Who's Your Coolest Ancestor?

[Dragonclaw]

My dad's cousin was the money man for Watergate

My great, great , great (dunno how many greats...) grandfather had to flee Germany for seducing the Kaiser's wife

 

[loc978]

Eh, my traceable ancestors aren't terribly interesting, as far back as I've been able to go (10th century or so, Norway, Germany and England... lots of raider's blood in me). My paternal grandfather, though... He never figured out who his father was, took his last name from one of his possible fathers when he was 16 and falsifying information so as to join the Marine Corps... he fought in the Pacific Theater, and wound up getting shipped home after charging a machine gun nest and taking a rather large bullet to the leg. If stories are to be believed, he managed to get a hand grenade in there, which enabled his platoon to storm the place successfully.
All I personally remember about the guy was the fact that he was bedridden the whole time I knew him, and his hand was bigger than my head. He died when I was five.

 

[LogicNProportion]

Ancient Rome is the site of my famous and venerated ancestor.

His name is Hadrian, a Roman Army officer under Scipio when Rome burned Carthage to the ground. Hadrian impressed Scipio so much, that Hadrian was appointed as a judge in a section of Rome.

 

[unicornninja]

Jesse James. The outlaw, gang leader, bank robber, train robber, and murderer not that biker douche.

 

[Magnesium360]

Well, Winston Churchill is certainly up there.

 

[PunkRex]

My second name is Smith... soooooooo yeah... take your pick, one of erms bound to be related.

 

[Singularly Datarific]

Some guy fought in the Civil War and wrote a book. I think he's on my mom's side.

 

[Chainsaw_Chuck]

Apparently, on my moms side, I'm decended from this Gunn [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweyn_Asleifsson] has never had a chief.

Personaly, I think it's bullshit, but it's still pretty fucking cool that my Viking last name means War in Old Norwegian and my first name is old Norwegian for Warrior (or so I've been told).

 

[TFielding]

On my mom's side, Giuseppe Garibaldi, a man with glorious facial hair, the likes of which the military has not seen in years. He also led the army that united Italy and fought a bunch of wars in South America.

 

[Yokai]

Well, there's a good chance I'm descended from Mary, Queen of Scots, but she wasn't all that badass.

More recently (and not technically an ancestor I suppose), my late uncle drove a tank through Europe and liberated a concentration camp. Probably not single-handedly, but he was one of the first in the gate. Afterwards, I guess because he'd arrived at the war a little late, he came back to the US and worked with Robert Kennedy to bring down various organized crime gangs. He tracked a mob boss to Cuba, where he got in a gunfight and narrowly missed being shot in the chest. He arrested the offending mafioso. All around a pretty cool guy.

Are all of you getting this from just a family record or do you have any online resources? I would love to find out my family heritage, but no one in my family ever kept track. All Ive got is back to my g-grandmother.

(Ancestory.com is not free, its a trial. I tried)

Yeah, I'd like to know too. My ancestors come from everywhere; the have to be more interesting stories, somewhere.

 

[Trildor]

I'm descended from someone who bought in the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa against the Moors, because my family coat of arms has a chain and according to Spanish heraldry laws only those who fought in that particular battle can have chains.

Also, I'm probably in some way related to Genoese explorer Juan Bautista Pastene.

 

[Bigsmith]

I'm not sure... but I believe that I'm related to Charles Babbage on my mothers side.

 

[PoliceBox63]

I haven't a notion thanks to the GPO getting destroyed during the Rising.

My great-Aunt did as much research as she could. I have no idea if I have any note-worthy ancestors...

 

[MissDK]

I am related to the royal family... Don't have any money though... Damnnit!

 

[punkrocker27]

My paternal grandparents, who were natives of Volgograd a.k.a. Stalingrad, are said to be descended from Genghis Khan by way of his grandson Batu Khan. Other relatives have a similar story to what Anarchemitis said.

 

[Programmed_For_Damage]

I am related to the royal family... Don't have any money though... Damnnit!

So are my stepkids believe it or not. Their father was related to Lady Diana Spencer somehow.

 

[Vault Citizen]

Jack Meyer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Meyer_(educator_and_cricketer)

my great grandfather. Started Millfield school, the list of famous people who went there can be found in the following link and includes a handul of princes, such people as John Sargent and Lily Allen

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Millfieldians#Notable_OMs

one time a parent said he would only send his son to his school if there was a pool (his son was going to be an olympic athlete), my grandpa lied and said the plans were on his desk. Immediatly after the phone call he went outside and told everyone to grab a shovel as they were digging a pool.