It looks like Taylor Swift’s gift for words is in her blood! Ancestry has discovered that Taylor Swift is related to American poet, Emily Dickinson! They both descended from a 17th-century English immigrant, Taylor’s great great great great great great great great great grandfather and Dickinson’s great great great great great great grandfather who migrated to America and started a western branch of their family in Windsor, Connecticut. Taylor’s relatives lived in Connecticut for six generations before moving to northwestern Pennsylvania, where they married into the Swift family. This means that Taylor and Emily are sixth cousins, three times removed. 

Emily Dickinson was born in the 1830s and left her mark on American poetry, now living on through the lyrics of her distant cousin, Taylor Swift. Emily was known as the “Belle of Amherst” and is a highly-regarded poet. She was known for dressing exclusively in white. She wrote while locked in her room and often refused to see visitors. The mysteries of her social life sometimes overshadowed her achievements in poetry, an issue for Taylor as well. 

Coincidentally, Taylor’s album evermore, which channels major poetry vibes, was released on Dec. 10, 2020, which is Emily Dickinson’s birthday! Because of this, fans speculate that the album, evermore, was inspired by the 19th century poet. Even before this discovery was brought into the public eye, Taylor commented that when writing for her albums folklore and evermore, Taylor aimed for her lyrics to sound like a letter written by Emily Dickinson’s great-grandmother while sewing a lace curtain.