Do we have a Coat of Arms?  According to William Howard Wannall  III (index 1967-02), his father, William Jr., commissioned researched in 1974 and was presented with this"Official" Coat of Arms.  We have not been able to authenticate it as yet.  The description, which is reproduced at the right, was provided with it.  We understand at least one other version exists, and we will attempt to find and publish that one as well.

"Divided into quarters:  1st quarter, gold background; a black initial "W", 2nd and 3rd quarters, blue background; 2 silver swords crossed diagonally; 4th quarter, black background; 2 gold horizontal bands.  A small red inner shield placed over all."

How do you pronounce "Wannall"? If you have ever traveled through the Louisville, Kentucky, airport, you have been greeted by signs showing the many ways people pronounce "Louisville".  They include "Lewis Vill", "Louie Vill", and the version preferred by the natives, "Law Vill".  We may have as many variations of "Wannall".  My family pronounces it as if it was a sports score, "One All", with the accent on the second syllable.  At least two other families do the second syllable with an "E" sound, "One Ell".  My uncle will argue to the death for this one, citing the Old English pronunciatation of "Pall Mall".  And my grandmother really botched it with "One'l", saying she got tired of correcting people and just gave up.  So far I haven't found a family member calling it "WANE all", but it wouldn't surprise me if someone did.  We seem to be very diverse.

Wannall Genealogy Although several people have contributed to the genealogy research, no one has been more prolific or successful than George Lawrence Wannall (index 1919-01.)  His efforts and inspiration motivated the creation of Wannall.com.  So in an effort to facilitate and, hopefully, continue George's work, we have added a section of Genealogy Research notes.  They include much of George's information as well as  bits and pieces of other data provided friends and family members.  Please look it over and feel free to just jump in anytime! And if you find yourself developing an interest, we will be happy to start you with some of our mountains of paperwork.

Famous Wannall Ancestors  According to Maxine Willkins Wannall (index 1916-02), her husband's grandmother, Harriet Isabell Hudson Wannall (index 1850-01) was a direct descendant of the famous English explorer, Henry Hudson.  If so, all Wannalls from the Harriet/Charles Pasco Wannall branch are directly descended as well.  To view a copy of Maxine's hand-written notes, click here.  Another famous link has been suggested between Corrie Tyler Wannall and John Tyler, 10th president of the United States.  We researched this but were unable to connect Corrie in a direct line.  We will continue to investigate.

Watergate Wannall In August of 1974, Richard M. Nixon was in the White House awaiting the results of the "Watergate" hearings, which were being held in the U.S. House of Representatives. When it appeared he would be indicted, on August 9 he resigned his office. If President Nixon had stood his ground, he would have been served a subpoena by the Sergeant-at-Arms of the Senate, who at the time was William H. Wannall. So I guess Bill can be considered the "almost famous Wannall".  You can visit Bill's profile page at index 1914-01.

Clairvoyant Wannalls It is rumored that Anna "Annie" Downey Wannall (index 1869-01), wife of Henry Clay Wannall, was "born in a veil", giving her extrasensory powers. Once she asked a family member if one of her children had recently married, to which the reply was "no". It was later learned that a son of that family member had secretly eloped a week earlier. Perhaps this power is inherent. Annie's sister, Mamie Downey Wannall (index 1862-01), wife of William Tell Wannall, may have passed the ability on to her grandson, Willard Layton Wannall (index 1921-03), who once hosted a radio program and wrote a book about paranormal phenomena, and reportedly could predict the future, read auras, and travel via the "light body" to planes of existence beyond the physical world..

Agent 007 Wannall W. Raymond Wannall (formerly Jr., index 1918-01) worked for 34 years as an agent for the FBI. When he retired in 1976, he was one of the nine Assistant Directors of the FBI, working directly under J. Edgar Hoover. An expert in espionage during the cold war, Ray has been called upon as a resource for books, television specials and films. He has appeared on the History Chanel, Nightline, CBS Overnight, and many other national and local television and radio shows. In recent years when Hoover's private life came under attack with false claims by the press, Ray felt a responsibility to set the record straight. His book on the subject, The Real J. Edgar Hoover: For The Record, was released in July, 2000, and is available for purchase through Wannall.com.

Entertaining Wannalls It is reported that before he died, James Raymond Wannall Jr. (index 1932-01) was a theater manager and professional clown, with his own TV show in Virginia Beach, VA. Another acting Wannall, Steven H. Wannall (index 1971-01), has appeared in such movies as Last of the Mohicans with Daniel Day Lewis, Serial Mom with Kathleen Turner, and Dick. In the late spring of 1999, Steve starred in a television pilot called Frankly Frank.  That pilot is currently being presented to various network executives.  In his spare time, Steve is a professional magician, writer, and theatrical performer.

Diabetes We feel obligated to report that diabetes does, in fact, run in the Wannall family. Mary Elizabeth Downey Wannall (index 1862-01) died of complications due to diabetes, as did her grandson, James Raymond Wannall.  Her great grandson, James Raymond Wannall Jr., was a diabetic, and at least one other great grandson suffers from the disease as well.  Since Mary's sister Annie Downey also married a Wannall, members of both the William Tell Wannall (index 1857-01) and the Henry Clay Wannall (index 1865-01) lines may be vulnerable, although considering the large number of healthy descendants of the Downey sisters, chances are slim that any one individual will contract the disease.