I previously published a short obituary of 56-year-old William Addams Reitwiesner at http://blog.eogn.com/eastmans_online_genealogy/2010/11/william-addams-reitwiesner-rip.html. Now, Timothy R. Smith of the Washington Post has written a much longer and more detailed description of this famous genealogist's life. Smith writes:
William Addams Reitwiesner discovered that presidents Warren G. Harding, Richard M. Nixon and Jimmy Carter were cousins; that the singer Madonna is related to Camilla Parker Bowles, consort to Prince Charles; that President Obama had ancestors who were slave owners; and that at least one U.S. senator was related to Elvis.
Mr. Reitwiesner (RITE-weez-ner), who held a series of low-paying jobs at the Library of Congress to be near the source of his research, spent almost all of his spare time devotedly cataloguing the pedigrees of U.S. political figures, European royals and celebrities.
Smith also quotes Reitwiesner as saying, "I work eight hours a day, sleep six and spend the rest of my time doing genealogical research."
You can read more about this fascinating man at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/11/AR2010121102394.html
