Bill Cosby
Birth Name: William Henry Cosby, Jr.
Place of Birth: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Date of Birth: July 12, 1937
Ethnicity: African-American
Bill Cosby is an American stand-up comedian, comedian, actor, and author.
Bill is the son of Anna Pearl (Hite) and William Henry Cosby. Most of his recent ancestors lived in Virginia, where all sixteen of his great-great-grandparents were born, and where his family were slaves.
Bill is married to producer, author, philanthropist Camille Cosby, with whom he has five children.
Bill’s paternal grandfather was Samuel Russell Cosby (the son of Zachariah “Zach” Cosby and Louisa Daniel Johnson). Samuel was born in Virginia. Zachariah was the son of Sam Thomas Cosby and Jane.
Bill’s paternal grandmother was Gertrude A. Thornhill (the daughter of William Ansel Thornhill and Zabria Sabra Linthicum). Gertrude was born in Virginia. William was the son of James Thornhill and America Mary Sanders. Zabria was the daughter of Caleb Linthicum and Jane West.
Bill’s maternal grandfather was William Sidney Hite (the son of Tobias Hite and Henrietta Field). Bill’s grandfather William Hite was born in Virginia. Henrietta was the daughter of Henry Field and Permelia, or of Grandison Field and Anna Jane.
Bill’s maternal grandmother was Martha Alice Rice (the daughter of Asa Rice and Anne Johnson). Martha was born in Virginia. Asa was the son of Rufus Rice and Betsey/Betsy/Elizabeth. Anne was the daughter of Martha Williams.
Source: Genealogy of Bill Cosby – https://www.geni.com
Correction. Looking at the trees other people put here he is also English and welsh.
Bill’s distant ancestors: https://www.wikitree.com/genealogy/Cosby-Family-Tree-327
I don’t know about that. These trees seem to be assuming that Cosby’s great-great-grandfather, Sam Thomas Cosby, was the son of a white slaveowner, John Cosby.
Is there any evidence for that? Neither this genealogy nor this book biography seem to suggest that.
https://books.google.ca/books?id=yNHUyuxbcDYC&pg=PR13&dq=%22Sam+Thomas+Cosby%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjs_dL0zPTPAhVG54MKHVObAfkQ6AEIHTAB
https://books.google.ca/books?id=BRR5BAAAQBAJ&pg=PA23&lpg=PA23&dq=%22Sam+Thomas+Cosby%22&source=bl&ots=wlN-HBOW3J&sig=ly6OOK2dLy7LY2oGtQtqanokBCk&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwinranzzPTPAhVs1oMKHXJeDsMQ6AEIHzAD
Agree. It’s unclear if those are Bill’s direct ancestors, or that’s just the genealogy of John Cosby’s family.
Bill’s patrilineal line can be traced back to John Cosby, Sr., born c. 1623, in England, and died in Yorktown, York County, Virginia, U.S.
https://www.geni.com/people/John-B-Cosby/6000000003735232806?through=6000000000764199052
Cosby one of the best t.v. dads ever,ans a great comedic actor.
Forgot to put this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0Fc9zaB-s8
He is definitely an African-American with admixture.