A Family Name That Carried Across Two Continents
In 1911, William Patrick Hitler was born in Liverpool to Alois Hitler Jr., Adolf Hitler’s half-brother, and Bridget Dowling, an Irishwoman. Raised largely by his mother after Alois abandoned the family, William spent his early years in England and Ireland. In the 1930s, he moved to Germany, hoping to benefit from his infamous uncle’s rise.
Instead, he became entangled in a tense relationship with the Nazi regime—one marked by blackmail threats, surveillance, arrests, and attempted manipulation. After refusing to renounce his British citizenship in exchange for a government job, he fled Germany and eventually joined the fight against it.
From Berlin’s Offices to an American Warship
William worked in Berlin during the 1930s at institutions including the Reichsbank and the Opel car factory. Despite his family connection, Adolf Hitler reportedly distrusted William’s conduct. The Gestapo eventually fired him and restricted his activities.
After escaping Germany in 1939, William publicly condemned his uncle, writing a piece titled “Why I Hate My Uncle” in Look magazine. That same year, media mogul William Randolph Hearst brought William and his mother to the U.S. for a lecture tour. Stranded by the war, William requested permission from President Franklin D. Roosevelt to serve in the U.S. military. He was approved in 1944 and joined the U.S. Navy as a hospital corpsman.
A New Name, a New Country, and a Quiet Life
After World War II, William changed his surname to Stuart-Houston and settled in Patchogue, New York. He married Phyllis Jean-Jacques and founded Brookhaven Laboratories, a medical analysis business run from their home.
He and Phyllis had four sons. Despite their lineage, the family avoided public attention. William lived the rest of his life in the U.S. and died in 1987. He was buried in New York beside his mother. His wife passed away in 2004.
The Family That Chose Anonymity
William’s sons never had children. Journalist David Gardner suggested they made a pact to end the family line, though William’s eldest son later disputed this. One son worked as a Special Agent for the IRS and died in a car crash in 1989.
As of the early 2000s, the remaining sons lived in Long Island, working in social services and landscaping. The family’s unusual history was first revealed to the public in 1973 through newspaper reports and later in The Memoirs of Bridget Hitler and The Hitlers of Liverpool.
He was born William Patrick Hitler in Liverpool in 1911—the nephew of Adolf Hitler.
Decades later, he would serve in the U.S. Navy against his uncle’s regime.
His life crossed borders, war zones, and family lines in one of the most unusual personal histories of WWII…🧵👇 pic.twitter.com/cn5DFZu2HF
— Detective Tiger's Stories (@TigerDetective) July 30, 2025