So, if Jeremiah was his great great grandfather than that means that Jeremiah had children before he married Josette.
In the original story line bible by Art Wallace, Josette killed herself shortly after giving birth to a son. So Jeremiah and Josette had one child. Prior to the arrival of Barnabas, it was said that Jeremiah was Elizabeth's great grandfather, and built Collinwood in 1830.
The history was further embellished when they introduced "The Old House." At this point they established that Josette died in either 1820 or 1821. Apparently she never lived at "Collinwood," unless that's what the Old House was called prior to the building of the new house.
Once Barnabas arrived, they added a brother for Jeremiah named Joshua, who died in 1830, and his wife Naomi, who died in either 1821 or 1822. Barnabas's little sister died in 1796. It was originally the intention that Barnabas and Sarah were around the same age. They both succumbed to an illness in 1796 from which he recovered and she did not.
This all changed when they sent Victoria Winters back to 1795. At that point they moved the dates of events having taken place between 1820 and 1830 to the space of a few months between 1795 and 1796. To further complicate matters, Anthony George left the show and they decided to kill off the character of Jeremiah, which precluded him having any children.
Why they decided to do this is unknown. It may have simply been the desire to see Sarah as a "live" person, but since they changed the dates of deaths for Jeremiah, Naomi and Josette in the process, they could just as easily have moved the date of Sarah's death up to 1821. Or it may be that they felt a witchcraft trial in the 1820's was too much of a stretch. Knowing Curtis, another explanation might be that when they checked into it, they found they had ready and easy access to period costumes from the late 1700's but not to costumes from the 1820's.
When Victoria returned to the present, there was never any mention of Jeremiah being Elizabeth's great grandfather. Instead, Daniel became her great, great grandfather.
At least now that whole David Radcliff/Laura thing makes more sense to me. :-)
Sorry to burst your bubble on that one. In the original 1966 Phoenix story line there was a Laura Stockbridge who died by fire in 1766. And there was a Laura Radcliff who died by fire in 1866. Neither women were married to Collins men. Laura Radcliff had a son named David Radcliff who died with her in 1866. There was no mention of Laura Stockbridge having a son.
Bringing Laura into 1897 simply re-wrote the previous history, and badly. Suddendly Barnabas reverts to referring to Jeremiah as a much older uncle, when in 1795 they were the same age. Jeremiah was married to Laura Stockbridge when Barnabas was "a boy." (Athough it's possible Barnabas had another uncle named Jeremiah - perhaps a brother of Joshua's father, after whom the second Jeremiah was named.)
It's also possible there is/was more than one Phoenix, thus the explanation of how Laura could have died in 1866 but show up alive and well in 1897.
