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March 30, 2008
What's in a Name?
I've gotten a number of queries about Alden's name. First and foremost, Robbi and I like the name and how it sounds. Second, and, I suppose, the reason we know about the name in the first place, is that Alden is my middle name. Alden is my middle name because my paternal grandmother, Mary Swanson, has done a great deal of genealogical research into the Swanson past, and discovered that we are, in fact, descended from John Alden.
Who is John Alden, you ask?
I will direct you to the Wikipedia entry for the full story, but John Alden was one of the Mayflower Pilgrims and original founders of Plymouth Colony. He is remembered primarily for being a character in the poem The Courtship of Miles Standish, written by Longfellow, who was a descendant of Alden's. In the poem, Alden woos his eventual wife Patricia Mullins on behalf of his pal Miles Standish but then ends up with the girl himself.
John and Priscilla had a lot of kids and ten who survived to adulthood (including John's son John, who was accused during the Salem witch trials). Theirs is the largest of the original pilgrim families, and so their family tree has many branches and many people trace their lineage back to John Alden.
My Alden, for example.
And Longfellow, of course.
Can you see the family resemblance?
Both John and John Quincy Adams.
Orson Welles
It's like I'm looking at a photo of my daughter.
Dick Van Dyke
Julia Child
A couple of other guys.
Marilyn Monroe
Racquel Welch
And every last one of the Baldwin brothers.
It's an awesome responsibility, being related to the Baldwins, the Bushes, and (possibly) a witch. I only hope that Alden can stand up under the withering pressure. She is already saddled with the indignity of being related to me.
Posted by bogenamp at March 30, 2008 11:22 PM