About
Bogart was born in New York City, the first child of Belmont DeForest Bogart (July 1867, Watkins Glen, New York – September 8, 1934, Tudor City apartments, New York, New York) and Maud Humphrey (1868 – 1940). Belmont and Maud were married in June 1898. His father’s ancestors were of Dutch, English, and Spanish origin. Bogart is a Dutch name meaning “orchard”. His mother’s family were largely of English descent and to a lesser extent Welsh. Bogart’s father was a Presbyterian, while his mother was an Episcopalian. Bogart was raised in his mother’s faith.
Bogart’s birthday has been a subject of controversy. It was long believed that his birthday on Christmas Day 1899, was a Warner Bros. fiction created to romanticize his background, and that he was really born on January 23, 1899, a date that appears in many references. However, this story is now considered baseless: although no birth certificate has ever been found, his birth notice did appear in a New York newspaper in early January 1900, which supports the December 1899 date, as do other sources, such as the 1900 census.