Q What connection does Hillary Clinton, wife of the previous President of the USA have with Stanley, Co. Durham - Eric Suddes, Darlington

A HILLARY Clinton's full name is Hillary Roddam Clinton. Roddam is her maiden name and it is through this family that she can trace her ancestral origins back to County Durham.

The name Roddam, which sometimes also occurs in the form Rodham seems to have a North-Eastern origin and probably originates in Northumberland. The name seems to be most numerous in the region although only 35 Rodham or Roddam households are listed in the Durham and Wearside phonebook. None of these families are descended from Jonathan Roddam, who headed the branch of the family from which Hillary is descended. However, it is likely that some of the Durham Roddams or Rodhams are descended from Jonathan's immediate predecessors.

Jonathan Roddam was Hillary Clinton's great grandfather and hailed from Oxhill near Stanley, County Durham where he lived in Joicey Terrace. The Roddams were coal miners and the Durham branch of the family can be traced back to 1774. In 1883, Jonathan Roddam emigrated from Durham to Pennsylvania in the United States and it is from him that Hillary is descended.

Jonathan was the only boy in a family of six. All of his sisters were subsequently married and this explains why none of the present day Durham Roddams in Durham is likely to be descended from him. Jonathan's eldest sister married a local man called Thomas Weston and they ran a grocers shop in Annfield Plain.

Another sister is thought to have married a Mr Bell and it is believed that they may also have emigrated. Of course, some of the Durham Roddams of today may be descended from Jonathan's parents who were called Joseph and Elizabeth Roddam. These would be the great-great grandparents of Mrs Clinton.

A local historian in northern Durham called Jack Hair first brought the connection between Mrs Clinton and County Durham to light in the late 1990s. This generated a lot of interest at the time and attempts were made by a local councillor to encourage her to visit her ancestral home during her time as First Lady.

Although it is interesting that there should be a County Durham connection with this former first lady, it is disappointing that she never visited the county. She may well visit in the future but she will never do so as President's wife.

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Published:16/12/2002