New Britain herald., 1924-01-25
FAMOUS MEN BORN
 IN CLOSE PROXIMITY
Ancestral Homes of Great Men in
 Small Area

Washington, n. c. Jan 24.--Tha
 BeniaSoin Frsnlllin's grandfather. wh,
 was '. blacksmith. may have piled hi!
 trade on horses owned hy the an
 cestsvs of George Washington and o
 John Adams and John Quincy Adams
 befyfe any members of these famous faJ<.ilies ever dreamed of trying theil Tosh hnes in America, is an interesting
 DO enibility developed by the discovery and recent purchase and dedication of the Adams ancestral home at F'loore Northamptonshre, less than ten miles from the Washington home at Sul- grave and the Franklin home at F,c- ton
 Not content with being the source -,f the Washington, Adams and Frank lin families, Northamptonshire. a small inland county only a trife larg- CT than Cook county, Illinois, over which Chicago spreads, also claims that within a ten-mile radius Of Sul- grave manor lived the ancestors of Henry W. Longfellow, the late War ren c. Harding, and William Penn, 2 says a bulletin Of the National Geo graphic society
 \ Notable Virginia Region,
 From @srthamptonshire and the counties to the north, Lincoln. York and Nottingham. came the main stream of pioneer English stock to settle and make America, but few places can challenge Northampton- shire's claim as an outstanding garden Of heroes and great minds,
 "0ne counterpart to Northampton- shire in the United States is to be found in Virginia. On a clear day one can stand on the watershed of the Blue Ridge Mountains at the in- fersection of Rockingham. Greene and Madison counties and see over a countryside containing the life-lo home of Madison, in Orange county. the birthplace of John Marshall at Midland, the birthplace Of Thomas Jefferson at Shadwell the birthplace ot Woodrow Wilson, at Staunton. the birthplace of Abraham Lincolns father at Broadway, the birthplace of John Sevier first governor of Ten nessee near Lacey Springs, and inc birthplace of Zachary Taylor near Orange
 Within radius of 7a miles from . point 43 miles northwest of Rich mond, Virginia, were born twenty three men whose names loom large in American history: George Washing. ton, James Monroe, Thomas Lishtfoot Lee, Richard Henry Lee and Robert F., Lee in WestmorelanJ county T., fin Orange county Lincoln's father and John Sevier, Rockingham county; Thomas Jefferson in Alhemarle coun- ". Henry Clay and Patrick Henry in Hanover county John Randolph, Chesterfield county, Woodrow VII. son in Augusta county George Ma son in Stafford county, John Tyler and Beniamin Harrison. Charles City County, General Winfield Scott Din widdie County, John Marshall, Fauauier County Sam Houston, Rock bridge County and three signers Of the Declaration of Independence, Car ter Draxton, King and Qnecn County John Penn. Caroline County, and George Walton, Frederick County.
 seven Presidents from Ohio
 Ohio has produced seven Presidents but she generously distributed tho honors to all parts Of tho State.
 Genealoeist delving into strata of society like reologists exploring gene rations of rocks, are discovering in Northamptonshire, and other distitcs of England, Scotland and Wales, what manner of men were these whose sons dared to cross 3.000 miles of ocean in tiny vessels 10 build new nation. They have found tnat not only was Eeniamin Franklin's grandfather 2 blacksmith. but that the noted philo. gopher. printer. postmaster general scientist. statesman came from q line of blscksmiths.
 The washingtons were wool mer- chants. William and Thomas Ram dolph, also Of Northsmptonshire. came to America to repair their for tunes which had been ruined by the Cromwell revolution. William Fenn's mother was 8 daughter of a Dutch merchant of Rotterdam and his father was an English admiral. Roger Williams is said by certain authori-