So, this post is probably more suited to my genealogy blog, Branches and Roots, but I thought it would be more fun to post it over here.
Yesterday, my son and daughter and I were sending emails back and forth much of the day. For some reason, the two of them started talking about the John Adams movie that was on TV. I found out years ago that John and I shared an ancestor. My 11th great grandfather and his great great grandfather was Henry Adams, the immigrant ancestor. This makes John my 4th cousin 9 times removed.
Ok, so before you get all shaky trying to figure out what makes a 4th cousin and why is he 9 times removed, I found this explanation on another blog, Olive Tree Genealogy.
"There is often confusion over the terminology of cousins removed versus 1st cousins, 2nd cousins, etc.
Example: First cousins 4x removed means that the two individuals are 4 generations apart.
Example: 4th cousins means the individuals are on the same generational line and share a common ancestor in one of their 3rd great grandparents.
* First cousins share common grandparents
* 2nd cousins share common great grandparents
* 3rd cousins share common g-g grandparents
and so on
* 1st cousins once removed means one of the individuals is the child of your first cousin (you are one generation apart)
* 1st cousins twice removed means one of the individuals is the grandchild of your first cousin( you are 2 generations apart)
and so on
OK, so do you have that all clear now? So, that means that John and I share common g.g.g. grandparents (I can't even figure that one out because Henry is his g.g.grandfather and my 11th great. Oh well, I'll take Family Tree Maker's word for it.) And we are 9 generations apart. (That I can accept.)
So, this got me thinking about who else I might be related to. I am a member of Ancestry.com which I use practically everyday of my life--they aren't making a whole lot of money off of my membership! Anyway, I have my ancestral line posted on there. And if you do--and if other people's lines are correct--which often they aren't--you can find out who else you might be related to. Wanna know who my cousins are? I thought you would never ask. Here goes.
There are two towns named after an ancestor. Parkersburg, Illinois was founded by a great grand uncle and was named for his father and my g.g.g.grandfather, James Parker.
Finneytown, Ohio (which is now part of Cincinnati) was founded and named by my 5th great grandfather, Ebenezer Ward Finney.
#1. Meriwether Lewis (of Lewis and Clark fame) is my 2nd cousin 6 times removed.
#2. Andrew Johnson (17th President of the US) is supposedly my 3rd cousin 4 times removed.
#3. Mark Twain is supposedly my 3rd cousin 4 times removed.
#4. Nancy Astor (1st woman to serve in British House of Commons) is supposedly my 6th cousin. Gee, not even a removed on this one! This means that she and I are both 6 generations away from our common ancestor.
#5. Sam Bass (the outlaw and train robber. Cool!) 4th cousin 5 times removed.
#6. Katherine Hepburn (I knew that theatre ran in our family!) 7th cousin.
#7. Elizabeth Kortright Monroe (wife of President James Monroe) is my 3rd cousin 8 times removed.
#8. Samuel Morse (inventor of the Morse Code) 4th cousin 6 times removed.
#9. Barbara Pierce Bush (yup G. Dubya's mom) 7th cousin 1 times removed.
#10 George Walker Bush (god help me!!) 7th cousin 2 times removed. (I wish it was a lot more removed!!)
#11. Howard Hughes (Wish I had been named in his will.) 7th cousin 1 times removed.
#12. Pretty Boy Floyd (Bank robber and murderer. What can I say? I didn't pick my relatives.) 8th cousin.
#13. Booker T. Washington (How about that folks?) 8th cousin.
There are a lot more but I am not too sure that the correct ancestry has been posted. But, it is fun just to see who you are related to one way or another. If you are interested in reading some of my other possible famous relatives go check out this post on my genealogy blog.
Friday, October 03, 2008
So Who are You Related To???
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5 comments:
The chart is wonderful, I need to print and post it, I knew it all once (when I was taking Trusts and Estates) but have long forgotten most of it.
Your relatives really are fascinating, what fun to know all that. Since supposedly we're all no more than "7 degrees" from everyone, I wonder if there are interesting relatives in every mix? You have some doozies. Aslan in the Chronicles of Narnia said something once (very roughly paraphrased) about how each of us has enough to be proud of that we should walk like kings, and enough to be ashamed of that we should hang our heads in shame. But (shudder) the very thought that I could be related to - well, to one of your relatives - would put me off genealogy forever! :)
My mother is big into this genealogical research stuff. The other day she found out that we are related to a baroque composer and violinist by the name of Matteis. He was a contemporary of Purcell, and he emigrated from Naples to London, where he lived out his years and was responsible for introducing and making popular the Italian way of holding the violin and bow, which eventually overshadowed the French way. It is said he was enormously popular in his time, but his stuff is rarely played today.
Mother has had some challenges with this stuff because records often go back only so far in those tiny European towns where our ancestors lived, worked, and died. Moreover, both church and town officials are wary of giving out information, as they believe you're there to take back any land that the immigrant to American might have abandoned. This is often the way you find out that you are, in fact, related to the church or town official you are dealing with!
Tink *~*~*
My Mobile Adventures *~*~*
I have always wanted to dabble in this...but am waiting a year or two until I am fully retired. (Right now, I am just tired...lol)
I did know that we were related to a lot of Minnesota swedes so I put a name in - just at the first level. Some stuff that I already knew came up - but I was really surprised when one with the first name of "Adolf" came up! :::shock::: lol. Don't tell anybody, k?
All that times removed stuff confuses me.I do know my mother's mother's family was banished to Canada from Scotland.Somebody got somebody important preggers.And her father's family were Loyalists and high-tailed it to Canada,from virginia,during the Revolutionary War.We have traced my Dad's family back to Sweden,to the 1500's.
This was fun to read when you sent it to me in email form. I had heard of some of them but not all.
You left out Humphrey Bogart!
I was thinking about posting this very thing on my blog, but adding one more "removed" to each one so it would apply to me. But most of my readers come to my blog after reading your blog, so it would be a bore for most of them! lol
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