VILLAGERS celebrated a unique Father’s Day after celebrating its historic links with American presidents.

Residents of Messing embraced Forefathers’ Day after US website designer Tyler Bush fulfilled a dream of discovering his roots to his yeoman farmer ancestors.

Messing is well-known as being the village from where former US Republican presidents George Bush and George W Bush can trace their descendants.

Tyler said: “Reynold Bush sailed to the States in 1631 but our side of the family split off from the line after about three generations to found a number of cities.

“As a kid our claim to fame at high school was being famous shipbuilders. The USS Constitution is moored in Boston Harbour.

“We went to Washington for the inauguration of the presidents but we decided not to reach out as the relatives who came out of the woodwork to make a claim to fame.”

Tyler is a Democrat and has toured the White House, having met former President Barack Obama on three occasions.

The family took a visit to Messing, which began with a village history tour, and were guests at a meet and greet the Bush family event in All Saints Church.

This was followed by a pint of Aspall cider in the Old Crown.

Tyler, 41, from Boise, Idaho, said: “I had been looking to forward to visiting the Old Crown as I have been following the pub on Instagram.

“My grandmother had done all the family tree research on paper so we set up a programme in Family Tree Maker and it took two or three months of inputting all the text.

“My uncle and I then set up a tree on Ancestry.com, adding in photos and we now have more to add after visiting Messing.

“I came back packing around Europe as a teenager and had planned to visit Messing ten years ago but it didn’t happen.

“I had made contact with Messing cum Inworth Parish Council chairman Jon Longman ten years ago when I was researching our family tree and I was glad his email was still the same ten years later.”

John Bush, who is believed to have been baptised at Messing in 1594, is the eldest son of Reynold Bush.

There is a baptism entry for Reynold Bush from August 17 1600 in the Feering parish register.

Anyone who may have Bush family connections can contact Mr Longman by emailing jmelongman@aol.com or calling 01621 810530 for more information.