Old people having babies

I can think of no better subject to get the ol’ blog rolling again than the subject of the elderly having children.

In particular, this bit of news out of New Hampshire. The grandson of Grover Cleveland is running for state senate. You need to read that sentence again if it didn’t make your eyebrows move a bit. The grandson of Grover Cleveland isn’t only alive, he’s only 54 years old.

Grover Cleveland was born in 1837.

My grandparents were born in the 1920’s. My great-grandfather and great-grandmother (both of whom I remember very well) were born in 1897 and 1899 respectively. Going back in time down down my family tree, I know of a great-great-great grandfather who was younger than Grover Cleveland. (I don’t know, but its possible that I have a great-great-great-great grandparent younger than Grover Cleveland)

The question of course is, how in the hell can a guy born 169 years ago still have a 54 year old grandson?

Grover Cleveland was born in 1837. His wife Frances Folsom Cleveland was born in 1864. He was 27 years her senior. (This fact alone should qualify him as one of our greatest presidents) Their second youngest child, Richard, was born in 1897 when Frances was 33 and Grover was 60. (Their youngest child, Francis, died in 1995!!) Richard, following in dad’s footsteps, married a woman about 25 years his younger.

End result is a guy with a 169 year old grandpa.

This is not the most extreme example of this. There is the classic case of the confederate widow who died two years ago in Alabama. Perhaps even better, is the 74 year old, currently living child of a civil war veteran in Tennessee who was born in 1845.

My great-grandfather was a WWI vet, and I can still remember the Spanish-American War vets being paraded out when I was little. There are currently 18 surviving veterans of WWI in the United States, and 68 world wide.