WASHINGTON, Aug. 13 ( Danielle Haynes ) — DNA testing has proven former President Warren G. Harding had a daughter with a woman who said she had an affair with him during his time in the White House.
Nan Britton first came forward about the affair — and Harding’s secret daughter — in a 1927 autobiography called “The President’s Daughter.” Not many believed her at the time and she was called a “sex pervert” and a “degenerate” for telling her story.
Britton’s daughter, Elizabeth Ann, was Harding’s only biological child, testing by Ancestry.com has now confirmed. DNA testing showed Elizabeth Ann’s son, James Blaesing, is the second cousin of Harding’s grandnephew Peter Harding and grandniece Abigail Harding, The New York Times reported.
Peter Harding instigated the testing after reading “The President’s Daughter,” a copy of which was among his father’s possessions. He said his family long believed Britton was a “delusional woman who believed in a fantasy.”
Peter Harding told ABC News he reached out to Blaesing to discover the truth.
“Each family has their own set of beliefs and we had never discussed this in my family and in Jim’s family,” he said. “We both broke with our family ideology, and I feared losing friendships within the family. I was violating a lot of family rules to bring this about.”
Peter Harding said the two sides of the family plan to have a reunion.
