[waynetalger]

I would like this to be a fun thread and would be neat to see who everyone in History is related to.

I was watching a movie about 2 months ago and it was a terrible but based on a true Story. The movie was called Andersonville. If you are not familiar with Andersonville this was the worst Confederate prison camp that held Union Soldiers where over 40,000 prisoners of war spent some time and over 13,714 died

This prompted me to see if I may have some Ancestors might have been there. So I looked up Alger and found 6 3 died in the prison and 3 survived the prison. So that prompted me into doing my family tree. So I started with my Gandpa who was born in 1888 and died in 1959. I was able to trace my line all the way back to a John Alger 1293-1330 and then coming back through the lines I discovered some intersting facts so far I have found 26 family members that has done something important, famous or made history. This is what I discovered so far and only 1/3 complete



1. John Aldin-- The person who wrote the Mayflower Compact
2.John Aldin Jr--Was accused of being a witch in the Salem witch trials and later exonerated
3. Sir Robert the BrazenHead Alger-- Was King of Brazenhead castle in England in 1434-1493
4. Horatio Alger Jr-- Wrote children books mainly for boys. and his books are the bases to the soap operas " From Rags to Riches" and coined the Phrase " The American Dream
5.George Van Ness Lothrop--Politician from Michigan and attorney General
6.Barthold Theodor (Fedor)Hermann Baron Von Hoyningen--Served in the was in Germany 1800s
7General Russell Alexander Alger- Enlisted in the infantry in 1861 and by the time of the wars end he was a Brigadier General in the Calvary for the UNION Army, later ran for PRESIDENT in the Republican party primary and lost to William Harrison, he was also the Secretary of War under the McKinnly Presidency, also a Lumber baron, rail road owner, Governor of Michigan
8. Russell Alger JR --Vice President of the Packard Automobile Company
9. General Longstreet-- Confederate General of the Calvary
10 General Robert E Lee-- If you know US History you should have heard about this man
11. William Osborn--Killed on the battle ship Alliance during the Revolutionary War
12. Lennie Baker--Lead Singer of Sha Na na
13 Cornell Freeman McGilvey--Artillery for the Union Army who is Credited for saving Gettysburg advance and saved Gettysburg from the Confederacy
14.Tuesday Weld--Actress who played in " Play it as it Lays" , Looking for Mr Goodbar, and in a few Elvis Presley Movies (still alive)
15. Admiral Raymond A Spruance Lead Admiral in the Battle of Midway in WWII
16. Reverand Daniel Johnson 1747-1777
17.Bishop Edward Ames
18. Captain Louis De Steigur--Civil War could not find his ship he commanded
19.John Rudolph De Steiger. A Doctor
20. James Chilton--The oldest Person on the Mayflower and signed the Mayflower Compact
21. Walter Cox --PVT Colonial Army
22. William Cox-- One of the main guys in the Boston Tea Party
23. Johnathon Upton Cox--Ran a saw mill and prepared materials for the Erie Canal
24. Orville Southerland Cox--Fought in the Tx Independence War, also a surveyor and irrigator, he constructed 40 ditches and 14 towns that are still operating owes him some some part to their existence
25. John Astin-- The guy with the Mustache in the Adams Family
26--Patty Duke --John Astins wife and played Hellen Keller
27. Sean Astin--Played in "RUDY"

[DrMitchJ]

Wow, Wayne! You're certainly genealogically connected!
I've got nearly nobody famous in my tree.
There's a slight chance that Professor Noam Chomsky might be a very distant relative (according to my Dad) but no concrete evidence.

[rmpaq5]

Haven't done the whole search and discovery such as yourself...however I do know I'm second cousins with the actress Anna Paquin from the Xmen movies and True Blood fame ( and an Oscar from the movie The Piano). Have never met her in person, nor will I most likely ever. Also from some research done while in University I know my direct descendant Nicholas Paquin arrived in New France in the 1600s as a carpenter hired to build a church. My surname is rare here in the Toronto area, but apparently up in the region in and around Ottawa, and further west in Winnipeg it is quite popular, comparitively speaking.

[hittinaway]

You have some great ancestors! I also do genealogy and I definitely don't have that many but I have a few:

On my dad's side there isn't much as per "famous" but some fun facts:
1. George T. Moore (3rd great grand uncle)- rancher, contractor and then judge in Idaho (late 1800s to early 1900s)

2. Lillian Mary Moore - George's daughter was an Assistant Professor and Lecturer in Physiology at the University of California in the early 1920s

3. Victor and Angelo Manca (3rd great grand uncles) - owned a restaurant in Seattle and came up with the breakfast egg pancake "Dutch Babies"

On my mom's side
1. John Nichols (6th great grand father) - a minute man in Massachusetts Bay Colony

The most famous person I am distantly related to is Buffalo Bill (2nd cousin 6x removed) His Aunt (Achsah) was my 5th great grandmother

Maybe I'll find more but that's who I have.

[waynetalger]

Wow, Wayne! You're certainly genealogically connected!
I've got nearly nobody famous in my tree.
There's a slight chance that Professor Noam Chomsky might be a very distant relative (according to my Dad) but no concrete evidence.

Thanks Doc
Keep digging. Never know who else you may find. I still have more digging to do myself. My Grandpa was a Mule skinner in WW1 but I went as far back as I can go and working forward.
Alex Alger is a direct descendant of General Russell Alger and forgot to put his name on the list. Alex is playing Hockey for Johnstown Tomahawks right now. I met him in Odessa Tx when he played for the Jackalopes.

---

Haven't done the whole search and discovery such as yourself...however I do know I'm second cousins with the actress Anna Paquin from the Xmen movies and True Blood fame ( and an Oscar from the movie The Piano). Have never met her in person, nor will I most likely ever. Also from some research done while in University I know my direct descendant Nicholas Paquin arrived in New France in the 1600s as a carpenter hired to build a church. My surname is rare here in the Toronto area, but apparently up in the region in and around Ottawa, and further west in Winnipeg it is quite popular, comparitively speaking.

That is pretty cool having actors in the family.

---

You have some great ancestors! I also do genealogy and I definitely don't have that many but I have a few:

On my dad's side there isn't much as per "famous" but some fun facts:
1. George T. Moore (3rd great grand uncle)- rancher, contractor and then judge in Idaho (late 1800s to early 1900s)

2. Lillian Mary Moore - George's daughter was an Assistant Professor and Lecturer in Physiology at the University of California in the early 1920s

3. Victor and Angelo Manca (3rd great grand uncles) - owned a restaurant in Seattle and came up with the breakfast egg pancake "Dutch Babies"

On my mom's side
1. John Nichols (6th great grand father) - a minute man in Massachusetts Bay Colony

The most famous person I am distantly related to is Buffalo Bill (2nd cousin 6x removed) His Aunt (Achsah) was my 5th great grandmother

Maybe I'll find more but that's who I have.

I have not even hit my moms side yet. Her maiden name was Harrison I just cant help but wonder if her side ran and won the Presidency again Russell Alger. I still have a bunch to do on my dads side.

[zeprock]

I traced my genealogy back when I was in high school (mid-1970s) and I too am related to John and Priscilla Alden. John was the first to step off the Mayflower. The name Alden has been passed down through my family. My grandfather and uncle are both named Alden and my brother's middle name is Alden.

Wayne, we could be related.

[waynetalger]

I traced my genealogy back when I was in high school (mid-1970s) and I too am related to John and Priscilla Alden. John was the first to step off the Mayflower. The name Alden has been passed down through my family. My grandfather and uncle are both named Alden and my brother's middle name is Alden.

Wayne, we could be related.

Very well could be. That would be very cool.
I have not traced the Alden tree all the way down yet

[DrMitchJ]

Very well could be. That would be very cool.
I have not traced the Alden tree all the way down yet

Time for you (& ZepRock) to do 23&Me ... See if there's common genetic SNPs between you.

[zeprock]

John & Priscilla (Mullins) Alden had a son named Joseph. Joseph Alden and his wife, Mary, had a son named Isaac. Isaac Alden and his wife, Mehitable, had a daughter named Sarah. Sarah Alden and her husband, Seth Brett, had a son named Samuel. Samuel Brett and his wife, Hannah, had a daughter also named Hannah. Hannah Brett and her husband, Mark Ford, had a daughter named Sally. Sally Ford and her husband, Samuel Alden (also a descendant of John & Priscilla), had a daughter also named Sally. Sally Alden and her husband, Walter Keith, had a son named Joshua. Joshua Keith and his wife, Caroline, had a son named Frank. Frank Keith was my great-grandfather.

[y2hood]

For years it was just accepted as fact that President William McKinley was a distant cousin. When I finally sat down to work on genealogy as a hobby, I found two people named "William McKinley" and neither were the president. Knowing what I know about that side of the family, someone made up the part about the president to get attention and it just stuck. People are now really angry with me for discovering this.

To verify, I started a family tree for the president. I cannot make anything in his tree intersect with the McKinleys in mine. So despite the protests from stubborn relatives, I'm ruling it as "Not related."