William F. Buckley, Jr.

Buckley in 1985, photo By SPC 5 Bert Goulait, US Military [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Birth Name: William Francis Buckley

Date of Birth: November 24, 1925

Place of Birth: New York City, New York, U.S.

Date of Death: February 27, 2008

Place of Death: Stamford, Connecticut, U.S.

Ethnicity:
*Irish (father)
*Swiss-German, German, Irish (mother)

William F. Buckley, Jr. was an American author, public intellectual, television personality, and politician. He was a political conservative. He was the host of the show Firing Line from 1966 to 1999. It was the longest-running public affairs show with a single host. William was a candidate for Mayor of New York City in 1965, for the Conservative Party.

William was the son of Aloise Josephine Antonia (Steiner) and William Frank Buckley, Sr., who was a lawyer and oil developer. His father was born in Washington-on-the-Brazos, Texas, to Canadian parents, of Irish ancestry. His mother was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, of Swiss-German, German, and Irish descent. William was a devout Catholic.

Born William Francis Buckley, his named was later changed to William Frank Buckley, Jr.

William was married to Canadian-born socialite Patricia Buckley, until her death. Patricia was born in Vancouver, the daughter of Austin Cotterell Taylor, who was a mining executive and developer, financier, and philanthropist in developing thoroughbred horse racing. William and Patricia had a son, author and political satirist Christopher Buckley.

William’s siblings included journalist and author Priscilla Buckley; author Patricia Buckley Bozell; writer, speaker, and educator Reid Buckley; and jurist, politician, civil servant, attorney, businessperson, and author James L. Buckley. Patricia was married to conservative activist and Roman Catholic writer L. Brent Bozell, Jr. James L. Buckley has been a U.S. Senator from New York, from January 3, 1971 to January 3, 1977, and Senior Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, since August 31, 1996, among many other duties.

William’s paternal grandfather was John C. Buckley (the son of John Buckley and Ellen Doran). William’s grandfather John was born in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, to Irish parents.

William’s paternal grandmother was Mary Ann Langford (the daughter of Charles William Langford and Hannah P. Lane). Mary Ann was born in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, to Irish parents. Hannah was the daughter of Edmund Lane and Johanna.

William’s maternal grandfather was Louis Aloysius Steiner (the son of Josef Alois Christian Steiner and Barbara Rohrbacher). Louis was born in Louisiana, to German and Swiss-German parents. Josef was the son of Josef Alois Steiner and Maria Francisca Christina Steiner.

William’s maternal grandmother was Marie Louise Wassem (the daughter of George Henry Wassem and Mary Ann Lee). William’s grandmother Marie Louise was born in Louisiana. George was German, from Prussia, the son of John Henry Wassem. William’s great-grandmother Mary Ann’s parents were Irish.

Sources: Genealogies of William F. Buckley, Jr. – http://www.wargs.com
https://www.geni.com

William F. Buckley, Jr. on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://familysearch.org

Marriage record of William’s paternal grandparents, John C. Buckley and Mary Ann Langford – https://www.familysearch.org