Ancestry Saturday: A Most Memorable Jeremiah Shontz Twist

The last two weeks, I've written about Revolutionary War Patriot Jeremiah Shontz and the Albany, New York connection that my Dad never knew. If he knew, he would have said because the connection is quite memorable.

That's because Jeremiah's first cousin once removed would become President of the United States. 

The first U.S. President born on U.S. soil and, ironically, the only President for whom English was not his primary language was my dad's third cousin, four times removed. That's Martin Van Buren.

The Dutch-speaking, U.S.-born Van Buren was a one-term President from 1837-1841 after serving as Vice President and Secretary of State to Andrew Jackson, U.S. Senator from New York, and Governor of New York.

Here's how it connects. Jeremiah Shontz' mother was Catelyntje VanBuren Shontz.  Her father, Marten Cornelissen VanBuren, was the President's great great grandfather.  We know this because the late President wrote about his family history in his memoirs.

The Shontz great great grandmother that my Dad knew only by her surname, Miranda Shontz Smith, was third cousin to the President.

All these folks lived in the Albany, New York area where my dad lived for the last eight years of his life.  The VanBurens were among the early Dutch settlers of Fort Orange, predecessor to Albany.

If he had only known. . .