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Subject: [Q-R] Barack Obama is Related to Wild Bill Hickok
Date: Fri, 1 Aug 2008 20:42:40 EDT

Barack Obama is Related to Wild Bill Hickok



(http://blog.eogn.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/2008/07/30/wildbillhickok.jpg) Ho hum, here we go again.

(http://blog.eogn.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/2008/07/30/barackobama.jpg) Barack Obama made a comment during a speech today about family
lore having him distantly related to Wild Bill Hickok. He said he wasn’t
sure, but that he wanted to find out.
Click on the images to see larger pictures to decide for yourself if there is
a family resemblance or not.
Chris Child at the New England Historic Genealogical Society took up the
challenge and confirmed the connection in about 30 minutes.

I don't get too excited about claims that a politician is related to someone
else of fame. After all, I suspect that most anyone whose ancestors have been
in this country at least 5 or 6 generations is probably related to everyone
else whose ancestors have been in this country at least 5 or 6 generations. I
don't find that to be terribly newsworthy.
What I do find interesting in this article is the SPEED with which Chris
Child found the answers. I don't know if that is "news" or not, but I certainly
am impressed.
Hey Chris, can you check on a couple of my brick wall ancestors?
Here is the announcement from the New England Historic Genealogical Society:
Boston Genealogical Society Confirms Obama and “Wild Bill” Hickok are
Cousins
Obama Family lore talks of distant relationship to “Wild Bill” Hickok.
Boston, MA – July 30, 2008 – New England Historic Genealogical Society in
Boston has confirmed what Presidential candidate Barack Obama mentioned today
in a Springfield Missouri speech.
During the speech, Senator Obama said, “If Senator McCain wants a debate
about taxes in this campaign, I’m ready. Wild Bill Hickok had his first duel in
the town square here. And the family legend is that he is a distant cousin of
mine.”
Obama spoke of a family lore that tells of his being a distant cousin to
legendary American west lawman, gambler, and gunfighter “Wild Bill” Hickok.
NEHGS Staff genealogist Chris Child was quickly able to track down the
information and confirm that it is indeed, true.
Obama and Hickok are sixth cousins, six-times removed. Their common ancestor
is Thomas Blossom, who came to Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1629 from Leiden,
Holland. Obama’s 4th great-grandfather, Jacob Dunham, was 6th cousins with
Wild Bill. Obama’s mother, Stanley Ann, is also a Dunham.
“The ancestry of Wild Bill Hickok was published by NEHGS some years back,
which showed he descended from the Blossom family of Cape Cod, an early family
written up in one of our scholarly publications,” said Child. He added, “
Since we had also recently done the ancestry of Senator Obama, finding this
connection was a little easier.”
(Hmmmmmmmmmmm and Wild Bill's girl friend was Calamity Jane and she was
related to King Tut...........who was descended from the Wee People who had
wings and danced around on mushrooms.......................Blah
blah..........Blah blah..................................)






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