FROM THE REGISTER — CRITICALLY LOW
REPORTED IN 2025: 7 BIRTHS — THE LINE IS 5
Every year since 1880, without one absence, and now within two births of the line. The record holds 322,496 of them, 9,187 in 1947 alone. In 2025 there were 7. The reporting line is five; below it, the record prints nothing at all. And in 146 years it has never once been absent.
| First reported | 1880 |
|---|---|
| Last reported | 2025 — 7 births |
| Peak | 1947 — 9,187 births |
| Total recorded, 1880–2025 | 322,496 |
| Years above the line | 146 of a possible 146 |
| Longest absence | None — never below the line since debut |
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national names file (1880–2025). Names below 5 occurrences in a year are not reported.
Somewhere, a grandmother is unsurprised.
A collection of THE MUSEUM OF HOPEFUL MACHINES