After more research regarding Stephen Hopkins, I've found some additional Mayflower pilgrims we are descended from (by we I mean my Prati cousins). We're descended from Stephen Hopkins twice actually, through the lineage of both Experience Cleveland and Jabez Holmes (who are our 6xmaternal great grandparents), so Stephen Hopkins is both our 10xgreat and 11xgreat grandfather (though through 2 different wives). Also onboard the Mayflower are his wife Elizabeth Fisher, and daughters Constance and Demaris from whom we're all descended. We're also descended from Francis Cooke, our 10xgreat grandfather, whose son Jacob married a daughter of Stephen Hopkins, Demaris. Jacob came a few years later on the Anne with his mother and siblings. And we're also descended from Mary Allerton, who was the last surviving Mayflower pilgrim. She's my 9xmaternal great grandmother, the great-grandmother of Jabez Holmes. She arrived on the Mayflower with her parents, Isaac and Mary Norris. Isaac was a signer of the Mayflower Compact, along with Stephen Hopkins, and Francis Cooke. Her mother Mary died in childbirth while aboard the Mayflower docked at Plymouth, one of 3 pregnant women on board. Mary Allerton married Elder Thomas Cushman, who immigrated with his father to Plymouth Colony on the ship "Fortune" on November 9, 1621. He was named as Ruling Elder of the First Church of Plymouth County, and is the son of Deacon Robert Cushman, who is the person responsible for chartering the "Mayflower" for the voyage from London to America. He arrived at Plymouth on November 21, 1621, just a few weeks after the first Thanksgiving. He returned to England to act as a financial agent of the settlers and died of the plague in London in 1625 before having the chance to return to Plymouth. People who are also related to Francis Cooke include:

George H. W. Bush, George W. Bush, and Franklin D. Roosevelt are direct descendants of Francis Cooke. Other famous descendants of Francis Cooke include Cephas Thompson, William D. Washburn, Mrs. Anna Mary Robertson ("Grandma Moses"), Orson Welles, Julia Child, Abel Head "Shanghai" Pierce (Texas cattleman who introduced the Brahman cattle breed into Texas), Pete Seeger, Marjorie "Betty Crocker" Child, "Wild Bill" Hickok, John Bartlett, Johnny Carson, George Mortimer Pullman, Elliot Richardson, Charles G. Dawes, Amasa Mason Lyman, Charles E. Merrill, Dane Cook, Kris Kristofferson, Richard Gere, Louis Comfort Tiffany, and Beach Boys Brian, Carl, and Dennis Wilson.

We're also related to Franklin Delano Roosevelt through Mary Allerton. And from my last post, we're related to Sarah Palin through Stephen Hopkins.

Sean found we are directly descended from Mayflower pilgrim Stephen Hopkins (1578-1644) and posted the following:

He a made prior trip to America in 1609 on the Sea Venture headed for Jamestown, Virginia. Instead, they were marooned on an island following a hurricane, and the 150 passengers were stranded for nine months. Hopkins led an uprising, challenging the governor's authority, and was sentenced to death. He begged and moaned about the ruin of his wife and children, and so was pardoned out of sympathy. The company eventually managed to build a ship, and escaped the island. After spending several years in Jamestown, Hopkins returned to England sometime between 1613 and 1617. Stephen Hopkins brought with him on the Mayflower his second wife Elizabeth, children Giles and Constance by his first marriage, and Damaris by his second marriage. A son, Oceanus, was born while the Mayflower was at sea. Servants brought with them on the Mayflower were Edward Doty and Edward Leister. Stephen participated in the early exploring missions and was an "ambassador" along with Myles Standish for early Indian relations. Stephen Hopkins volunteered to fight in the Pequot War of 1637. (from http://siedelmann.org/Ancestry/Clifford/Entries/1620/11/11_Mayflower_Ancestry.html)

Really cool, right?

Until I do a little google search and find out who else is related to Mr. Hopkins: Sarah Palin. Here's  the chart: [caption id="attachment_146" align="alignnone" width="563" caption="How I'm Related to Sarah Palin"] [/caption] I'm almost ashamed to tell people.

Following our maternal heritage, I've found a few really exciting ancestral links I'd like to share.