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"By-names", are designations applied to specific individuals based on some identifying characteristic, such as size, ((John the tall"), where they lived ("John of Castle's Woods"), or sometimes family relationships ("John son of Peter"). Titles such as "General", "Col.", or even "Senior" and "Junior" are also used with great frequency. Usually by-names were used in colonial times to distinguish between persons of similar names. These designations were not appied idly, but served an important purpose in distinguishing between individuals with similar names in public records. For example "Samuel Porter of Castle's Woods" was used in tax records of southwest Virginia immediately after the revolution to distinquish him from "Samuel Porter son of Patrick".
This practice became less necessary after the common adoption of middle names. Genealogists, however, often find it convenient to apply a "by-name" to specific individuals to help distinguish them from other, similarly named, persons in the same geographic area.
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