Biden’s ancestors were slave owners in 19th century

JOE BIDEN’S paternal English ancestors owned enslaved people in the US, according to research by a leading genealogist.

The US president is fond of referencing his Irish heritage and has spoken in detail about the influence of his Catholic mother’s family on his upbringing, but far less has been previously known about his father’s ancestry.

New research by historian Alexander Bannerman and presidential lineage expert Gary Boyd Roberts has revealed Mr Biden’s paternal relatives were responsible for enslaving people during the 19th century. According to the researchers, census records from 1800 show that Mr Biden’s great-great-greatgrandfather, Jesse Robinett, enslaved people in Allegany County, Maryland.

Another of Mr Biden’s great-greatgreat-grandfathers, Thomas Randle, enslaved a 14-year-old boy in Baltimore County, Maryland in 1850, census records and slave schedules suggest.

However, Mr Bannerman said the Democratic president’s ties to slavery were not nearly as extensive as many other American families.