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Discovering My Family Connection to Abigail Folger — Heiress and Manson Family Victim

A Surprising Ancestral Link to a Tragic Chapter in American History

It's amazing how intuition can sometimes uncover truths that logic alone cannot. That’s exactly what happened when I first learned about Abigail Folger — heiress to the Folgers Coffee fortune and one of the Manson Family murder victims. From the moment I heard her name, I felt a strange and powerful connection. Decades later, genealogy research revealed the truth: Abigail Folger is my 17th cousin, three times removed, connected through our shared ancestors Robert Goushill and Elizabeth Fitzalan.

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Who Was Abigail Folger?

Born on August 11, 1943, Abigail Anne Folger was the daughter of Peter Folger and Ynez Mejia, and the great-granddaughter of J.A. Folger, the founder of the iconic Folger’s Coffee Company. Despite her family's vast wealth, Abigail was known for her deep compassion, intellectual curiosity, and dedication to social justice.

After earning a degree from Radcliffe College, Abigail pursued a life in social work. She worked in underserved communities in New York City, actively engaging with anti-poverty programs and advocating for the marginalized.

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A Move to Los Angeles and Connection to the Manson Murders

While in New York, Abigail met Wojciech Frykowski, a Polish writer and friend of Roman Polanski. Their relationship brought her into a circle that included Sharon Tate, a rising Hollywood actress, and Polanski himself.

In August 1968, Abigail and Frykowski relocated to Los Angeles, and by April 1969, they moved into 10050 Cielo Drive, house-sitting for Tate and Polanski while Polanski was filming in Europe.

Their relationship, however, was reportedly troubled. Shortly before the murders, Abigail told her mother she planned to leave Frykowski and return to San Francisco. On the evening of August 8, 1969, she made her final phone call, confirming her flight for the next day.

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The Manson Family Murders: August 9, 1969

In the early hours of August 9, 1969, members of the Manson Family cult, under orders from Charles Manson, broke into the Cielo Drive home. What followed was one of the most horrific and infamous crimes in American history.

• Abigail Folger was stabbed to death on the front lawn while trying to escape.

• Wojciech Frykowski was murdered outside the house.

• Inside, Sharon Tate — 8.5 months pregnant — and Jay Sebring were also killed.

• Steven Parent, just 18 years old, was shot in his car while leaving the property.

While the media largely focused on Sharon Tate, Abigail’s brutal murder is often overshadowed — a quieter tragedy within the larger horror of the Tate-LaBianca murders.

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A Forgotten Legacy: Remembering Abigail Folger

Though history remembers her as a Manson Family victim, Abigail Folger was so much more. She was an Ivy League graduate, a dedicated social worker, and a woman who chose purpose over privilege. Her story deserves to be told in full — not just as a footnote to more sensational headlines.

In an eerie coincidence, actor Brad Pitt, who starred in Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, a film inspired by the 1969 events, also shares distant ancestry with Abigail Folger. Life has a strange way of connecting people across time and tragedy.

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Genealogy and the Past: A Personal Discovery

Learning that I’m distantly related to Abigail Folger has deepened my interest in genealogy, ancestry, and the hidden stories of our families. Our shared bloodline through noble English ancestry brings a new level of personal meaning to her life and legacy. Abigail was only 2 days away from celebrating her 26th birthday when she was ruthlessly murdered, along with her 4 friends inside the the estate. Along with Abigail Folger, I have discovered that she was the one unfortunate family member who lost her life to the horrific Manson cult, although another distant family member of mine, actor Steve McQueen, narrowly missed becoming a victim himself when he turned down an invitation to the Tate home that fateful evening. Yet another distant family member, Beach Boys member Dennis Wilson, had direct dealings with Manson and his "family"...and lived to tell the tale.