Okay, I just found my grandfather's birth record in the CABI, and I have a question.

Here is the record as I found it on Ancestry:

California Birth Index, 1905-1995 about Charles Butts

Name: Butts
Birth Date: 20 Apr 1911
Gender: Male
Mother's Maiden Name: Cosby
Birth County: San Francisco

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Okay, is there a reason he doesn't have a first name listed [besides the obvious "they just didn't have a name picked out"]? Could this be an unwanted child?

Anyone know anything about how San Francisco conducted vital records back then?

I am going to assume families in CA were just like the ones where I do my mtn research.... it could take some of them quite awhile to come up with a first name. For example....I was recently visiting my mother and going thru some old family letters. A woman that had just had a child had written to someone in the family asking them to name the baby....letters didnt get to their destinations real quick back then lol so it would take quite awhile to get a name.

Have you seen the actual record? Is there a date it was recorded vs the date of the birth?

I just found him and ordered it last week, so I don't know yet! The suspense is killing me!

Even back when I had Shannon....not the dark ages at all..just a few short years ago ...they did not absolutely require you have the baby named before you left the hospital. They pushed about it...but it was not legally required...like now when they have to have a Social Security Number before they leave. A lot of babies went home with their "bassinet tags' that just said....Jones Infant. Or Baby Smith.

Steph