Hello,
In 1965, Joel Rogers wrote a book called Five Negro Presidents. In
1993, Auset Bakhufu wrote a book called Six Black Presidents.
Rogers says Jefferson, Harding, Coolidge, Jackson and Lincoln were
part black. Bakhufu's six "presidents" also include Vice President
Hannibal Hamlin.
Sources: Daniel E. Pearson, "Lincolniana Bibliotheca 1993,"
http://webpages.charter.net/lincolnbooks/1993Bibliography.html
KCTCS Diversity Programs, "The History of Black History,"
http://www.kctcs.net/diversityprograms/stolenlegacy.htm
Harding said he could not deny that he had a black ancestor. The
"accusation" had come up in the 1920 presidential election.
Sources: Leroy Vaughn, "5 Black Presidents,"
http://www.geocities.com/cureworks1/5blkpres.htm
Grant Segall, "Magicians' roots reach deep into Ohio," Cleveland Plain
Dealer, 2 July 2004,
http://www.cleveland.com/ohio/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/news/1088760904294480.xml
and discussions on soc.culture.african-american newsgroup
Vaughn cites Volumn 29 of the Virginia Magazine of History (which
would have come out in the 1920s) for the claim that Jackson's real
father was black.
The evidence on Jefferson seems like a real stretch. Vaughn cites an
1867 book, which in turn has an interview with someone who remembered
the 1796 election campaign. In that campaign, a speaker supposedly
accused Jefferson of being part black.
Vaughn's source on Lincoln is supposed to be the president's friend
William Herndon in "The Hidden Lincoln." But Herndon didn't write that
book; it came out in the 1930s and was based on Herdon's papers. (See
Daniel E. Person, review of "Herndon's Informants," eds. Douglas L.
Wilson and Rodney O. Davis,
http://webpages.charter.net/lincolnbooks/HerndonsInformants.html.)
Vaughn takes two tacks on Coolidge: that her mother's maiden name was
"Moor" because she had black ancestors or that she was part Indian.
Coolidge did have Native American ancestors (see Calvin Coolidge
Memorial Foundation, "Calvin Coolidge: The Basic Facts,"
http://www.calvin-coolidge.org/pages/education/facts.html). Bakhufu
claims all New England Indians were part black, so that would give
Coolidge some black ancestry.
I hope this answer suits your needs. If not, please request clarification.
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