Thomas Rhett Akins – American Country Awards 2013 Photo Credit: Andrew Evans / PR Photos
Birth Name: Thomas Rhett Akins, Jr.
Place of Birth: Valdosta, Georgia, U.S.
Date of Birth: March 30, 1990
Ethnicity: German, Swiss-German, English, Irish, Scottish, 1/8 Syrian-Lebanese
Thomas Rhett is an American county music singer and songwriter.
Thomas is the son of Paige Braswell and county music singer Rhett Akins (born Thomas Rhett Akins, Sr).
Thomas’ paternal grandfather was Thomas Dempsey Akins, Jr. (the son of Thomas Dempsey Akins, Sr., and Edna Dean Jones). Thomas’s great-grandfather Thomas was the son of James “Jim” Austin Akins and Ava Jane Whiddon/Whidden.
Thomas’s paternal grandmother was Pamela “Pam” Marie LaHood (the daughter of George John LaHood, Jr. and Gonzalee “Gonza” Beam). George was the son of George John LaHood, Sr. and Mary Hanna. Gonzalee was the daughter of Franklin “Frank” Luther Beam and Sarah “Sally/Sallie” Eleanor Baxter.
Thomas’ great-great-grandparents George and Mary were Syrian-Lebanese immigrants (Mary was from Jdita, Beqaa, Lebanon).
Thomas’ great-great-grandfather Franklin’s roots can be traced back on his paternal side to John Derrick Beam (Johann Dietrich Böhm), who was born, c. 1765, in Switzerland, the son of a German father from Hamburg, John Teter Beam, and a Swiss mother from Geneva, Rebecca Reynolds, who was likely of German descent. John Derrick’s wife, Mary Hoyle, was the daughter of German parents.
Sources: Genealogy of Thomas’ paternal great-great-grandmother, Ava Jane Whiddon/Whidden – http://www.ancestry.com
Obituary of Thomas’ paternal great-grandfather, George John LaHood, Jr. – http://mclanefuneralservices.com
Obituary of Thomas’ paternal great-grandmother, Gonzalee “Gonza” (Beam) LaHood – http://www.mclanefuneralservices.com
Thomas’ paternal great-grandfather, George John LaHood, Jr., on the 1930 U.S. Census – http://www.familysearch.org
Obituary of Thomas’ paternal great-great-grandmother, Mary (Hanna) LaHood – http://www.findagrave.com
Genealogies of Thomas’ paternal great-great-grandfather, Franklin “Frank” Luther Beam – http://www.findagrave.com
http://www.geni.com
Genealogy of Thomas’ paternal great-great-grandmother, Sarah “Sally/Sallie” Eleanor Baxter – http://www.findagrave.com