The Bush family is an American political family that has played a prominent role in American politics since the 1950s, foremost as the first family of the United States from 1989 to 1993 and again from 2001 to 2009, during the respective presidencies of George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. They also played prominent roles in areas of American news, sports, entertainment, and business. They were also the second family of the United States from 1981 to 1989, when George H. W. Bush was vice president. The Bush family is one of four families to have produced two presidents of the United States by the same surname; the others were the Adams, Roosevelt, and Harrison families.
Best known for their involvement in politics, family members have held various national and state offices spanning across four generations, including that of U.S. senator (Prescott Bush); governor (Jeb Bush and George W. Bush); and president (George H. W. Bush, who had previously served as vice president, and George W. Bush). Other family members include a National Football League (NFL) executive (Joe Ellis) and two nationally known television personalities (Billy Bush and Jenna Bush Hager).
The Bush family is of primarily English and German descent. The Bush family traces its European origin to the 17th century, with Samuel Bush being their first American-born ancestor, in 1647.[1] According to the Swedish Colonial Society, the Bush family also has Swedish ancestry, going back ten generations to a Swedish farmer named Måns Andersson who migrated from Gothenburg to New Sweden (Delaware).[2][3]
Dorothy Wear Walker Bush (1901–1992), wife of Prescott, was a daughter of George Herbert Walker of the well-connected Walker family of bankers and businessmen, served as informal First Mother from 1989, her son's inauguration during the beginning of his presidency until her death in 1992, in her son's final year of the presidency. Her brothers are George Herbert Walker Jr. and John M. Walker
Prescott Sheldon "Pressy" Bush Jr. (1922–2010), Prescott Bush's eldest son, who served as chairman of the United States-China Chamber of Commerce; married to Elizabeth "Beth" Kauffman (1922–2014) on December 30, 1944[4][5]
Prescott Sheldon Bush III (1945–2009), son of Prescott Bush Jr.; married to Francesca Emerson Farr on June 28, 1970[6]
Kelsey Bush-Nadeau, daughter of Prescott Bush Jr.; married to Philip Gerald Nadeau on May 25, 1974[7][8]
Elizabeth Nadeau, daughter of Kelsey Bush-Nadeau
Katherine Nadeau, daughter of Kelsey Bush-Nadeau
William F. Nadeau, son of Kelsey Bush-Nadeau
Prescott Nadeau, son of Kelsey Bush-Nadeau
James Laurence "Jamie" Bush, son of Prescott Bush Jr.; married to Susan C. "Sue" Bush
Sarah Bush Richey, daughter of James L. Bush; married to William "Drake" Richey
Barbara Pierce Bush Coyne (born 1981), daughter of George and Laura Bush and twin sister of Jenna, health care activist and chair of Global Health Corps.; married to Craig Louis Coyne
Cora Georgia Coyne (born September 27, 2021), daughter of Barbara Bush Coyne
Edward Finn Coyne (born August 4, 2024), son of Barbara Bush Coyne
Prescott Walker Bush (born June 3, 2013), son of George P. Bush
John William Bush (born April 13, 2015), son of George P. Bush
Noelle Lucila Bush (born 1977), daughter of Jeb Bush
John Ellis "Jebby" Bush Jr. (born 1983), son of Jeb Bush; married to Sandra Mary Algudady
Georgia Helena Walker Bush (born August 13, 2011), daughter of Jebby Bush
Vivian Alexandra Columba Bush (born 2014), daughter of Jebby Bush
Neil Mallon Bush (born 1955), third son of George H. W. Bush; businessman; married Sharon Smith, & divorced in April 2003; married to Maria Andrews as of 2004[update]
James Richard Lauren (born November 21, 2015), son of Lauren Bush Lauren and David Lauren
Max Walker Lauren (born April 19, 2018), son of Lauren Bush Lauren and David Lauren
Robert Rocky Lauren (born April 10, 2021), son of Lauren Bush Lauren and David Lauren
Pierce Mallon Bush (born 1986), son of Neil Bush and Sharon Smith; married to Sarahbeth Melton
Adeline Grace Elizabeth Bush (born April 21, 2021), daughter of Pierce Bush
Ashley Walker Bush (born 1989), daughter of Neil Bush and Sharon Smith. Married to Julian LeFevre on March 2, 2019.
Marvin Pierce Bush (born 1956), fourth son of George H. W. Bush; venture capitalist; married to Margaret Conway (née Molster); adopted two children
Marshall Lloyd Bush (born May 14, 1986), adopted daughter of Marvin Pierce Bush. Married to Nick Rossi on November 21, 2015.
Charles Walker Bush (born December 12, 1989), adopted son of Marvin Pierce Bush. Married to Lora Benoit on November 24, 2020.
Dorothy Walker Bush Koch (born 1959), second daughter of George H. W. Bush; married to, and in 1990 divorced from, William LeBlond; married to Bobby Koch, wine lobbyist
Samuel Bush LeBlond (born 1984), son of Dorothy Bush Koch and William LeBlond; married to Lee Bobbitt
Nancy Ellis "Ellie" LeBlond (born 1986), daughter of Dorothy Bush Koch and William LeBlond; married to Nick Sosa
Dorothy Ann "Dotty" Sosa (born August 25, 2020)
Robert David Koch (born 1993), son of Dorothy Bush Koch and Bobby Koch. Married to Katherine "Kitty" Montesi on November 13, 2021.
Georgia Grace "Gigi" Koch (born 1996), daughter of Dorothy Bush Koch and Bobby Koch
Nancy Walker Bush Ellis (1926–2021), Prescott Bush Sr.'s third child and only daughter, widow of Alexander Ellis II (1922–1989), an insurance executive
Nancy Walker Ellis Black, daughter of Nancy Bush Ellis and Alexander Ellis II
Alexander Ellis III (born 1949), son of Nancy Bush Ellis and Alexander Ellis II
John Prescott Ellis (born February 3, 1953), son of Nancy Bush Ellis and Alexander Ellis II; media consultant; married to Susan Smith Ellis
Caroline Ellis
Jack Ellis
Josiah "Joe" Ellis (born 1958), son of Nancy Bush Ellis and Alexander Ellis II; President, Chairman and CEO of the Denver Broncos, two-time Super Bowl champion as a member of the Broncos' front office
Josiah Ellis
Zander Ellis
Catherine Ellis
Jonathan James Bush (1931–2021), Prescott Bush Sr.'s fourth child; banker; married to Josephine Bush (née Bradley)
Jonathan S. Bush (born March 10, 1969), son of Jonathan Bush, CEO of athenahealth; divorced from Sarah Selden; married to Fay Bush in September 2018
Lucas Bush, son of Jonathan S. Bush
Izzy Bush (born September 20, 1997), daughter of Jonathan S. Bush
Nicola Bush, daughter of Jonathan S. Bush
Anna Bush, daughter of Jonathan S. Bush
Oscar Bush, son of Jonathan S. Bush
Willa R. Bush (born January 2019), daughter of Jonathan S. Bush and Fay Bush
Josie Bush (born August 29, 1998), daughter of Billy Bush and Sydney Bush
Mary Bradley Bush (born November 29, 2000), daughter of Billy Bush and Sydney Bush
Lillie Bush (born October 17, 2004), daughter of Billy Bush and Sydney Bush
William Henry Trotter "Bucky" Bush (1938–2018), Prescott Bush Sr.'s fifth child; married to Patricia Bush (née Redfearn, 1938–2015); banker and executive
William Prescott "Scott" Bush (born 1964), son of Bucky Bush;[10] married to Linsday Bush
Alex Bush (born December 29, 1996), son of Scott Bush
Kat Bush, daughter of Scott Bush
Louisa Bush McCall (born 1970), daughter of Bucky Bush[10]
Ancestors
Patrilineal line
John Bush Sr (1510–1590)
John Bush Jr (1535–1595)
Reynold Bush (1566–1602)
John Bush III (1593–1670), born in Messing, Essex, England and the last English ancestor[11]
Winston Churchill (1874–1965), British Prime Minister, is the sixth great grandson of Robert Coe, making Churchill and George W. Bush seventh cousins twice removed.[19][20]
Edith Wilson (1872–1961), second wife of U.S. President Woodrow Wilson was also descended from Col. Robert Bolling Sr. so therefore was distantly related to the Bush family.
Through John May and his wife Prudence Bridge (great-great-grandparents of Obadiah Newcomb Bush), the family is related to U.S. Attorney General Charles Bonaparte (1851–1921), U.S. Vice President Charles Gates Dawes (1865–1951), actress Blanche Oelrichs (who was also known by the pseudonym "Michael Strange") (1890–1950), and author Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888).[21]
Connections to other prominent families
George Herbert "Bert" Walker (1875–1953) was a wealthy American banker and businessman. His daughter Dorothy married Prescott Bush, making him the maternal grandfather of the 41st President George H. W. Bush and the great-grandfather of the 43rd President George W. Bush. He is also the namesake of the Walker Cup, a men's amateur golf trophy contested in odd-numbered years between a U.S. team and a combined Great Britain and Ireland side.
^"President George W Bush Genealogy & Family History".
^"President Bush has Swedish ancestors". Hindustan Times. 2006-04-03. Retrieved 2023-07-15.
^"George W Bush har svenska rötter" [George W Bush has Swedish roots]. SVT (in Swedish). 2006-04-03. Retrieved 2023-07-15.
^CurrentObituary.com. "Prescott Sheldon Bush, Jr. - Obituary - Hingham, MA - PYNE KEOHANE FUNERAL HOME - CurrentObituary.com". www.currentobituary.com. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
^"Beth Bush, 91; Community Activist, Widow of Prescott Bush II". Greenwich, CT Patch. 3 March 2014. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
^"Francesca Farr Is Bride Of Prescott S. Bush 3d". The New York Times. 28 June 1970. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
^"May Bridal Set By Miss Bush, Philip Nadeau". The New York Times. 17 March 1974. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
^"Philip Gerald Nadeau Marries Kelsey Bush". The New York Times. 26 May 1974. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
^Cirilli, Kevin (20 June 2015). "Blunt Barbara Bush tells Jeb: You're not my favorite son". The Hill. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
^ a b"The Hartford Courant". Patricia Bush obituary. November 15, 2015. Retrieved 2024-02-12.
^Obituaries, Telegraph (13 March 2020). "Hugh Peskett, genealogist described as the 'Sherlock Holmes of the family tree' – obituary". The Telegraph.
^"Samuel Bush". geni_family_tree. 7 May 1647. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
^"Richard Bush". geni_family_tree. 1695. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
^"Captain Timothy Bush, Sr". geni_family_tree. June 1728. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
^"Timothy Bush, Jr". geni_family_tree. April 1766. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
^"Obadiah Newcomb Bush". geni_family_tree. 28 January 1797. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
^"Rev. James Smith Bush". geni_family_tree. 15 June 1825. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
^Page, Susan (2019). The matriarch: Barbara Bush and the making of an American dynasty (First ed.). New York: Twelve. ISBN 978-1-5387-1364-8. OCLC 1032584246.
^ a bTaraborrelli, J. Randy (2021). Grace & steel: Dorothy, Barbara, Laura, and the women of the Bush dynasty (First ed.). New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 978-1-250-24871-8.
^ a bBartlett, J. Gardner (1911). Robert Coe, Puritan. Published for private circulation. ISBN 9780598765826.
^Kelly, Jacqueline. "The Untold Story of Mary Ayer Parker: Gossip and Confusion in 1692." Archived February 2, 2009, at the Wayback Machine Revised for presentation at the Berkshire Conference. June 2005.
^Robinson, Enders A. "Salem Witchcraft and Hawthorne's House of Seven Gables." pp. 251–5. Bowie, Md.: Heritage Books. 1992.
^Herskowitz, Mickey (2003), "Bush Family Tree", Duty, Honor, Country: The Life and Legacy of Prescott Bush, Thomas Nelson, p. 9, ISBN 9781401600099
^Harrison, Bruce (2005), The Family Forest Descendants of Lady Joan Beaufort, Kamuela, Hawaii: Millisecond Publishing Company, Inc.[permanent dead link]
^Kelley, Kitty (2004), "Bush / Walker / Pierce / Robinson / Family Tree" (PDF), The Family: The Real Story of the Bush Dynasty, Random House, ISBN 9781407095691
^Philadelphia, Desa (August 7, 2000), Republican Convention: The Family Tree, Time, archived from the original on April 1, 2008
^Phillips, Kevin (2004), "The Bush–Walker Family Tree", American Dynasty: Aristocracy, Fortune, and the Politics of Deceit in the House of Bush, Penguin Books, ISBN 9780143034315