7th grader’s genealogy research shows most U.S. presidents are related
A summer school project by a seventh-grade student has sparked widespread fascination after she reportedly traced the family roots of nearly every United States president to a single medieval English monarch — King John of England, also known as John Lackland, who signed the historic Magna Carta in 1215.
The student, identified in reports as Bridge Anne de Avignon, spent several months constructing what is being described as one of the most comprehensive presidential family trees ever attempted. Her findings suggest that every U.S. president except one — Martin Van Buren — is distantly related, sharing common ancestry through King John Plantagenet.
A Different Approach to Genealogy
What set the project apart was the method. While many genealogical studies focus primarily on male lineage, the young researcher incorporated both male and female bloodlines, dramatically expanding the scope of the family tree.
By cross-referencing historical records and tracing ancestry through marriages and maternal lines, she reportedly analyzed more than half a million names, uncovering connections that had previously gone unnoticed.
One King, Centuries of Power
At the center of the discovery is King John of England (1166–1216), whose descendants spread across Europe and later to the Americas. According to the findings, numerous U.S. presidents — separated by centuries and political ideologies — share distant cousinship through this royal line.
Among those reportedly connected are:
George Washington, the first U.S. president
• Thomas Jefferson, principal author of the Declaration of Independence
• William Howard Taft, the only man to serve as both president and Chief Justice
• Barack Obama, the first African-American president of the United States
A key ancestral link frequently cited is Mildred Reade, who is said to be a first great-granddaughter of King John. She is reportedly the first great-grandmother of George Washington and the 10th great-grandmother of Barack Obama, illustrating how the same lineage spans vastly different eras of American history.
The Lone Exception
The only president not fitting into this ancestral web, according to the project, is Martin Van Buren, the eighth U.S. president. Van Buren was born to Dutch parents in New York, and his lineage reportedly does not trace back to King John or the English royal bloodline identified in the study.
Big Questions, Bigger Picture
While professional historians and genealogists note that claims of universal royal ancestry should always be approached with caution and independent verification, the project has nonetheless reignited public interest in genealogy, history, and the unexpected ways power and lineage intersect.
READ ALSO: The end of American history begins in America, by Hamid Dabashi
The idea that modern democratic leaders could share bloodlines with medieval royalty challenges conventional views of history and underscores how interconnected human ancestry truly is.
Whether ultimately confirmed or debated, one thing is clear: a middle school summer project has managed to get the world talking — and looking at history just a little differently.
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