An American family has entered the Guinness World Records after five consecutive generations were born on the same date, September 14, in a remarkable family coincidence spanning more than a century.
The record was secured following the birth of baby Arthur Bell on September 14, 2025, making him the fifth consecutive generation in his family to share the birthday.
Arthur shares the special date with his mother, Emma Bell, born in 1997; his grandfather, Donald Harlow, born in 1972; his great-grandmother, Addie Harlow, born in 1949; and his great-great-grandfather, Wilber Harlow, who was born on September 14, 1907.
According to Guinness World Records, the Bell and Harlow family now holds the record for the most generations born on the same day, becoming the first family to document the coincidence across five consecutive generations.
The achievement surpasses the previous record of four generations, which had been shared by seven different families dating back to the 1800s.
Emma said the family had known about the unusual coincidence when four generations shared the birthday but delayed applying for official recognition, hoping a fifth generation would continue the tradition.
The family eventually applied after learning that her second child could arrive around September 14, 2025.
Their hopes were realised when Arthur was born on the exact date, extending the family's extraordinary birthday tradition.
The coincidence also continued an alternating gender pattern across the five generations, following a boy-girl-boy-girl-boy sequence.
"We kind of always knew that we held a record with four generations, we just never applied because we had that ambition to have the fifth on 14 September," Emma told Guinness World Records.
She added that the family was delighted when Arthur arrived on the anticipated date, allowing them to become the sole holders of the record.
Arthur's grandfather, Donald, described the achievement as an extraordinary blessing, saying, "God works in beautiful ways."
The tradition began with Wilber Harlow, who was born on September 14, 1907. He later became a postmaster and owned the Harlow General Store in Brooks, Iowa.
On September 14, 1949, his daughter Addie was born, officially establishing the family's birthday coincidence.
Addie later worked as a secretary for the Chief of Police in La Vista, Nebraska, for more than 20 years before retiring to spend time with her family and personal interests.
Her son Donald was born on the same date in 1972, followed by Emma in 1997 and, finally, Arthur in 2025.
Although Addie died in 2023, before Arthur's birth, the family had maintained its birthday celebrations over the years, often gathering at restaurants to share cake and celebrate together.
Emma and her partner, Wyatt, said they only fully appreciated the significance of the tradition when Arthur's due date was listed as September 14.
Adding another remarkable coincidence, Wilber and his wife were married in Maryville, Missouri, the same place where Emma and Wyatt first met.
The family says Arthur's arrival has turned a long-standing birthday coincidence into a Guinness World Records achievement.
