Everyone knows the names of the dynastic presidential families such as Adams, Harrison, Roosevelt, and Bush. But there are even more families that have produced up to five presidents with names like Richardson or Perkins. Below are the families from which I descend that have also produced two or more presidents:
Clapp (several emigrants to Dorchester, Mass.): (5) Garfield, Bushes, FDR and Coolidge.
Howland (three brothers to Plymouth, Mass.): (5) FDR, Bushes, Nixon, and Ford.
White (two sisters who married a Loomis and Porter of Conn.): (4) Fillmore, Grant, Cleveland, Ford.
Perkins (two cousins to Ipswich, Mass. and Hampton, N.H.): (4) Fillmore, Coolidge, FDR, Nixon.
Hooker (siblings including Rev. Thomas Hooker, founder of Hartford, Conn.): (3) Taft, Coolidge, FDR.
Tayer/Thayer (cousins including Cecily (Thayer) Davis): (3) Coolidge, Ford, G.W. Bush.
Chandler: (2) Hayes, FDR.
Lawrence: (2) FDR, Taft.
Coffin: (2) Coolidge, Ford.
Moore/Rice: (2) Coolidge, G.W. Bush.
Lord: (2) Hoover, Ford.
Coles: (2) Washington, Harding.
Johnson/Heath: (2) Pierce, FDR.
Worden: (2) Hayes, Coolidge.
Wilson of Woburn, Mass.: (2) Cleveland, Coolidge.
Winn: (2) Cleveland, Hoover.
My two closest (if you can call it that) presidential kinships are: Grover Cleveland, my fourth cousin, five times removed and William Howard Taft, my fifth cousin, five times removed.
Of those I have Howland (Henry), Hooker, and Johnson/Heath, I think my closest is John Adams via Samuel Bass and Anne Savell, third cousin nine times removed, my most recent presidential ancestor is Carlisle Haines (1700-1770/4), G.W. Bush ancestor #998
Posted by: Chris Child | 01/26/2009 at 02:47 AM