Change in surname?

[Mort29]

He seemed certain that the 'Stratton' part had been passed down through his grandfather rather than his grandmother however.

just to confirm, the 'Stratton' part of the Birth Index is Mothers Maiden name

Births Sep 1914
 
Potter  Eric S S  MMN = Stratton  Guildford  2a 218


.... and I have updated my earlier posting to show a probable Birth Index entry for Katherine Stratton


Do you have access to census searching ?

[Londinium]

He seemed certain that the 'Stratton' part had been passed down through his grandfather rather than his grandmother however.

just to confirm, the 'Stratton' part of the Birth Index is Mothers Maiden name

Births Sep 1914
 
Potter  Eric S S  MMN = Stratton  Guildford  2a 218


Do you have access to census searching ?

I have access to all the censuses on Ancestry, so basically up to 1901. From what you guys have worked out it seems that you are right and my dad has got confused about where the Stratton came from. He also mentioned that his grandmother died young, so perhaps this is why he thinks the Stratton came from his grandfather rather than his grandmother?

[LizzieW]

My gran passed her maiden name down as a second name to her second child (a girl - her first child was also a girl), after that she passed it on to her youngest child - a boy.  However, one of her sisters gave the maiden name as a middle name to all 5 of her children.  It just seems to be what some people did at the time.

Lizzie

[Jebber]

I have countless instances in my tree, in all branches,  where a maiden name has been used as a middle name, it seems to be particularly common in parts of Kent. In one family of eleven children, all but one have  assorted family surnames as middle names.

 Being the last of the line in my family and not wanting the name to die out, when my father died a year after I married and a few days before the birth of my first son, we gave my son my maiden name as a middle name.

Jebber

[coombs]

My 3xgreat grandfather gave his mothers maiden name as a middle name for one of his children. It was very handy as the mans surname was Roberts. His mmn was Goodacre.