August 2026

Happy birthday to Richard Gere! Today the actor turns 77. Image: Richard Gere / Francesco, Flickr (CC BY 2.0) The popular actor was born Richard Tiffany Gere in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on August 31, 1949. His middle name comes from his mother, whose maiden name was Tiffany. Gere’s family had deep early American roots. He descends from Mayflower passengers through both his mother and father. As a teen, Gere excelled at gymnastics and even earned a… Read the full story

On this day in 1814, Irish horror writer Sheridan Le Fanu was born. Considered to be the leading ghost story writer of the 19th century, Le Fanu’s works played a significant role in shaping the genre during the Victorian era. Image: Sheridan Le Fanu / Wikimedia Commons Le Fanu was born Joseph Thomas Sheridan Le Fanu on August 28, 1814 in Dublin, Ireland. He was born into a literary family with many writers and playwrights, including his great… Read the full story

On this day in 1908, Lyndon B. Johnson was born. Elected as Vice President in 1960, Johnson was sworn in as the 36th President of the United States upon the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963. Image: Lyndon B. Johnson / U.S. National Archives and Records Administration Lyndon Baines Johnson was born in a small farmhouse on August 27, 1908 near Johnson City, Texas. He was the first of five children born to Samuel Ealy… Read the full story

When building out your family tree, you will occasionally come across a fascinating new line, a cluster of DNA matches, or historical records for individuals you know are part of your extended family history, but you just don’t know how they connect to the existing tree yet. To help solve this puzzle on Geni, we created the Create a Branch feature. This free tool allows anyone to seamlessly start an unconnected family tree branch and… Read the full story

On this day in 1819, Prince Albert, the husband of Queen Victoria, was born in Schloss Rosenau, Germany. Image: Albert, Prince Consort / Library of Congress Born Albert Francis Charles Augustus Emmanuel of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, the Prince was the second son of Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, and his first wife, Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg. In 1840, he married his first cousin, Queen Victoria, who had inherited the English throne just a few years earlier at the… Read the full story

Today we remember actor Sean Connery on what would have been his 96th birthday. Image: Sean Connery / Nationaal Archief, CC0 Thomas Sean Connery was born on August 25, 1930 in Edinburgh, Scotland to Euphemia McBain, a cleaning woman, and Joseph Connery, a factory worker and lorry driver. Named after his paternal grandfather, Connery went by the name “Tommy” growing up. Before becoming an actor, Connery’s first job was a milkman at the age of… Read the full story

Do you have family ties to Dutch royalty? On this day in 1772, William I of the Netherlands, the first King of the Netherlands, was born. Image: William I of the Netherlands / Wikimedia Commons He was the son of William V, Prince of Orange of the Dutch Republic, and Wilhelmina of Prussia. In 1791, he married his first cousin, Wilhelmina, who was the daughter of King Frederik William II of Prussia. After the French… Read the full story

On this day in 1765, William IV of the United Kingdom was born. The third son of George III, William became king after the death of his elder brother George IV. Image: William IV / Wikimedia Commons William was born at Buckingham Palace on August 21, 1765. As the third son born to King George III and Queen Charlotte, William was never expected to inherit the crown. He joined the Royal Navy at the age… Read the full story

On this day in 1833, Benjamin Harrison was born. Harrison served as the 23rd President of the United States from 1889 to 1893. Image: Benjamin Harrison / Library of Congress Harrison was born on August 20, 1833 to John Harrelson and Elizabeth Irwin in North Bed, Ohio. He was the grandson of William Henry Harrison, the 9th President of the United States and first governor of the Indiana Territory. Harrison was seven years old when his grandfather was… Read the full story

Are you a Star Trek fan? On this day in 1921, Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry was born in El Paso, Texas. Image: Gene Roddenberry / NASA As a young man, Roddenberry became interested in aeronautical engineering and earned a pilot license through the Civilian Pilot Training Program. During World War II, Roddenberry enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps and flew an estimated 89 combat missions. He was awarded the Air Medal and the Distinguished Flying Cross…. Read the full story

Today we remember Robert Redford on what would have been his 90th birthday. Image: Robert Redford / San Diego Air and Space Museum Archive Charles Robert Redford, Jr. was born on August 18, 1936 in Santa Monica, California. He was the only child born to Martha W. Hart and Charles Robert Redford, Sr., a milkman-turned-accountant. After starting out with small roles on television, Redford became a major star after co-starring with Paul Newman in the box office… Read the full story

Are you related to American folk hero Davy Crockett? On this day in 1786, the famous frontiersman was born. Image: Davy Crockett / Library of Congress Crockett was born on August 17, 1786 to John M. Crockett and Rebecca Sullivan Crockett. He learned to shoot at the age of 8 and gained a reputation for hunting and story telling. In 1826, he was elected to Congress and served two terms before leaving politics to join the… Read the full story

Happy birthday to Halle Berry! Today the famous actress turns 60. Image: Halle Berry / Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0 Berry was born Maria Halle Berry on August 14, 1966 in Cleveland, Ohio to Judith Ann Hawkins, a psychiatric nurse, and Jerome Jesse Berry, a hospital attendant. After her parents divorced when she was four years old, Berry and her older sister were raised by her mother. Before becoming an actress, Berry competed in several… Read the full story

On this day in 1818, orator, abolitionist, and suffragist Lucy Stone was born. Image: Lucy Stone / Library of Congress Stone was born on August 13, 1818 on her family’s farm in West Brookfield, Massachusetts to Francis Stone and Hannah Matthews. From an early age, Stone was frustrated by the restrictions placed on women. Although her father ridiculed her desire to further her education, Stone was determined to go to college. She secured a position… Read the full story

On this day in 1881, pioneering film director Cecil B. DeMille was born. Considered to be a founding father of the Hollywood film industry, DeMille’s films were distinguished by their epic scale and groundbreaking special effects, which attracted vast audiences. Image: Cecil B. DeMille / Wikimedia Commons DeMille was born on August 12, 1881 in a boarding house on Main Street in Ashfield, Massachusetts, where his parents had been vacationing for the summer. He was… Read the full story

Do you have any writers in your family tree? On this day in 1937, author Edith Wharton died at the age of 75 in Saint-Brice-sous-Forêt, France. Image: Edith Wharton / Wikimedia Commons Wharton was born Edith Newbold Jones on January 24, 1862 to George Frederic Jones and Lucretia Stevens Rhinelander. The saying “keeping up with the Joneses” is said to refer to her paternal family, who were a very wealthy and socially prominent New York… Read the full story

On this day in 1874, Herbert Hoover, the 31st President of the United States, was born in West Branch, Iowa. Image: Herbert Hoover / Library of Congress Hoover was the son of Hulda Randall Minthorn and Jesse Hoover, a blacksmith. Sadly, by the age of 9, he was an orphan. He was raised by his uncle, John Minthorn, a physician and businessman. Before the presidency, Hoover worked as an engineer in China. He and his… Read the full story

Happy birthday to actress Charlize Theron! Today the star turns 51. Image: Charlize Theron / Gage Skidmore, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0) Theron was born on August 7, 1975 in Benoni, Gauteng, South Africa and grew up on her family’s farm outside of Johannesburg. She spent her childhood studying ballet, and although she saw herself as a dancer, she began her career as a model. After an injury left her unable to pursue a career as… Read the full story

Today we remember actress Lucille Ball, who was born on this day in 1911. Image: Lucille Ball / Wikimedia Commons Lucille Désirée Ball was born on August 6 ,1911 in Jamestown, New York. After her father died of typhoid fever in 1915, the family moved in with her maternal grandparents. She and her brother were later cared for by their step-grandparents after her mother remarried. As a teen, Ball attended the John Murray Anderson School for… Read the full story

Today we celebrate what would have been astronaut Neil Armstrong’s 96th birthday! Image: Neil Armstrong / NASA Neil Alden Armstrong was born to Stephen Koenig Armstrong and Viola Louise in Wapakoneta, Ohio on August 5, 1930. Armstrong’s love of flying began at a young age when his father took him on his first airplane flight at the age of five. After serving in the Korean War and finishing college, Armstrong joined the National Advisory Committee for… Read the full story

We’re thrilled to announce some new improvements to MyHeritage Record Matches on Geni! Finding historical records for your ancestors is crucial for building a high-quality family tree, and now, we’ve made it easier than ever to discover and confirm records that are completely free to view with no MyHeritage data subscription required. While a MyHeritage data subscription gives you full access to billions of historical records, there are many incredibly valuable collections that are available… Read the full story

On this day in 1792, poet Percy Bysshe Shelley was born in Sussex, England. Regarded as one of the greatest English Romantic poets of the 19th century, Shelley’s work was often characterized as visionary and radical by his peers. Image: Percy Bysshe Shelley / Wikimedia Commons Shelley was the eldest legitimate son born to Sir Timothy Shelley, a member of Parliament, and Elizabeth Pilfold. He grew up learning to fish and hunt in the meadows around… Read the full story

Do you have a connection to Norwegian royalty? On this day in 1872, Haakon VII of Norway was born. Regarded as one of the greatest Norwegians of the 20th century, Haakon VII is one of the few monarchs in history to have been elected to the throne. Image: Haakon VII / National Library of Norway, Flickr The Norwegian king was born Christian Frederick Carl Georg Valdemar Axel on August 3, 1872 in Denmark at Charlottenlund… Read the full story