :) In my current series I have a Boden family as a bit of a nod to my ancestors.

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    1. Hi Kirsten........Yes, you certainly are. LOL I love seeing you though as always. At least the blogs were different. How odd that the officials at Ellis changed your two times grandfather's name but not his brother. Also sad that one group make their fortune and the others didn't. Oh well, you seem to have turned out very well, my dear. How nice that you gave your ancestors a nod in your current series!! That's great.

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