George W. Bush, my half 8th cousin, 1x removed, and his father account for two of the three presidents who appear in my family tree.

The third is Martin Van Buren, the eighth President of the United States. Genealogically speaking, he is most likely my 4th cousin, 6x removed – give or take a generation. To get to Cousin Martin, or Marty, as I like to call him, you have to shimmy up one branch, leap across a bit of a chasm and then slide down another branch.

Here we go…

My 5th great grandmother was Sarah (Quackenbush) Holladay. Her father was Peter Quackenbush of North Carolina and her mother was anybody’s guess. (Thankfully, Peter’s will is intact – in it he identifies Sarah Holladay as his daughter!)

The Quackenbush family in America originated in New Netherland (later New York) when Pieter Quackenbosch the Immigrant arrived from Holland in 1653. At some point, his descendant and my ancestor, Peter, made his way to North Carolina. There’s been a bit a debate among researchers as to whether or not the Quackenbushes of North Carolina are related to the Quackenbosches of New York.

That debate pretty much ended when the DNA results came back – my father, my aunt and I all have multiple DNA-matched distant cousins who are descendants from BOTH branches. But, while it’s clear now that the two branches are related, no one really knows for sure the identity of Peter’s father and mother who presumably stayed behind in New York while he ventured south to North Carolina. That problem existed before the DNA results came in. (An expert on the Quackenbushes identified the most likely candidate for Peter’s father which is how I was able to calculate that Cousin Marty is my 4th cousin, 6x removed. Even if he’s picked the wrong male Quackenbush as his father – and there are fewer than 10 to choose from – the number of generations between Peter and Pieter is likely accurate.)

Martin Van Buren is also a descendant of Pieter Quackenbosch. Pieter’s daughter, Maritje, married Marten Cornelissen Van Buren. Essentially, Cousin Marty and I were both Quackenbushwhacked.

Secretly, I am hoping that my 4th presidential cousin is Rutherford B. Hayes. Back in elementary school, I drew his name from a hat and had to write a paper about him. Trust me. His middle initial stands for “Boring”. Perhaps if we’re related it might make that arduous essay I had to write about him worthwhile.

Kenfolk: Tranthams
Relation: 4th cousin, 6x removed
Common ancestors: Martin’s 3rd great grandfather, Pieter Quackenbosch, is my 9th great grandfather

Reference:
Andrew. A. S. Q. (1909). Quackenbush Family in Holland and America. Paterson, New Jersey: Quackenbush & Co.