Excerpt from “A Record Of The Notable Ancestry Of The Ruedlingers Vol. 2”, The Ethnic Origins Of Connie (Duncan) Ruedlinger Explained, (Aubrey Duncan’s Daughter):
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My mother is not adopted, and to my knowledge, neither are any of her direct ancestors, so her genealogy will not be quite as shrouded in mystery as the previous two. What is spoken of throughout this summary will also pertain to the ancestry of Larry Duncan and each of hist descendants, as well as mom’s beloved late sister Sandra “Sandy” Duncan (October 6th, 1956-May 30th, 1968), whose tragic passing due to pan-sclerosing encephalitis (prior to the creation of the inoculation for the disease) has left a hole in the hearts of the Duncan family to this day.
Speaking strictly on the ethnic origins of my mother, her parents are Aubrey Freeman
Duncan (December 12th, 1922-January 3rd, 2009) and Hazel Lee Duncan (May 28th, 1918- August 7th, 1999.) Both my papaw and grandma Duncan have fascinating ancestry and family histories. Papaw Duncan’s parents are John Calhoun Duncan (October 4th, 1881- February 9th, 1936) and Nellie Sue Bennett (September 16th, 1898-September 29th, 1995). The Duncan clan is, of course, originally from Scotland; and as such, mom’s ancestry is saturated with Scotsmen, including King Robert III of Scotland and Margaret Beaufort Queen Of Scotland. Through papaw’s 2nd Great Grandmother, Mary (Carr) Duncan (1794-1857), the wife of John Duncan (1785-842), he is descended from Benjamin Carr
(1592-1672), who is a descendant of the noble Clifford and Stafford families. Through Benjamin’s wife, he is also descended from Sir John Harrington The Poet (August 4th, 1560-November 20th, 1629), who originally invented the flushing toilet. Through John Duncan’s Great Grandmother Margaret McMurde (1661-1720), he is descended from many English nobles, including my close direct ancestors, the house of Stanley. This line makes papaw a direct descendant of King Henry III of England, as well as the many thousands of European monarchs he is descended from. This line also makes him the direct descendant of King Edward I through Alice Neville Countess Of Salisbury (1405-December 9th, 1462). Putting her even closer to the English throne, through this same line, George Stanley 9th Baron Strange (1460-December 1503) she is the direct descendant of King Edward III of England (November 13th, 1312-June 21st, 1377). As he is a descendant of the Savoys through this same line, you can trace papaw’s ancestry through the English throne to nearly every prior European and (white-controlled) Middle Eastern monarchy in history due to the amount of intermarrying between their various kingdoms. Out of all of the direct ancestors of my mother’s branch of the Duncan clan, the Scottish, royal-blooded Haldanes are likely the most fascinating and rich in Scottish history. Papaw’s first Haldane ancestor being Sarah Susan (Haldane) Duncan (1635-January 2nd, 1669) of Scotland. Her paternal 2nd Great Grandparents, and papaw’s paternal 9th Great Grandparents, are John Haldane 9th Of Gleneagles (1550-1591), and Lady Margaret Isobel
Haldane of Wedderburn (1560-March 13th, 1637), the daughter of the 7th Laird (Scottish for “Lord”) of Wedderburn. John Haldane 9th Of Gleaneagles’ ancestry can not only be traced back through the
noble Haldane line, but to King Robert III Of Scotland (1337-1406) through his paternal 5th
Great Grandmother, Mary Stewart Countess Of Angus (1381-1458); as well as King Robert II Of Scotland (March 2nd, 1316-April 19th, 1390) through his paternal 5th Great Grandmother, Elizabeth (Stewart) Lindsay Countess Of Crawford (1362-1446), making Aubrey Freeman Duncan duly descended from the Scottish throne through John Haldane alone. Lady Margaret Isobel Of Wedderburn, however, is descended from the Barons of Wedderburn. Through papaw’s grandfather, William Wiley Bennett (March 19th, 1862-November 29th, 1911) he is descended from several families of Zurich, Switzerland. He is also
descended from both the Sumner and Newton families through William Bennett, though it is not clear whether these have any connection to General Edwin Sumner and Isaac Newton. Connie is a relatively close cousin of General Edwin Sumner regardless. Papaw is of heavy English and Scottish descent, though he is also of Swiss/German and Irish descent. Mom’s mother, Hazel Duncan’s parents are Clelle “Bud” Wood (July 18th, 1897-August 17th, 1952) and Roxie Buchanan (1898-Deceased). Clelle Wood is the 8th Great Grandson of Lord Robert Hamilton of Scotland (1624-November 10th, 1695), who is the son of James Hamilton the 1st of Barncluith, 2nd Marquess of Hamilton, & the 4th Earl of Arran (June 19th, 1589-March 2nd, 1632). Aside from this, Celle’s ancestry is primarily English with branches of German, French, and Swiss ancestry. The ancestry of Roxie Buchanan is interesting. Her direct paternal 6th Great Grandfather, Thomas Buchanan (1680-1748), is the 2nd Great Grandfather of the 15th President Of The United States James Buchanan (April 23rd, 1791-June 1st, 1868). Her 10th Great Grandfather is Sir William James Alexander 1st Earl Of Stirling, Founder Of
Nova Scotia, & Scottish Poet (1567-February 21st, 1640), a direct descendant of King Robert II of Scotland, among many Scottish nobles. Through the wife of William James Alexander’s son, she is also the 10th Great Granddaughter of the German count Albrecht VII Count Of Schwarzburg Rudolstadt (January 16th, 1537-April 10th, 1605).
In conclusion, mom’s ancestry is mainly colonial American English and Scottish, but also consists of scattered German, French, Dutch, Swiss, and Irish lines of descent.
Ethan Ruedlinger 
