List of Americans of English descent explained

This is a list of notable Americans of English descent, including both original immigrants who obtained American citizenship and their American descendants.

To be included in this list, the person must have a Wikipedia article showing they are English American or must have references showing they are English American and are notable.

List

Visual artists

Assassins, outlaws, and criminals

Astronauts

Astronomers

Directors, producers

Descendants of Mayflower passengers

Actors

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I-J

K

L

M

N-O

P-Q

R

S

T

U-V

W-Z

Authors and writers

Musicians

Entrepreneurs, executives

First Ladies of the United States

(in order by their husband's presidency)

Governors of states

Historical figures

Mormon pioneers

Inventors

Journalists

Military

Models

Political figures

American pornographic film actors

Presidents of the United States

A number of the presidents of the United States have English ancestry. The extent of English ancestry varies in the presidents with earlier presidents being predominantly of colonial English Yankee stock. Later U.S. presidents ancestry can often be traced to ancestors from multiple nations in Europe, including England.

George Washington (English)
  • 1st President 1789–97 (great-grandfather, John Washington from Purleigh, Essex, England)[50] [51]
    John Adams (English)
  • 2nd President 1797–1801 (great-great-grandfather, Henry Adams, born 1583, Barton St David, Somerset, England, immigrated to Boston, Massachusetts)[52]
    Thomas Jefferson (English)
  • 3rd President 1801–1809 (maternal English ancestry from William Randolph)
    James Madison (English)
  • 4th President 1809–17[53]
    John Quincy Adams (English)
  • 6th President 1825–29 (Henry Adams born 1583 Barton St David, Somerset, England)[52]
    William Henry Harrison (English)
  • 9th President 1841–1841[54]
    John Tyler (English)
  • 10th President 1841–1845[55]
    Zachary Taylor (English)
  • 12th President 1849–50
    Millard Fillmore (English)
  • 13th President 1850–1853[56]
    Franklin Pierce (English)
  • 14th President 1853–1857[57]
    Abraham Lincoln (English and Welsh)
  • 16th President 1861–65 (Samuel Lincoln baptised 1622 in Hingham, Norfolk, England, died in Hingham, Massachusetts).[58] [59]
    Andrew Johnson (Scotch-Irish and English)
  • 17th President 1865–1869[60]
    Ulysses S. Grant (Scotch-Irish, Scottish, and English)
  • 18th President 1869–77
    Rutherford Hayes (English)
  • 19th President 1877–1881[61]
    James A. Garfield (English and French)
  • 20th President 1881–81[62]
    Chester A. Arthur (Scotch-Irish and English)
  • 21st President 1881–85
    Grover Cleveland (Scotch-Irish and English)
  • 22nd and 24th President 1885–89, 1893–97
    Benjamin Harrison (Scotch-Irish and English)
  • 23rd President 1889–93
    William McKinley (Scotch-Irish, English and German)
  • 25th President 1897–1901
    Theodore Roosevelt (Dutch, Scottish, English and Scotch-Irish)
  • 26th President 1901–1909
    William Howard Taft (English)
  • 27th President 1909–1913
    Warren G. Harding (English, Scottish, Dutch and Welsh)
  • 29th President 1921–23
    Calvin Coolidge (English)
  • 30th President 1923–1929[63]
    Herbert Hoover (German, Swiss, Scots-Irish, English)
  • 31st President 1929–1933
    Franklin D. Roosevelt (English, Dutch and Scottish)
  • 32nd President 1933–45
    Harry S Truman (Scotch-Irish, English and German)
  • 33rd President 1945–53
    Lyndon B. Johnson (English, Scotch-Irish and German)
  • 36th President 1963–69
    Richard Nixon (English and Scotch-Irish)
  • 37th President 1969–74
    Gerald Ford (English)
  • 38th President 1974–77
    Jimmy Carter (Scotch-Irish and English)
  • 39th President 1977–81 (Thomas Carter Sr. emigrated from England to Isle of Wight County, Virginia)[64]
    Ronald Reagan (Scotch-Irish, Irish, English & Scottish)
  • 40th President 1981–1989[65]
    George H. W. Bush (Scotch-Irish and English)
  • 41st President 1989–93
    Bill Clinton (Scotch-Irish and English)
  • 42nd President 1993–2001
    George W. Bush (Scotch-Irish and English)
  • 43rd President 2001–2009 (Reynold Bush from Messing, Essex, England emigrated in 1631 to Cambridge, Massachusetts)[66]
    Barack Obama (Luo, English)
  • 44th President 2009–2017 (his mother Ann Dunham's heritage is mostly English)[67]
    Joe Biden (Irish, French, and English)
  • 46th President 2021-present (William Biden from Sussex, England emigrated before 1822 to Baltimore, Maryland)

    Vice presidents of the United States

    Religious figures

    Members of the United States House of Representatives

    Scientists, researchers

    Senators

    Sports

    United States Supreme Court justices

    Other

    Notes and References

    1. Web site: Famous Descendants of Mayflower Passengers . MayflowerHistory.com . 2010-03-10 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20091216114501/http://www.mayflowerhistory.com/Genealogy/famousdescendants.php . 2009-12-16.
    2. Web site: Cardiac kid: Nick Folk gets pumping again. August 20, 2010.
    3. News: Meet John Howland, a lucky Pilgrim — and maybe your ancestor . . Mark . Pratt . November 26, 2015 . June 1, 2022.
    4. Web site: Ancestry of Bill Richardson.
    5. Web site: Allen and Riegert tend to the 'White Irish Drinkers'.
    6. Catch up with Johnny Tsunami Brandon Baker. . July 15, 2007 . live. https://web.archive.org/web/20070715140607/https://ew.com/ew/article/0,,20041653,00.html.
    7. Web site: Zach Braff and Mitt Romney 'related through a witch' . March 2, 2012 . Storyful . 2013-03-09 . dead . https://archive.today/20120721002139/http://staging.storyful.com/stories/21372 . 2012-07-21.
    8. Web site: Jenna Dewan's Fan Q&A on Twitter and New Photos at Nylon Magazine's TV Issue Launch Party . August 26, 2009 . Channing Tatum Unwrapped . 2012-10-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130823201744/http://channingtatumunwrapped.com/2009/08/jenna-dewans-new-photos-at-nylon-magazines-tv-issue-launch-party-fan-qa-on-twitter/ . 2013-08-23 . dead .
    9. Web site: Stammbaum Hasselhoff . abenteuer-ahnenforschung.de . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20131029185919/http://www.abenteuer-ahnenforschung.de/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Stammbaum-Hasselhoff.pdf . 2013-10-29.
    10. Web site: WHAT TO WATCH.
    11. Web site: You Made It Weird #132: Jen Kirkman – Nerdist. March 8, 2013. October 30, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131101233652/http://www.nerdist.com/2013/03/you-made-it-weird-132-jen-kirkman/. November 1, 2013. dead.
    12. Web site: Nalea J. Ko . May 9, 2011 . Actress Hayley Kiyoko says her motto of 'staying true' to herself has been key in keeping her humble as she gains more fame in Hollywood . Pacific Citizen . 2011-09-30 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20111108210448/http://www.pacificcitizen.org/node/899 . 2011-11-08.
    13. Web site: Sidekick supreme.
    14. Web site: This girl's no slouch. New York Daily News.
    15. Web site: American Ancestors - Burlington, MA Native Amy Poehler has Interesting Family Ties . www.americanancestors.org . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20101025105644/http://americanancestors.org/Blogs.aspx?id=21719&blogid=98434 . 2010-10-25.
    16. Web site: mstarareid.com.
    17. Web site: British Film, TV and Music News – HuffPost Entertainment UK.
    18. Web site: EXCLUSIVE: 'Psych' Star James Roday Explains Why He Changed His Latino Last Name for Hollywood.
    19. http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/film-cinema/always-the-bridesmaid-2677666.html# Her attraction to British and Irish comics clearly stems from her roots – her father is Irish-Norwegian, her mother English- Scottish.
    20. Web site: Crusoe's Philip Winchester Previews NBC's New Island Adventure. October 17, 2008.
    21. http://www.survivalblog.com/biographies.html biography
    22. http://www.michaelzwilliamson.com/bio.php biography
    23. Airplane's Dryden dies . Rolling Stone . August 29, 2010. https://web.archive.org/web/20080112092639/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/newridersofthepurplesage/articles/story/6840281/airplanes_dryden_dies . January 12, 2008. dead.
    24. Conversations from the Edge with Carrie Fisher. Courtney Love. 2002-03-03. Oxygen.
    25. Web site: Reba McEntire Discovers Ancestors Were Indentured Servants + More on 'Who Do You Think You Are?'. March 3, 2012 .
    26. https://www.xonecole.com/meet-summer-walker-your-favorite-artists-favorite-artist/she-s-always-wanted-to-make-herb-infused-soaps
    27. Web site: Introduction.
    28. Web site: John Brown, American Abolitionist.
    29. Web site: Ascendants de Félicie Anaïs Faure.
    30. Web site: Jimmy Carter Genealogical Information. Horowitz. Alan. www.jimmycarterlibrary.org. 2018-08-19.
    31. News: Hillary Clinton's British relatives tell of their shock at their celebrity cousin. Daily Telegraph. Alexander. Harriet. 2015-06-04. 2018-08-19. en-GB. 0307-1235.
    32. News: What Is the Real Story Behind Hillary Clinton's Ancestry? – Ancestry Blog. 2015-06-26. Ancestry Blog. 2018-08-19. en-US.
    33. News: Hillary Clinton's English mining roots. Briggs. Caroline. 2016-11-04. BBC News. 2018-08-19. en-GB.
    34. Web site: Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum. www.fordlibrarymuseum.gov. 2018-08-19.
    35. Book: Burner, David. Herbert Hoover, a public life. 1979 . Knopf. 0394461347. 1st. New York. 4193277. registration.
    36. Web site: Lyndon B. Johnson. https://web.archive.org/web/20131113124726/http://hoover.archives.gov/exhibits/cottages/middleclass/johnson.html. dead. 2013-11-13. 2013-11-13. 2018-08-19.
    37. Web site: The Ancestry of Richard Milhous Nixon.
    38. News: Barack Obama's English relatives whose lives are a world apart from the White House. Daily Telegraph. Jamieson. Richard Gray and Alastair. 2009-03-07. 2018-08-19. en-GB. 0307-1235.
    39. News: Our Non-Anglo-Saxon Presidents. NBC Chicago. 2018-08-19. en.
    40. News: Who is Henry Paulson? Bio, Political career, Net worth, Personal life, Early life, Facts. Feed Weekly. 2018-08-19. en-US.
    41. News: Check Out Ronald Reagan's Family Tree. ThoughtCo. 2018-08-19.
    42. News: Your Genetic Genealogist . Episode 7: Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr., DNA . August 20, 2018 . Dr. https://web.archive.org/web/20200329044501/http://www.yourgeneticgenealogist.com/2012/04/finding-your-roots-with-henry-louis_30.html . March 29, 2020 . live .
    43. News: . Samuel L. Jackson, Condoleezza Rice and Ruth Simmons . April 29, 2012 . August 20, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190903064328/https://www.pbs.org/video/finding-your-roots-samuel-l-jackson-condoleezza-rice-and-ruth-simmons/ . September 3, 2019 . live .
    44. Book: Rice . Condoleezza. Democracy: Stories from the Long Road to Freedom. 2017 . Grand Central Publishing. New York. 9781455540181. 27.
    45. News: Growing up with Condoleezza Rice. Emma. Beck. BBC News. February 28, 2005. September 25, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20180916043741/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4302605.stm. September 16, 2018. live.
    46. Web site: 2015-07-04 . risch . https://web.archive.org/web/20150704173920/http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~battle/senators/risch.htm . dead . 2015-07-04 . 2024-03-15 .
    47. News: Tracing Lineage of American Presidents. GORMLEY. MYRA VANDERPOOL. 1989-07-06. Los Angeles Times. 2018-08-19. en-US. 0458-3035.
    48. Web site: Truman Library: ROOTED IN HISTORY: The Genealogy of Harry S. Truman. www.trumanlibrary.org. 2018-08-19.
    49. News: Caspar W. Weinberger Dies at 88. Stout. David. The New York Times . March 28, 2006 . 2018-08-19. en.
    50. Web site: George Washington . American Heritage . 2017-08-21 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100710153430/http://www.americanheritage.com/people/presidents/washington_george.shtml . 2010-07-10.
    51. Book: Historic Homes of the American Presidents. Irvin Haas. 1992. Courier Dover Publications. 0-486-26751-2.
    52. Web site: Pedigree of: Henry Adams c1583-1646 . Concentric.net . 2009-11-19 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100324201502/http://www.concentric.net/~pvb/GEN/hadam.html . 2010-03-24.
    53. Web site: James Madison . American Heritage . 2010-02-14 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20101212053206/http://www.americanheritage.com/people/presidents/madison_james.shtml . 2010-12-12.
    54. Web site: William Henry Harrison . American Heritage . 2010-02-14 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100102161455/http://americanheritage.com/people/presidents/harrison_william.shtml . 2010-01-02.
    55. Web site: John Tyler . American Heritage . 2017-08-21 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100102162841/http://www.americanheritage.com/people/presidents/tyler_john.shtml . 2010-01-02.
    56. Web site: Millard Fillmore . American Heritage . 2017-08-21 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100511125604/http://www.americanheritage.com/people/presidents/fillmore_millard.shtml . 2010-05-11.
    57. Web site: Franklin Pierce . American Heritage. 2010-02-14 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100206130120/http://www.americanheritage.com/people/presidents/pierce_franklin.shtml . 2010-02-06.
    58. https://books.google.com/books?id=5jlOsSwW85cC&dq=%22swanton+morley%22+lincoln+norfolk&pg=PA13 The Ancestry of Abraham Lincoln, James Henry Lea, Robert Hutchinson, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 1909
    59. Web site: Ancestors of Abraham Lincoln.
    60. Web site: Andrew Johnson . American Heritage. 2017-08-21 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100511125618/http://www.americanheritage.com/people/presidents/johnson_andrew.shtml . 2010-05-11.
    61. Web site: Ruthorford Hayes . American Heritage . 2010-02-14 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100102163641/http://americanheritage.com/people/presidents/hayes_rutherford.shtml . 2010-01-02.
    62. Web site: James Garfield . American Heritage . 2010-02-14 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100102162649/http://americanheritage.com/people/presidents/garfield_james.shtml . 2010-01-02.
    63. Web site: Calvin Coolidge . American Heritage. 2010-02-14 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100102163013/http://americanheritage.com/people/presidents/coolidge_calvin.shtml . 2010-01-02.
    64. Web site: Jimmy Carter Library – maintained by fanboy Alan Horowitz.
    65. Web site: Ronald Reagan . American Heritage . 2010-07-13 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100710153910/http://www.americanheritage.com/people/presidents/reagan_ronald.shtml . 2010-07-10.
    66. News: George W Bush, Essex boy. November 7, 2000 . BBC News.
    67. Web site: Ancestry of Barack Obama.
    68. Web site: 2015-07-04 . risch . https://web.archive.org/web/20150704173920/http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~battle/senators/risch.htm . dead . 2015-07-04 . 2024-03-15 .
    69. Web site: UFC 'can become an Olympic sport'. Gareth A. Davies. January 14, 2009 .
    70. https://www.oyez.org/oyez/resource/legal_entity/102/print
    71. Web site: Ancestry of William Rehnquist.

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