Louisa May Alcott

Date of Birth: November 29, 1832

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

Date of Death: March 6, 1888

Place of Death: Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.

Ethnicity:
*93.75% English
*6.25% mix of Dutch, French Huguenot, and distant Belgian Walloon

Louisa May Alcott was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet. She is known for her novel Little Women (1868) and its sequels, inspired by herself, as the character Jo March, and by her family, including real-life sisters Abigail May Alcott Nieriker, Elizabeth Sewall Alcott, and Anna Alcott Pratt. She also used the pen name, A. M. Barnard.

Louisa was the daughter of Abigail “Abba” May, an activist/suffragist and social worker, and Amos Bronson Alcott (born Amos Bronson Alcox), a teacher, writer, philosopher, and reformer. Her parents were part of the Transcendentalism movement. Louisa was raised mostly in Concord, Massachusetts, where Little Women is set.

Her father was born in Connecticut and her mother was born in Massachusetts. Louisa was of almost entirely Colonial American (English) ancestry, with roots in the region going back to the early/mid 1600s. One of her maternal great-great-grandmothers, who was from New York, was of Dutch, French Huguenot, and a small amount of Belgian Walloon, descent.

Louisa’s paternal grandfather was Joseph Chatfield Alcox/Alcott (the son of John Alcox/Alcott III and Mary Chatfield). Joseph was born in Connecticut. John was the son of John Alcott, Jr. and Deborah Blakeslee. Mary was the daughter of Solomon Chatfield and Hannah Pierson.

Louisa’s paternal grandmother was Anna Bronson (the daughter of Capt. Amos Bronson and Anna/Anne Blakeslee/Blakesley). Anna was born in Connecticut. Amos was the son of John Bronson, Jr. and Comfort Baldwin, whose father was English. Louisa’s great-grandmother Anna was the daughter of Jacob Blakeslee and Elizabeth Barnes.

Louisa’s maternal grandfather was Colonel Joseph May (the son of Samuel May and Abigail Williams). Joseph was born in Massachusetts, and was a Unitarian layman. Samuel was the son of Ebenezer May and Abigail Gore, whose father was English. Louisa’s great-grandmother Abigail was the daughter of Joseph Williams, Jr. and Martha Howell.

Louisa’s maternal grandmother was Dorothy Sewall (the daughter of The Rev. Samuel Sewall and Elizabeth Quincy). Dorothy was born in Massachusetts. The Rev. Samuel was the son of Joseph Sewall and Elizabeth Walley/Whalley. Louisa’s great-grandmother Elizabeth was the daughter of Edmund Quincy V and Elizabeth Wendell, who was of Dutch, French Huguenot, and a small amount of Belgian Walloon, ancestry. Louisa’s great-great-great-grandfather Judge Samuel Sewall, who was from Bishopstoke, Hampshire, England, was also a businessperson and printer in the Province of Massachusetts Bay. He was involved in the Salem Witch Trials.

Louisa is sometimes said to have had Sephardi Jewish ancestry, specifically through her maternal grandfather, Colonel Joseph May. Some of these statements mention that he was descended from Portuguese Jews who moved to England in the late 1400s, though Jews did not live openly in England during this period, and very few if any Jews were in the country at that time, under any definition of Jewish. No genealogical evidence for any Sephardi Jewish ancestry has been produced for Louisa May Alcott.

Sources: Genealogies of Louisa May Alcott – https://www.geni.com
https://famouskin.com