Washington family descendant could've been king
A genealogy Web site says it has found the king of America -- or rather, the descendant of George Washington's family who would have most likely held the title had the nation's first president been its first monarch instead.
Long live Paul Emerson Washington, 82, of San Antonio, a retired regional manager for a building supply company.
Paul Washington is the one among 8,000 possible Washington descendants that the chief family historian at Ancestry.com believes would currently hold the crown -- had there been one.
"He kind of won the sweepstakes," said Megan Smolenyak, with the genealogical research group.
George Washington had no children. He had an older half-brother, Augustine, and a younger brother, Samuel. Many descendants died young or as lifelong bachelors. Other Washington descendants had only daughters, Smolenyak said.
She ran four family lines to account for the two brothers and lines of succession with and without women inheriting the crown. She found that against improbable odds, two of the four lines led to Paul Washington.
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Long live Paul Emerson Washington, 82, of San Antonio, a retired regional manager for a building supply company.
Paul Washington is the one among 8,000 possible Washington descendants that the chief family historian at Ancestry.com believes would currently hold the crown -- had there been one.
"He kind of won the sweepstakes," said Megan Smolenyak, with the genealogical research group.
George Washington had no children. He had an older half-brother, Augustine, and a younger brother, Samuel. Many descendants died young or as lifelong bachelors. Other Washington descendants had only daughters, Smolenyak said.
She ran four family lines to account for the two brothers and lines of succession with and without women inheriting the crown. She found that against improbable odds, two of the four lines led to Paul Washington.