US rank #1566 Boys' name Peak 1937 47,349 births

Alton — #1566 US boys' name

47,349 babies named Alton in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1937. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s1911890s2761900s11021910s44171920s72431930s72151940s63731950s59881960s43761970s28551980s22111990s16842000s14662010s14262020s526
#1566
of 14,243 boys in use

More common than 89% of names given to boys today.

1920s
Peak decade

15% of everyone ever named Alton was born in this single decade.

1937
Single peak year

836 babies were named Alton in 1937 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Alton

The Social Security Administration has registered 47,349 babies named Alton between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a boy's name, Alton currently holds the #1566 rank among boys for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1937, when 836 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Alton performed strongest in the 1920s, accumulating 7,243 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Alton shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in Texas, which accounts for 6,035 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by North Carolina and Louisiana. In total, SSA state-level files list Alton in 47 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Alton in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 47,349 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Alton at a glance

Outside the top 1,000

Total births

47,349

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

1937

836 births that year

Strongest decade: 1920s

Current rank

#1,566

Among boys

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Alton popularity over time — boys

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1937)
836
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
-20002004006008001,000 202420051986196719481929191018911880 14

Alton popularity over time — girls

376 total births recorded since 1904 (Alton as girls' name)

Unisex variant — 376 births
05101520 19891962194619381930192219151904 6

Alton by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 1920s
Peak decade
1920s
7,243 births that decade — 15% of Alton's all-time total
1880s1911890s2761900s11021910s44171920s72431930s72151940s63731950s59881960s43761970s28551980s22111990s16842000s14662010s14262020s526

Alton by state

Where Alton concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Alton
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 Texas
6,035 12.7%
#2 North Carolina
4,338 9.2%
#3 Louisiana
3,853 8.1%
#4 Georgia
3,520 7.4%
#5 Alabama
2,155 4.6%
#6 Florida
2,116 4.5%
#7 Mississippi
1,735 3.7%
#8 New York
1,715 3.6%
Texas share of Alton's total US births 12.7%
Even split

6,035 of 47,349 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 47 reporting states.

Alton appears in 47 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Alton?
47,349 babies have been named Alton since 1880. It currently ranks #1566 among boys. The peak year was 1937 with 836 births.
When was Alton most popular?
Alton was most popular in the 1920s decade with 7,243 total births. The single peak year was 1937.
Where is Alton most popular?
The top states for the name Alton are Texas (6,035 births), North Carolina (4,338 births), Louisiana (3,853 births).
How long has the name Alton been used?
Alton has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Alton?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Alto, Alter, Altair, Altariq, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1880–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.