Jeanne Jain wrote: > Does anyone know what the "Bowden" stands for in this > Brooks Barbour (Norwalk) entry? Her mother's maiden name > was Raymond... > > Mary Bowden, d. Lemuel & Hannah, b. May 16, 1790 It's her middle name. :-) That is, she was born Mary Bowden Brooks. The practice of giving out middle names in the Brooks/New England world becomes fairly common around the time of the Revolution. Sometimes, in bad genealogical practice, you'll see maiden names written as if they were middle names. For instance, if a Mary Smith wed John Guggleheim, you might see her confusingly misnamed as Mary Smith Guggleheim. The maiden name should properly be placed within parentheses, as Mary (Smith) Guggleheim. Chris