Heavy Metal Genealogy: James Hetfield and the Salem Witch Trials

San Francisco, an interesting place. It was the home of Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead, and then not too many years later the cradle of American Heavy Metal, largely due to Metallica.

My guess is that the metal explosion was the result of a new generation rebelling against the “Make Love Not War” of their parents. They were all about war, and not just war but WAR! A war fought against society, against the military, and of course, against themselves. War, what is it good for? Beautifully vengeful, rageful music.

Previously on Heavy Metal Genealogy, I covered the family of former Metallica member and Megadeth founder Dave Mustaine. Now it’s time for James Hetfield, lead singer of Metallica. James was born on August 3, 1963 in an L.A. suburb called Downey, to Cynthia Nourse and Virgil Hetfield. Cynthia had previously married Raymond Hale when she was 18, had two children named Christopher and David, and then divorced, marrying Virgil in 1961 in Las Vegas. They officially divorced in 1978, though I believe Virgil was out of the picture before then. After Cynthia died of cancer in 1980 when James was 16 years old, he went to live with his half-brother David and not his father.

Just going off looks alone, James Hetfield would seem like he came from classic midwestern Teutonic stock. Even more than Lars Ulrich (minus the midwestern part). And indeed James does. Virgil was born and died in Nebraska, and Virgil’s grandfather, John Gregory Hetfield, was born in Minnesota and also died in Nebraska.

But the Hetfields go back a long, long way in this country. Back before the signing of the Declaration of Independence — James is related to one of the signers by marriage. The further back in time you go and the further east you travel, you reach the first Hetfield/Hatfield immigrants who settled in New Jersey.

And I’ll just give you the bad news right now —these Hetfields/Hatfields had nothing to do with the Hatfields and McCoys. Same for Juliana Hatfield. So James and Juliana, if you’re reading this, I’m sorry.

But, New Jersey, yes New Jersey. If San Francisco was the cradle of hippies and metalheads, New Jersey has been the cradle of everything else. It’s in the water. But back in the 1600s…