Bill Kirby: Fathers gave many presidents a little known secret

Bill Kirby, Augusta Chronicle
·2 min read
Bill Kirby, Augusta Chronicle
Bill Kirby, Augusta Chronicle

"You don't know what you don't know."

– Donald Rumsfeld

We often discover things when we're looking for something else.

Last weekend, for instance, I was trying to discover why the flags were at half-staff.

I checked the internet and was informed the president was promoting respectful remembrance to mark the 1 million COVID 19-related deaths in this country.

I read his proclamation and noticed he had signed it "Joseph R. Biden Jr."

I paused and looked at his name.

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Previously: Bill Kirby: Our Golden Years seem harder to reach

I did not remember what the middle initial "R." stood for. It turns out it's "Robinette" – his grandmother's maiden name.

I also had not noticed he was a "Jr." and began to wonder how many presidents had the same name as their fathers.

Not many, I thought.

But I was wrong.

Many presidents shared their father's names. Only, in the old days, they didn't always use "Jr."

I did not know, for example, the second president, John Adams, was the son of John Adams. The fourth president James Madison was the son of James Madison. It's the same with John Tyler, James Buchanan, William McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt, Calvin Coolidge and Jimmy Carter (The only one I did know.)

There are even three wild cards.

Gerald R. Ford was a double "Jr." He was born Leslie Lynch King Jr., but his parents divorced, and when his mother remarried, they changed his name to honor his stepfather, Gerald R. Ford.

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Barack Obama was the son of Barak Obama Sr. and is listed as Barack Obama II.

And Bill Clinton wasn't a "Jr." but was born William Jefferson Blythe III. However, his father died in a car accident months before his birth. His mother would eventually remarry and the future president later took his stepfather's surname – Clinton.

TODAY'S DAD JOKE: A man submitting information for his income tax preparer was asked how many dependents he had.

"Twelve," the man answered quickly.

Somewhat surprised, the tax preparer looked up from his calculations and asked, "Would you mind repeating that?"

"No," the man said, "not if I can help it."

Bill Kirby has reported, photographed and commented on life in Augusta and Georgia for 45 years.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Bill Kirby: Name and fame sometimes add up