At 02:23 AM 05/03/2001 -0700, Ida Skarson McCormick wrote: >For centuries it was against English Common Law for commoners to have >middle names. This included the English colonies. Most of the people >with English origins did not ignore the law before the Revolution. My ancestor, William Friend McMahon, Sr. was born in Frederick Co Va in 1749. His Father and Grandfather were of Scot ancestory. This leads me to wonder if he adopted his middle name (Friend) later in life. He m 1774 Nancy Ann Cox who who had an Uncle named Friend Cox. They spent the latter part of their lives in Ohio County, VA (Wellsburg). Is it reasonable to suppose that he might have added the middle name Friend to his name as a tribute to his wife's Uncle? I have looked through the McMahon family names extensively and found no source for the name Friend. However, his wife's Cox family used the name Friend extensively as a given name and a surname. (These Coxes and Friends were Swedes.) William, his father Richard and his wife's family were all very active participants in the American Revolution and it might be possible he added the middle name as an act of defiance to the English law? Thoughts anyone? Or am I "whistling in the wind"? Bill McMahon To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe please see the instructions at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-roots.html