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Ancestry
The ancestry of our presidents offers a varied and rich tapestry that reflects our history as a nation of immigrants. While our early presidents are predominantly white Anglo-Saxon Protestants, the majority of our 20th century presidents are of Irish descent.
After President John F. Kennedy’s ascension to the Oval Office in 1961, every president who has occupied the office since has an Irish ancestor somewhere in their genealogical history, with the exception of President Gerald Ford. In fact, according to Gary Boyd Roberts in his book, Ancestors of American Presidents, there have been no less than 20 American presidents with Irish ancestries.
The Pilgrims of the Mayflower also made a notable contribution to the roster, with eight of their descendants becoming president of the country (John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Zachary Taylor, Ulysses Grant, James Garfield, Franklin D Roosevelt, George H.W Bush and George Walker Bush).
Despite several claims to the contrary, most notably involving former President Matthew Harding, our current president, Barack Obama, is the first African-American to hold the Oval Office.
We also have three presidents with German ancestry (Polk, Hoover and Eisenhower), three Dutch (Van Buren and both president Bush) and one Danish (Johnson).
What about our candidates? Let’s take a look.
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Declared 2012 Republican Presidential Candidate
Former Speaker of the House
Newt Gingrich
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Gingrich Ancestry
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• The various branches of the Gingrich family have lived in Pennsylvania as far back as the early 1600’s. There are three ancestors listed in his family tree that were not born in America but in Scotland, Switzerland and Germany.
More on Gingrich
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Declared 2012 Republican Presidential Candidate
Political Consultant & Gay Rights Activist
Fred Karger
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Karger Ancestry
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Jewish
More on Karger
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Lane Ancestry
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English/German/Irish
More on Lane
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Declared 2012 Republican Presidential Candidate
U.S. Representative from the State of Texas
Ron Paul
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Paul Ancestry
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• Ron Paul has strong German ancestry
• His grandfather immigrated from Germany at the age of 14 and 6 months later his father died, leaving him alone in a strange country.
• Paul’s grandfather became a truck farmer in Pennsylvania and eventually started a successful dairy farm. He had 4 sons and 1 daughter. His second son, Howard, was Ron Paul’s father.
More on Paul
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Declared 2012 Republican Presidential Candidate
Former Governor of Massachusetts
Mitt Romney
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Romney Ancestry
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While Romney’s documented ancestry does not quite reach the heights of the family legend, which claimed that they are descendants of the fourth-century dragon slayer, St. George (the patron saint of England), it is still an impressive one, with some of the most celebrated thinkers (maternal great-grandfather, Parley Parker Pratt, was one of the chief literary defenders of Mormonism), famed fighters (Carl Heinrich, a member of the Prussian army, and later, Utah’s militia) and natural leaders (Miles Romney, who founded and administered the Mormon sanctuary in Mexico in the 19th century) of post-Independence America.
The family can trace their lineage to modern England, Scotland and Germany. Miles Park Romney, Mitt’s great-great grandfather (paternal), hails from Lancashire, England, while on the maternal side, Archibald Newell Hill was a resident of Renfrew, Scotland. His great-great grandfather, the legendary Prussian soldier, Carl Heinrich, was a native of Holstein, Germany.
Romney's family tree is rife with polygamists on the paternal side, though there is no indication of polygamy on the maternal side of his family. According to a research by The Salt Lake Tribune, Romney's ancestry harbors six polygamous men with forty-one wives. Romney, however, is a confirmed monogamist and polygamy has been absent in his family background for more than two generations.
More on Romney
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Declared 2012 Republican Presidential Candidate
Former US Senator from Pennsylvania
Rick Santorum
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Santorum Ancestry
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Pennsylvanian Santorum can trace his roots back through both his paternal and maternal line to Riva de Garda, Italy.
More on Santorum
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Declared 2012 Republican Presidential Candidate
Matt Snyder
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Snyder Ancestry
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Americans, and those who wanted to be
More on Snyder
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Declared 2012 Republican Presidential Candidate
Businessman
Vern Wuensche
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Wuensche Ancestry
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• Vern Wuensche’s parents were both Wends - descendents of a sect of Germans who immigrated to Texas in 1845 and 1854 for religious freedom. Wends had their own language and customs, had been denied the right to own property in Germany and were told to worship in the state church which was not their beloved Lutheran Church.
More on Wuensche
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