Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1933-03-04
ROOSEVELT LINKED
TO TWO PRESIDENTS
Incoming Executive Related
to 1T. r." Grant and
Other Notables.
BY HI. r. SMALLEY.

Others will write much OF every
phase of the life and works OF Franklin
Delano Roosevelt, from his educatlon
and early training. to what he likes 1or
breakfast, and how he spends his eve
nfngS.
l shall only attempt to present a orleI
sketch of the forbears of the thirty
second President of the United States,
to show his exact relationship to the
twenty-siXth President and the eight
zenith President, and to other famlneS
and individuals of distinction. 1t would
he difficult to understand how anyone
with such a rare combination OF an
cestors as Mr.. Roosevelt has could be
prevented from making his mark IN the
world. -
great Theodore has been much dis
cussed, and the fifth cousinship as
sumed a prominence during the last
presidential campaign somewhat out OF
proportion to its true slgnl1cance: 1
venture the suggestion that if Franklin
d Rooseyelts name had been Smith
and he had not married Theodore
Roosevelts niece he himself might not
have known of the fifth cousinship.
Both in Seventh Generation.
The founder Of the Roosevelt family
In America was ClaeS MartensZen Van
Rosenyelt, who came from iceland, Hol-
land, to New Amsterdam NOW New
York; in 1649. Both Franklin d. ana
T. R. are in the seventh generatlon
from Claes. His son, Nicholas, was born
In New Amsterdam in 1858 and died
in 1742. Nicholas was evidently a man
Of some Importance in the community
and perhaps the original Democrat OF
the family, for it is recorded he opposed
the aristocratic party under the Leisler
regime. He was elected alderman three
times. namely, in 100, 170l and 17l5.
He took unto himself a thoroughly
Dutch bride, Heyltje Jams Kunst, In
1882, and reared family OF nine chill
dren-four bows and five girls. TWO OF
the sons, Johannes and Jacobus, are OF
interest to us, because they are the an
cestors respectively, Of the tWenty-slXtn
and thirty-second President OF the
United States.
Between Johannes and Theodore on
the one hand and Jacobus and Frank
lin on the other there are four genera
lions, comprising the first, second,
third and fourth cousins. In Theo-
dore's line these generations we're
,Jacobus, Jacobus, Cornelius and Theo-
dore. while the corresponding genera
tions in Franklin's line were-1saac,
Jacobus. Isaac and James. Thus the
late President and the President In
herited an equal quantity OF the blood
of Nicholas the son of Claes Marten-
szen, namely, 3ls per cent. The other
967s per cent of blood OF these TWO
famous men came from ancestral INES
other than Roosevelt. Genetlclsts
claim, however, that physical or mental
attributes or both may be passed down
very strong and prepotent ancestor. In
the Roosevelt line the most common
physical feature would appear to be
the rather prominent and well formed
teeth that are to be seen IN nearly
every Roosevelt mouth.
Dutch Line Continued.
Locking over the two Roosevelt lines
we discover that the pure Dutch blood
carries down farther in Theodore's than
in Franklins line. In Theodore's line
all of the Roosevelts from Claes Mar
tenszen down to and including Jacobus
in the fifth generation married INTO
other Dutch families. The first name
of Claes Martenszen's wife was jeanette,
last name not definitely known. His
son Nicholas married Heyltje JAMS
Kunst. Johannes married Heyltje SJvertS,
Jacobus married Annette Bogard and
his son Jacobus. T. RS great grand
father. married Maria Van Setback.
Cornelius Van Setback Roosevelt, Theo-
dores grandfather married Elizabeth
Barnhill of Philadelphia and Theodores
father also named Theodore, married
Martha Bulloch, daughter of Maj:
James S. Bulloch OF Georgia and
grand daughter of Gen. Daniel Stewart
of the Revolution.
L. lit,'c inn q
of Claes Martenszen, married Catherine
Hardenbroek, and his son Isaac married
Cornelia Hoffman, of Dutch and
Huguenot ancestry Jacobus married
Maria Eliza Walton, daughter OF
Admiral Gerard Walton, F. DIS great
great-grandfather. and from whom he
no doubt inherited some of his love for
the sea. Isaac Roosevelt, son OF
Jacobus and grandfather Of the Presi-
dent, married Mary Rebecca Aspinwall,
daughter of John Aspinwall, and grand
daughter of Capt. John Aspinwall. a
sea captain who commanded vessels
out of New York long before the Revolu..
ton and who died In 1774. Like Admiral
Gerard Walton, Capt. John Aspinwall
was at-great-grandfathe OF
Franklin Roosevelt. On his mothers
side. Capt. Joseph Church, another
great eat-grandtather was also a
mariner Thus at least three OF Mi.
Roosevelt's eight great-great-g
fathers were seataring MEL.
Ancestor on Mayfiower.
Mary Rebecca Aspinwall, grand
mother of F. D., was a granddaughter
of Joseph Rowland, a descendant in the
fifth generation Of John Rowland, a
MayfioWer passenger and thirteenth
signer of the Mayilower Compact. AS
we shall see later. another of Franklin's
ancestors came over on the MayhoWer.
and still another came to Plymouth
in 1921.
And now we come to James Roose-
welt, son of Isaac and father of the
President. He was born July 16, 1928.
at Hyde Park, where his father had
lived and died. He was graduated
from Union College and from Harvard,
entered business and was very success
full. He was connected with many
enterprises, chiefly in banking and
transportation. He was president of
the Champlain Transportation Co., an
incorpo1 ator of the City Trust Co.,
trustee of the Farmers Loan and Trust
Co.. vice president of the Delaware and
Hudson Canal Co. and an officer OF a
steel company. He was also interested
in many railroads. He was member
of the Holland Society, and of the
University. Metropolitan, Century, Man
haitian and other clubs. He married
first Rebecca Rowland. and to this
union one child, James Roosevelt Roose-
welt, was born His first wife died In
1876, and in 1880 he married Sarah
Delano Their son and only child.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, was born
January 80, 1882. His father died
December 8, 1900.
The Roosevelts in nearly every
generation have been willing to devote
some time to public service, though few
of them have made it a life work. In
Theodore's line we find that Johannes
in the third generation was assistant
alderman, TIT to 1927, and alderman.
1880 to 1893. His son JacobuS served
, in the Revolution as private, and
. Iaaol,,,r 0nd O cI1ncecSfIl r,aercha Mt