Jesse Watters

Watters in 2017, photo by PPellegrino/Bigstock.com

Birth Name: Jesse Bailey Watters

Place of Birth: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.

Date of Birth: July 9, 1978

Ethnicity: English, Irish, more distant Welsh

Jesse Watters is an American conservative political commentator. He has hosted the show Jesse Watters Primetime since 2022. He has also appeared on The O’Reilly Factor, and been a host of Watters’ World and The Five.

He is the son of Anne, a child psychologist, and Stephen Watters, a teacher. Jesse was raised in Germantown, and East Falls, Philadelphia. He is married to Emma DiGiovine. He has two children with his former wife Noelle Inguagiato; and two children with Emma.

Jesse’s paternal grandfather was Franklin Benjamin Watters (the son of Franklin Benjamin Watters and Annie Muriel Cogland). Jesse’s grandfather Franklin was born in Massachusetts, and was a cardiologist at the Veterans Administration Hospital at Newington, Connecticut, and a professor at the University of Connecticut Medical Dental School. Jesse’s great-grandfather Franklin was the son of Thomas David Watters and Ellen Cecilia Quinn, who was of Irish heritage, with roots in County Cork. Annie was born in Le Haut-Saint-Laurent, Canada, the daughter of Thomas Cogland and Mary A. Gamble.

Jesse’s paternal grandmother was Helen “Henny” Harper (the daughter of Richard Harvey Harper and Helen A. Stimpson). Helen was born in New Hampshire. Richard was the son of Charles M. Harper and Lola S. Reed.

Jesse’s maternal grandfather was Morton Shelley/Shelly Bailey III (the son of Morton Shelley Bailey and Jessica “Jessie” Burnett). Jesse’s grandfather Morton was born in Missouri, and was the publisher of Better Homes and Gardens. Jesse’s great-grandfather Morton was vice president and advertising director of The Saturday Evening Post, whose own father, Morton Shelley Bailey, was chief justice of the Colorado Supreme Court, and whose own mother was Annie Lutie Wilkin. Jesse Watters’ great-grandmother Jessica was the daughter of Jesse Andrew “J. A.” Burnette/Burnett, who was Associate Chief Justice of the Kansas Supreme Court, and of Catherine E. “Kate” Purcell.

Jesse’s maternal grandmother was Marian Grace Purvis (the daughter of Vernon Leonard Purvis and Velta Mae Walker). Marian was born in Colorado. Vernon was the son of John Walkinshaw Purvis and Cora Bell Thornton. Velta was the daughter of James Henry Walker and Lillie Carter.

Sources: Information about some of Jesse’s ancestry – https://www.bostonglobe.com

Marriage announcement of Jesse’s parents – http://www.nytimes.com

Obituary of Jesse’s paternal grandfather, Franklin Benjamin Watters – http://www.legacy.com

Jesse’s paternal grandmother, Helen Harper, on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org

Obituary of Jesse’s paternal grandmother, Helen “Henny” (Harper) Watters Bennett – http://www.legacy.com

Obituary of Jesse’s maternal grandfather, Morton Shelley/Shelly Bailey III – http://query.nytimes.com