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I'm curious as where Doyle acquired the name. Also, does anyone know quite why he used Mycroft and Sherlock?
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He didn't take much interest in Dr Watson's name - sometimes the poor chap is John, then elsewhere he's James. So that, pretty clearly, was just an attempt to give him a name so ordinary it doesn't draw any attention to itself, like its modest owner.
Sherlock and Mycroft, on the other hand, are so distinctive that they were unlikely to have any namesakes at all ... which is handy! Imagine the tedium of walking round Victorian England constantly repeating: "Yes, that's right, it really is my name, but I'm not the great detective, ha-ha!"
Doesn't solve your question of where he found the names, but I think it probably does explain why he thought outside the box on that occasion.
Sherlock and Mycroft, on the other hand, are so distinctive that they were unlikely to have any namesakes at all ... which is handy! Imagine the tedium of walking round Victorian England constantly repeating: "Yes, that's right, it really is my name, but I'm not the great detective, ha-ha!"
Doesn't solve your question of where he found the names, but I think it probably does explain why he thought outside the box on that occasion.
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