The "ten mothers" of Abraham Lincoln

[Vicky Reany Paulson]

I've written Abraham Lincoln's Hanks Family Genealogy, Vol. 1 and 2, using only documented material, and am working on the third.

Caroline Hanks Hitchcock wrote the first book on Nancy Hanks, using Berries, Shipley's, and Hanks, and Lincoln's to connect herself to both the Lincoln's and Hanks families. When Ida Tarbell, and Louis Warren asked to use her documents, she admitted, she had none. I did a study on the four main authors of Hanks genealogy, Hitchcock, Tarbell, Warren, and Barton, not realizing they were all alive, at the same time. These four people fought like bears! Hitchcock found the Will of Joseph Hanks, and incorrectly first used his daughter, Nancy, as his wife, declaring her Nancy Shipley! His documented wife is Anne Lee, daughter of William Lee III. Shee married Thomas Sparrow to Elizabeth Shipley, and his documented wife was Elizabeth Hanks, Joseph Hanks daughter. Richard Berry was also given a Shipley wife, and his documented wife was Rachel Head, sister of Jesse Head, who married Nancy and Thomas Lincoln. Yes, the license still exists. And Capt. Abraham Lincoln was married to a Shipley, too, when his documented wife is Bathsheba Herring. No second marriages, as all these wives outlived their husbands. Rev. William Barton finds the Indictment papers of Lucy Hanks, and her marriage license to Henry Sparrow. Warren claims it says "widy", meaning she was a widow. He changes which Shipleys were married to who, and creates "James Hanks" as a son of Joseph and Anne Lee Hanks. Barton frames the document, so it cannot be altered, which Warren is steamed about, to put in nice terms. When Tarbell sees the license, she confirms, it says no such thing. Barton finds the Hampshire County census records of 1782 and 1784, Joseph Hanks appears on only the 1782 census, which reads Joseph Hanks, wife, 5 sons and 4 daughters. A "James Hanks" is impossible, and Lucy cannot be removed from the family, or this too, would be wrong. No one seems to notice that you have a mother and her son, set up to marry his aunt? Why did they do this? To make her an orphan. They were not kind to Barton, because he claimed Lincoln's mother to be "baseborn", but only he interviewed living Hanks relatives, and Lincoln's stepmother, to confirm the fact, that she was.

Now the DNA studies are confirming this is true, as well. The Shipley and Benjamin Hanks lines are no match, missing the "Y" chrom. The New England Hanks also are no match. The North Carolina Hanks are no match with any of the other Hanks branches. Only the direct descendants of Joseph Hanks are a perfect match. Science has verified Barton is correct.

I am a direct descendant of Joseph Hanks, a descendant of Thomas Hanks, his oldest son. I've studied my genealogy since the age of 16, with a few living Hanks to ask questions of, myself. They had no idea how we were related, and made up no facts to pollute my research. I am now 59 and have over 50 binders of Hanks research. Personally, if you don't have a document to prove something, it's hearsay. My cousins wanted me to write a book, because of how large my collection is. The documents tell the truth, and the truth is there are no Shipleys in the Hanks genealogy, no James Hanks, and we will never know who Nancy Hanks Lincoln's father was. But we do know who her family was. She was the daughter of Lucy Hanks, and granddaughter of Joseph Hanks and Anne Lee Hanks. Vicky Reany Paulson