Ancestry of Joseph Biden

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Joseph Robinette Biden Jr

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Joe Biden was born 20 Nov 1942 in Scranton, Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, the eldest child of Joseph Robinette Biden, Sr. and his wife Catherine Eugenia "Jean" Finnegan.

The family moved to Claymont, Delaware when Joe was ten years old and he continued growing-up in New Castle County, Delaware where his father was a car salesman. Joe Jr graduated from the University of Delaware and Syracuse University College of Law. He was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1972 when he was 29.

While he was in law school he married Neilia Hunter, they had three children: Joseph R "Beau" Biden III, Robert Hunter Biden, and Amy Biden. His wife and infant daughter died in a car accident sometime between 1972 and 1974. In 1977 he married Jill Tracy Jacobs. They had one daughter Ashley. Currently Joseph Biden is a U.S. Senator from Delaware, he has been in government for 33 years.

Joseph Biden was Chairman of the Senate Judiary Committee from 1987 until 1995. In 1997 he became the ranking minority member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and chaired the committee from 2001 until 2003. He again became Chair in 2007, which he still is today.

Joe's parents moved into his home with him in Delaware. His father died there 2 Sep 2002, Joe Jr's mother Jean was then still living.

Joseph Biden ran on the Democratic ticket for the U.S. Presidential Election of 2008, but has sinced dropped from the race. His Democratic challengers were: Hillary Clinton, Christopher Dodd, John Edwards, Dennis Kucinich, Barack Obama, Bill Richardson and Mike Gravel.

Barack Obama has now selected Joseph Biden as his Vice-Presidential running mate.

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Primary sources for 1

Secondary sources for 1

Joseph Robinette Biden

Joseph "Joe" Biden was born 13 Nov 1915 in Baltimore, Maryland, the eldest child of Joseph H Biden and his wife Mary Elizabeth Robinette. "While he was still a boy, his family moved to Wilmington, Delaware where he attended St. Paul’s School and Wilmington High School before graduating from St. Thomas Academy in Scranton, Pennsylvania, where the family was then residing." (see obit)

He married Catherine Eugenia "Jean" Finnegan of Scranton, Pennsylvania in 1941, while he was employed as a sales representative for Amoco Oil Company. They had a daughter and three sons including Joe Biden Jr (in 1942), while they were living in Scanton, Pennsylvania.

Joe Biden Sr. died 2 Sep 2002 in Wilmington, Delaware at the home of his son Joe Biden Jr. He is buried at St-Joseph-on-the-Brandywine Cemetery in Greenville, New Castle County, Delaware.

Primary sources for 2

  • 1930 Census of Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware showing "Joseph H Biten (sic), head, rents, 36, married first at 21, MD/MD/MD, Sales ???, ?? Store; Mary E, wife, 34, married first at 19, MD/WV/OH; Joseph R, son, 14, MD; Mary A, daughter, 13, MD; Frank H, son, 11, MD
  • Social Security Death Index showing "Joseph R Biden Sr, born 13 Nov 1915, SSN issued by Maryland, died 2 Sep 2002, last residence Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware"

Secondary sources for 2

Catherine Eugenia Finnegan

Catherine Eugenia "Jean" Finnegan was born 1917 in Scranton, Pennsylvania, to Ambrose Joseph Finnegan and his wife Geraldine C Blewitt.

She married Joseph Robinette Biden in 1941, while he was employed as a sales representative for Amoco Oil Company. They had a daughter and three sons including Joe Biden Jr (in 1942), while they were living in Scanton, Pennsylvania.

She is living. She was quoted here on 28 Aug 2008, as "Catherine Biden, 91", giving evidence that she was born in 1917.

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Joseph H Biden

Joseph H Biden was born 14 June 1893 in Maryland, probably in Baltimore to George T "Harry" Biden and his wife Mary Emeline "Emily" Liddell. Joseph H Biden married 27 Nov 1914 in Baltimore City, Maryland to Mary Elizabeth Robinette and they had their eldest son Joseph Robinette Biden in Baltimore, Maryland in Nov, 1915. The family lived in 1920 in Baltimore. I cannot seem to locate a WW1 Draft Registration Card for Joe although one should exist. By 1930 they had moved to Wilmington, Delaware, but later moved to Scranton, Pennsylvania, sometime between 1933 (when their son Joe graduated from Wilmington High School) and 1936 (when he graduated from St. Thomas Academy in Scranton, PA). They had three children: Joseph, Mary Alice and Frank.

Joseph H Biden Sr must have moved back to Baltimore, because he died there 26 Sep 1941 and is interred at Loudon Park Cemetery. At the time of his death, he had recently been the manager of the local American Oil Company plant.

Primary sources for 4

  • 1900 Census of Ward 18, Baltimore, Maryland : "George T Biden, Head, WM, Oct 1867, 32, married, 11 years ago, MD/MD/MD, Produce Dealer, rents home; Emily, wife, WF, Sep 1870, 29, married, 11 years ago, mother of 2, 2 living, MD/MD/MD; Eugenia M, daughter, WF, Sep 1891, 8, MD/MD/MD; Joseph H, son, WM, Jun 1893, 6, MD/MD/MD; Geo R Rittenhouse, boarder, WM, Nov 1879, 20, single, MD/MD/MD, Machinist"
  • 1910 Census of Ward 16, Baltimore, Maryland : "George T Biden, 43, Head, MW, 43, married first time, 21 years ago, MD/MD/MD, Produce Dealer, rents home; Emily R, wife, FW, 39, married first time, 21 years ago, mother of 2, 2 living, MD/MD/MD, no occupation; Eugenia M, daughter, FW, 18, single, MD/MD/MD, no occupation; Joseph H, son, MW, 16, single, MD/MD/MD, clerk, dry goods store"
  • Site reader Chris Smithson reports that he has the marriage certificate for: "Joseph H. Biden to Mary E. Robinette dated 27 Nov 1914 in Baltimore City, MD"
  • 1920 Census of Baltimore, Maryland showing "Joseph H Biden, 27, b MD/MD/MD; Mary E 25, b MD/WV/WV; Joseph R 4 6/12, b MD; Mary A 2 11/12; Frank H 1 4/12"
  • 1930 Census of Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware showing "Joseph H Biten (sic), head, rents, 36, married first at 21, MD/MD/MD, Sales ???, ?? Store; Mary E, wife, 34, married first at 19, MD/WV/OH; Joseph R, son, 14, MD; Mary A, daughter, 13, MD; Frank H, son, 11, MD
  • The Frederick Post (Frederick, Maryland), 29 Sep 1941, "Joseph H Biden Dies in Baltimore" : "Local Manager of the American Oil Company Plant Had Been Ill But Short Time" : "Funeral services are to be held this morning in Baltimore for Joseph H Biden, manager of the local American Oil Company plant for the past year, who died suddenly last Friday evening in a Baltimore hospital of a hemorrhage. He had been ill several weeks and was undergoing hospital observation when fatally stricken." "The deceased resided on Wilson avenue, this city, with his family. He is survived by his wife Mrs. Mary E Robinette Biden, and a daughter Miss Mary Alice at home, and two sons, Joseph J Jr Harrisburg, Pa. and Frank, stationed at Aberdeen, Md, with the Ordnance [...]ps." "The funeral will be held from the home of his sister-in-law, Mrs William Sheene, 811 Woodington road, Baltimore at 8:30 o'clock this morning with requiem mass at St William's church at 9 o'clock. Interment will be in Loudon Park cemetery."
  • Site reader Chris Smithson ctsmithson@verizon.net, professional genealogist (specializing in Maryland), reports on 26 Aug 2008, that he found this tombstone in Loudon Park cemetery : "Stone #1: Joseph H. Biden 1893-1941 - Baltimore City Death Cert # F-84588; Mary E. Biden 1894-1943"
  • Site reader Chris Smithson ctsmithson@verizon.net, professional genealogist (specializing in Maryland), reports on 28 Aug 2008, that the death certificate shows: Joseph H. Biden [b. 14 Jun 1893, at Baltimore City, MD - d. 26 Sep 1941, at Baltimore City, MD] buried at Loudon Park Cemetery. Parents: Harry H. Biden born in Baltimore City, MD and Mary E. Ledell born in Baltimore City, MD. [SSN 170-10-3023]
  • The Frederick Post (Frederick, Maryland), 30 May 1942, "Former Local Youth Killed in Australia", "The Baltimore office of the American Oil Company has been advised by the War Department that Frank Biden, formerly of Baltimore and son of the late Joseph P Biden and Mrs Biden, now of Harrisburg, Pa., has been killed in Australia....Mrs Biden and a brother in Harrisburg have been notified."

Secondary sources for 4

Mary Elizabeth Robinette

Mary Elizabeth Robinette was born Nov 1894 in Maryland, the daughter of George H Robinette and his wife Mary A Hanafre. Mary married on 27 Nov 1914 in Baltimore City, Maryland to Joseph H Biden. The family lived in 1920 in Baltimore. By 1930 they had moved to Wilmington, Delaware, but later moved to Scranton, Pennsylvania.

The proof that Mary, who married Joseph Biden, is the same person as "Marnie" Robinette in the 1910 census is the recently discovered obituary of Joseph Biden which states that his sister-in-law was "Mrs William Sheene". As can be seen in the 1910 census, "Mrs William Sheene" is Alice (Robinette) Sheene b abt 1888. The WW1 Draft Registration Card for "William Everett Sheene" of Baltimore states that his wife is Alice.

Mary died in 1943, possibly either in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania or in Baltimore, Maryland. She in buried with her husband at Loudon Park Cemetery.

Primary sources for 5

  • 1900 Census of Baltimore, Maryland showing "George H Robinette b Oct 1844, married 18 years ago MD/MD/MD, Locomotive Engineer; Mary A b Aug 1862, married 18 years ago, mother of 5, 5 living, MD/MD/MD; Mary b Nov 1894 MD; John H b Jul 1886 MD; Alice M b Nov 1892 MD"
  • 1910 Census of Baltimore, Maryland showing "George H Robinette 65, married one time, 33 years ago, b MD/MD/MD, Inspector, Railroad; Mary A 48, married one time, 33 years ago, mother of 3, 3 living, b OH/OH/MD; Alice M Sheene 22 daughter, married one time, 1 year ago, b MD/MD/OH; Marnie 15 daughter b MD/MD/OH; Wm E Sheene 26 son-in-law, married one time, 1 year ago, b MA/MA/MA, Salesman, Manufacturing"
  • 1920 Census of Baltimore, Maryland showing "Joseph H Biden, 27, b MD; Mary E 25, b MD; Joseph R 4 6/12, b MD; Mary A 2 11/12; Frank H 1 4/12"
  • 1930 Census of Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware showing "Joseph H Biten (sic), head, rents, 36, married first at 21, MD/MD/MD, Sales ???, ?? Store; Mary E, wife, 34, married first at 19, MD/WV/OH; Joseph R, son, 14, MD; Mary A, daughter, 13, MD; Frank H, son, 11, MD
  • Site reader Chris Smithson ctsmithson@verizon.net, professional genealogist (specializing in Maryland), reports on 26 Aug 2008, that he found this tombstone in Loudon Park cemetery : "Stone #1: Joseph H. Biden 1893-1941 - Baltimore City Death Cert # F-84588; Mary E. Biden 1894-1943"

Secondary sources for 5

Ambrose Joseph Finnegan

Ambrose Joseph Finnegan was born on 11 Jul 1884 in Olyphant, Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania. His Irish-emigrant parents had possibly both died by the time of the 1900 census, and possibly in Scranton, when he is enumerated in Scranton, Pennsylvania as "nephew" in the household of Peter F Roche and his wife Bridget. It's possible, but not yet evidenced, that he was the son of James Finnegan and Catherine Finnegan. This site which has a will index for Lackawanna County, has the death of Catherine Finnegan on 4 Apr 1886, and James on 1 Mar 1895. That would explain why Ambrose in 1900 is living with his uncle. But please note, that no matter who has told you that James and Catherine are his parents must show evidence.

Ambrose Joseph Finnegan married in 1908/9 probably in Pennsylvania to Geraldine C Blewitt. Ambrose either then or slightly before had trained to be a civil engineer, an occupation he held in 1910 as did his father-in-law Edward F Blewitt. You will find mentions here and there on the internet that Ambrose worked for Scranton Gas & Water Company. Most articles and sites say nothing more. So much for those sites. Now for the rest of the story.

Being a civil engineer was not to keep Ambrose, by 1918 he had become an advertising solicitor for the Scrantonian Publishing Company. He would apparently work for the Scrantonian the rest of his life, working his way up by 1930 to be Advertising Manager. You would think that these great newspaper reporters of today would have noticed that. But no.

Ambrose Joseph Finnegan was yet living in 1942 when he filed his WWII Draft Registration Card from Scranton, Pennsylvania, and again he lists his employer as "M L Goodman" of the "Scrantonian-Tribune". In Joseph Biden's autobiographical book (see sources below), his grandfather Finnegan was living when Joe was "12 or 13" (so this would be 1954/6).

Primary sources for 6

  • 1900 Census of Scranton, Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania showing "Peter F Roche, 44, NY/Ireland/Ireland, Switchman; Bridget 42, PA/Ireland/Ireland; Mary 23 PA; Thomas 20; Annie 18; Peter 13; Nellie 9; Margaret 4/12; Ambrose Fennegan (sic) 16, nephew, PA/Ireland/Ireland, Servant Boy" (Briget (sic) C Roche is a widow in Scranton in 1910 here).
  • 1910 Census of Dunmore, Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania showing "Edward F Blewitt 49 LA/Ireland/Ireland, civil engineer; Gertrude W Blewitt 27 PA/LA/PA; Patrick R 26 PA; Arthur J 24 PA; Ambrose Finegan (sic) 25 son-in-law PA/PA/PA, civil engineer; Geraldina C Finegan 23 daughter PA; Floyd L Hazen 15 ; Pansy B Hazen 11; Lula M Hazen 7"
  • World War I Draft Registration Card showing "Ambrose Joseph Finnegan, born 11 Jul 1884, Advertising Solicitor for Scrantonian Pub. Co., nearest relative Geraldine C Finnegan (wife), grey eyes, dark hair, registered 12 Sep 1918 in Scranton, Pennsylvania"
  • 1920 Census of Scranton, Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania showing "Ambrose J Finnegan, 35, PA/Ireland/NY, Advertising Solicitor, Newspaper; Geraldine, 33, PA/LA/PA; Gerard 9; Edward 7; Ambrose 5; Eugenia 2 6/12; Edward Blewitt, 61, Father-in-law, LA/Ireland/Ireland, Civil and Mining Engineer, Coal Mine; Gertrude Blewitt 39 PA/Ireland/NY"
  • 1930 Census of Scranton, Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania showing "Ambrose J Finnegan, 45, first marriage at 24, PA/NY/NY, Advertising Manager, Newspaper Office; Geraldine B, 42, first married at 21, PA/LA/PA; Gerald J 20; Blewett E 18; Ambrose J 15; Catherine E 12; John A 9; Gertrude G Blewitt, sister-in-law, 46"
  • World War II Draft Registration Card showing "Ambrose Joseph Finnegan, born 11 Jul 1884, residence Scranton, Lackawanna, Pennsylvnia; born at Olyphant, Lacka Co, Penna.; Employer M L Goodman, Scrantonian-Tribune; blue eyes, blond hair; April 27, 1942"
  • "Biden's NEPA roots run deep", by Borys Krawczeniuk, 23 Aug 2008 :
    The city of his youth is part of the first paragraph in his book, "Promises to Keep," released last summer by Random House. "The first principle of politics, the foundational principle, I learned in the 1950s in my grandpop’s kitchen when I was about 12 or 13 years old," Mr. Biden wrote the book’s opening line. "My parents had recently moved us to Delaware, but most Friday nights mom and dad would load me, my sister Val, my brother Jimmy and the baby, Frankie, into our car and drive up to Scranton, Pa., to spend the weekend at grandpop Finnegan’s house."

Secondary sources for 6

Geraldine C Blewitt

Geraldine C Blewitt was born 1886/8 in Pennsylvania, the daughter of Edward Francis Blewitt of Louisiana. She married Ambrose Joseph Finnegan. They lived in Scanton, Pennsylvania. She died sometime after the 1930 census.

Primary sources for 7

  • 1910 Census of Dunmore, Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania showing "Edward F Blewitt 49 LA/Ireland/Ireland; Gertrude W Blewitt 27 PA/LA/PA; Patrick R 26 PA; Arthur J 24 PA; Ambrose Finegan (sic) 25 son-in-law PA/PA/PA; Geraldina C Finegan 23 daughter PA; Floyd L Hazen 15 ; Pansy B Hazen 11; Lula M Hazen 7"

Secondary sources for 7

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