Ancestral background of presidents of the United States

The ancestral background of presidents of the United States has been relatively consistent throughout American history. With the exception of John F. Kennedy, Martin Van Buren, and perhaps Dwight D. Eisenhower,[1] every president has ancestors from Great Britain. Kennedy was of pure Irish descent, Van Buren was of Dutch lineage; and Eisenhower was of German and Swiss heritage. Barack Obama is the only president to have recent ancestry from outside Western Europe; his paternal family is of the Luo people of East Africa. He is also believed to be a direct descendant of John Punch, a colonial-era slave born in modern-day Cameroon. Despite speculation, there is no evidence that any of America’s presidents have had any Indigenous American ancestry.

Map showing ancestry

The most common ethnic groups in the Thirteen Colonies were those hailing from either Great Britain or Northern Ireland. Those of other backgrounds (such as Irish, Dutch, German or French) would see attempts to assimilate them into the dominant English and predominately Protestant culture.[2]

Some nativist political groups within the United States were adamantly opposed to identifying with a foreign nation and would coin those who did as hyphenated Americans. Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson were outspoken opponents of hyphenated Americans, with Wilson once remarking, "Any man who carries a hyphen about with him, carries a dagger that he is ready to plunge into the vitals of this Republic when he gets ready."[3]

Ancestry table

Summary: Dutch – 5 • English – 38 • French – 12 • German – 11 • Irish – 5 • Kenyan (Luo) – 1 • Scottish – 19 • Swiss – 3 • Ulster Scots – 21 • Welsh – 15

Order of presidency
 President
and parents









Patrilineal emigrant ancestor Citations
1 George Washington (1732–1799)
   Augustine Washington
   Mary Ball		 Yes
 Yes
 John Washington (great-grandfather)
Sulgrave, England → Colony of Virginia (1656)		 [4][5][6]
2 John Adams (1735–1826)
   John Adams Sr.
   Susanna Boylston		 Yes
 Yes
 Henry Adams (2nd great-grandfather)
Braintree, England → Braintree, Massachusetts (c.1633)		 [7][8]
3 Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)
   Peter Jefferson
   Jane Randolph		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Unknown [8][9][10]
4 James Madison (1751–1836)
   James Madison Sr.
   Nelly Conway		 Yes
 Yes
 Isaac Madison (3rd great-grandfather)
London, England → Jamestown, Virginia (1608)		 [9][11][12]
5 James Monroe (1758–1831)
   Spence Monroe
   Elizabeth Jones		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Patrick Andrew Monroe (2nd great-grandfather)
Scotland → Colony of Virginia (c.1650)		 [7][8][9][13]
6 John Quincy Adams (1767–1848)
   John Adams
   Abigail Smith		 Yes
 Yes
 Henry Adams (3rd great-grandfather)
Braintree, England → Braintree, Massachusetts (c.1633)		 [7][8]
7 Andrew Jackson (1767–1845)
   Andrew Jackson
   Elizabeth Hutchinson		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Andrew Jackson (father)
Boneybefore, Ireland → Waxhaws, Carolinas (1765)		 [10][14][15] [16]
8 Martin Van Buren (1782–1862)
   Abraham Van Buren
   Maria Hoes		 Yes
 Cornelis Maessen Van Buren (3rd great-grandfather)
Buurmalsen, Netherlands → New Netherland (1631)		 [17][18]
9 William Henry Harrison (1773–1841)
   Benjamin Harrison V
   Elizabeth Bassett		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Benjamin Harrison (3rd great-grandfather)
England → Colony of Virginia (c.1630)		 [7][8][19]
10 John Tyler (1790–1862)
   John Tyler Sr.
   Mary Armisted		 Yes
 Yes
 Henry Tyler (3rd great-grandfather)
Shropshire, England → Colony of Virginia (c.1652)		 [5][7]
11 James K. Polk (1795–1849)
   Samuel Polk
   Jane Knox		 Yes
 Yes
 Robert Bruce Polk (great-grandfather)
Lifford, Ireland → Province of Maryland (c.1680)		 [10][14]
12 Zachary Taylor (1784–1850)
   Richard Taylor
   Sarah Dabney Strother		 Yes
 James Taylor (2nd great-grandfather)
England → Colony of Virginia		 [20]
13 Millard Fillmore (1800–1874)
   Nathaniel Fillmore
   Phoebe Millard		 Yes
 John Fillmore Sr (2nd great-grandfather)
England → Massachusetts Bay Colony		 [20]
14 Franklin Pierce (1804–1869)
   Benjamin Pierce
   Anna Kendrick		 Yes
 Thomas Pierce (3rd great-grandfather)
Norwich, England → Massachusetts Bay Colony (c.1634)		 [20]
15 James Buchanan (1791–1868)
   James Buchanan Sr.
   Elizabeth Speer		 Yes
 James Buchanan Sr. (father)
Ramelton, Ireland → Pennsylvania (1783)		 [14]
16 Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)
   Thomas Lincoln
   Nancy Hanks		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Samuel Lincoln (4th great-grandfather)
Hingham, England → Hingham, Massachusetts (1638)		 [7][8][14]
17 Andrew Johnson (1808–1875)
   Jacob Johnson
   Mary McDonough		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Unknown [19][20]
18 Ulysses S. Grant (1822–1885)
   Jesse Root Grant
   Hannah Simpson		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Matthew Grant (5th great-grandfather)
England → Massachusetts Bay Colony (1630)		 [7][14][20]
19 Rutherford B. Hayes (1822–1893)
   Rutherford Hayes, Jr.
   Sophia Birchard		 Yes
 Yes
 George Hayes (3rd great-grandfather)
Scotland → Windsor, Connecticut (c.1680)		 [21]
20 James A. Garfield (1831–1881)
   Abram Garfield
   Eliza Garfield		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Edward Garfield (5th great-grandfather)
Hillmorton, England → Massachusetts Bay Colony (1630)		 [5][8][20]
21 Chester A. Arthur (1829–1886)
   William Arthur
   Malvina Stone		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 William Arthur (father)
Cullybackey, Ireland → Lower Canada (c.1820)
   Lower Canada → Vermont (c.1822)		 [9][19]
22/24 Grover Cleveland (1837–1908)
   Richard Falley Cleveland
   Ann Neal		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Moses Cleveland (5th great-grandfather)
Ipswich, England → Massachusetts Bay Colony (1635)		 [9][14]
23 Benjamin Harrison (1833–1901)
   John Scott Harrison
   Elizabeth Ramsey Irwin		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Benjamin Harrison (5th great-grandfather)
England → Colony of Virginia (c.1630)		 [7][11][14]
25 William McKinley (1843–1901)
   William McKinley Sr.
   Nancy Allison		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 John McKinley (2nd great-grandfather)
Dervock, Ireland → Province of Pennsylvania (1742)		 [7][10][14]
26 Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919)
   Theodore Roosevelt Sr.
   Martha Bulloch		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Claes Maartenszen van Rosenvelt (5th great-grandfather)
Netherlands → New Amsterdam, New Netherland (c.1649)		 [5][8][9][18]
27 William Howard Taft (1857–1930)
   Alphonso Taft
   Louise Torrey		 Yes
 Robert Taft Sr. (4th great-grandfather)
County Louth, Ireland → Braintree, Massachusetts (c.1675)		 [20]
28 Woodrow Wilson (1856–1924)
   Joseph Ruggles Wilson
   Jessie Janet Woodrow		 Yes
 Yes
 James Wilson (grandfather)
Ulster, Ireland → Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (c.1795)		 [10][19]
29 Warren G. Harding (1865–1923)
   George Tryon Harding
   Phoebe Elizabeth Dickerson		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Unknown [9]
30 Calvin Coolidge (1872–1933)
   John Calvin Coolidge Sr.
   Victoria Josephine Moor		 Yes
 Yes
 John Coolidge (7th great-grandfather)
Cottenham, England → Watertown, Massachusetts (c.1635)		 [7][11]
31 Herbert Hoover (1874–1964)
   Jesse Hoover
   Hulda Randall Minthorn		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Andreas Huber (3rd great-grandfather)
Ellerstadt, Holy Roman Empire → Province of Pennsylvania (1738)		 [22][23]
32 Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945)
   James Roosevelt I
   Sara Ann Delano		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Claes Maartenszen van Rosenvelt (5th great-grandfather)
Netherlands → New Amsterdam, New Netherland (c.1649)		 [5][7][18]
33 Harry S. Truman (1884–1972)
   John Anderson Truman
   Martha Ellen Young		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Unknown [14][24]
34 Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890–1969)
   David Jacob Eisenhower
   Ida Stover		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Johann Peter Eisenhauer (2nd great-grandfather)
Karlsbrunn, Holy Roman Empire → York, Pennsylvania (1741)		 [23][25][26]
35 John F. Kennedy (1917–1963)
   Joseph P. Kennedy Sr.
   Rose Fitzgerald		 Yes
 Patrick Kennedy (great–grandfather)
New Ross, Ireland → Boston, Massachusetts (c.1848)		 [19][27]
36 Lyndon B. Johnson (1908–1973)
   Samuel Ealy Johnson Jr.
   Rebekah Baines		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Unknown [28]
37 Richard Nixon (1913–1994)
   Francis A. Nixon
   Hannah Milhous		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Unknown [8][19][29]
38 Gerald Ford (1913–2006)
   Leslie Lynch King Sr.
   Dorothy Ayer Gardner		 Yes
 Yes
 Unknown [30]
39 Jimmy Carter (Born 1924)
   James Earl Carter Sr.
   Lillian Gordy		 Yes
 Yes
 Thomas Carter (8th great-grandfather)
England → Colony of Virginia (c.1635)		 [9][14]
40 Ronald Reagan (1911–2004)
   Jack Reagan
   Nelle Wilson		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Michael O'Regan (great-grandfather)
County Tipperary, Ireland → London, England (1852)
London, England → Carroll County, Illinois (1856)		 [31][32]
41 George H. W. Bush (1924–2018)
   Prescott Bush
   Dorothy Walker		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 John Bush (7th great-grandfather)
Messing, England → Massachusetts Bay Colony (c.1640)		 [9][14][33][34]
42 Bill Clinton (Born 1946)
   William Jefferson Blythe Jr.
   Virginia Cassidy		 Yes
 Yes
 Unknown [9][14]
43 George W. Bush (Born 1946)
   George H. W. Bush
   Barbara Pierce		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 John Bush (8th great-grandfather)
Messing, England → Massachusetts Bay Colony (c.1640)		 [9][14][33][35]
44 Barack Obama (Born 1961)
   Barack Obama Sr.
   Ann Dunham		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 Barack Obama Sr. (father)
British Kenya → Honolulu, Hawaii (1959)		 [36][37]
45 Donald Trump (Born 1946)
   Fred Trump
   Mary Anne MacLeod		 Yes
 Yes
 Frederick Trump (grandfather)
Kallstadt, Germany → New York City, New York (1885)		 [10][38]
46 Joe Biden (Born 1942)
   Joseph R. Biden Sr.
   Catherine Eugenia Finnegan		 Yes
 Yes
 Yes
 William Biden (3rd great-grandfather)
Westbourne, England → Baltimore, Maryland (c.1820)		 [39]

See also

References
  1. Roberts, Gary (1995). Ancestors of American Presidents. New England Historic Genealogical Society. p. 8. ISBN 0936124199. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  2. B. Moniz, Amanada (September 7, 2018). "Culture in the colonial classroom: A failed attempt at assimilation". National Museum of American History. Retrieved July 18, 2020.
  3. Siegel, Robert; Silverman, Art (April 7, 2017). "During World War I, U.S. Government Propaganda Erased German Culture". NPR. Retrieved July 18, 2018.
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  6. Hardy, George Washington's Mount Vernon, Ancestry
  7. Fischer, David Hackett (1989). Albion's Seed: Four British Folkways in America. New York City: Oxford University Press. pp. 834–839. ISBN 978-0-19-506905-1. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  8. Williamson, David (October 27, 2017). "The American Presidents with family links to Wales". walesonline.co.uk. Cardiff, Wales, UK: Media Wales. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
  9. Cullen, Niall (February 21, 2020). "A whistlestop tour of every US president's ancestry". findmypast.com. Dundee, Scotland, UK: DC Thomson. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
  10. "Your Queries: From Scotland to the White House… Six presidents with Scottish ancestry". sundaypost.com. Glasgow, Scotland, UK: DC Thomson & Co. September 11, 2019. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  11. "The Welsh in America". nawf.wales. Penarth, Wales, UK: North America Wales Foundation. 2016. Archived from the original on May 21, 2020. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
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  14. Kennedy, Billy. "Ulster-Scots and the United States Presidents" (PDF). Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK: The Ulster-Scots Agency. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
  15. Elmer, Martin Jackson (1885). Keeping the Lamp of Remembrance Lighted: A Genealogical Narrative with Pictures and Charts about the Jacksons and Their Allied Families. Hagerstown, Maryland: Hagerstown Bookbinding & Printing Co. p. 9.
  16. "US Presidents with Irish Heritage".
  17. Silbey, Joel (October 4, 2016). "Martin Van Buren: Life Before the Presidency". Charlottesville, Virginia: Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  18. Simkin, John (January 2020). "Dutch Immigration". spartacus-educational.com. Spartacus Educational Publishers. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  19. Murphy, Sean. "American Presidents with Irish Ancestors". Bray, Ireland: Centre for Irish Genealogical and Historical Studies. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
  20. Vinmont, Rolf Benjamin, ed. (1933). Our Presidents At A Glance. New York City: Grosset & Dunlap. p. 77.
  21. "Hayes Family Genealogy". rbhayes.org. Spiegel Grove, Fremont, Ohio: Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  22. Burner, David (1979). Herbert Hoover: The Public Life. New York City: Alfred A. Knopf. p. 4. ISBN 978-0-394-46134-2.
  23. Yang, Philip Q. (2000). Ethnic Studies: Issues and Approaches. Albany, New York: SUNY Press. p. 214. ISBN 9780791493113. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
  24. Johnson, Niel; Johnson, Verna Gail (1999). "Rooted In History: The Genealogy of Harry S. Truman". trumanlibrary.gov. Independence, Missouri: Harry S. Truman Library. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  25. Barnett, Lincoln (November 9, 1942). "General "Ike" Eisenhower". Life. Vol. 13, no. 19. New York City: Time Inc. pp. 112–124. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  26. "Eisenhower Ancestry". eisenhowerlibrary.gov. Abilene, Kansas: Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum and Boyhood Home. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  27. "John F. Kennedy and Ireland". jfklibrary.org. Boston: John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  28. Wheeler, Keith; Lambert, William (August 14, 1964). "The Man Who Is President". Life. Vol. 57, no. 7. New York City: Time Inc. pp. 25–29, 77–80. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
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  30. "Gerald R. Ford Genealogical Information". fordlibrarymuseum.gov. Ann Arbor, Michigan: Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
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  38. Schubert, Atika (February 16, 2016). "Donald Trump's German roots: Inside the town that spawned a dynasty". cnn.com. Retrieved May 24, 2020.
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Further reading
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