HAPPY DNA DAY

On this DNA day, I sat through a webinar hosted by “Your DNA Guide” and Diahan Southard did warn us that this will have lots of advertising of their products and services. I enjoy her webinars and decided, that was okay I would stay.

She did review her Dot System for sorting matches and how her products/services help along each step of the process. Anyway, she was talking about Best Know Matches (BKM) and how we should identify one BKM for each of our great-grandparents. This is four different people for four different branches. Something just clicked for me.

I decided to look at my matches and see if I can identify a best-known match for each of my great-grandparents. This is a 2^nd Cousin who descends through of the siblings of my grandparents. Since I use the note field on AncestryDNA, I put who my Most Recent Common Ancestor and my actual relationship to this match in that note, it was very easy for me to review if I have such matches.

As I was going through my list, as usual, I became distracted by a match to possibly my 3^rd great grandfather, Johann Wolter. I say possible, because my ancestor, his daughter Dorothea Louise Wolter death certificate listed a Johann Wolter as her father, but I haven’t been able to find anything else about him. Until one of my unknown matches who was matching one of my known Dorothea Wolter descendants, had a male Wolter in his tree.

Dorothea Wolter’s youngest child was born in Beaver Dam, Dodge County, Wisconsin and my matches Wolter was also born in Beaver Dam. I did some old fashion genealogy research to build back my match’s tree. The Wolter in my matches tree, appears to be the nephew of my Dorothea. I say appears to be, because the nephew’s father is a couple years younger than my Dorothea.

When I add the nephew’s father to my tree as the sibling of my Dorothea and then build down the tree to all the twelve matches who are a close relationship to my unknown match; the suggested relationships shown by AncestryDNA matches the actually relationship that my genealogy program says we should be.

Of course, I still need to prove Dorothea’s relationship to this assumed brother.  Some might say that I jumped the gun adding the assumed brother, however, I am hoping that the AncestryDNA system, will help identify more people who are related to this brother and perhaps I will find more siblings.

Remember to have fun and Just Do Genealogy!

Week 17: DNA (52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks – 2025 Version)

The theme for Week 17 is "DNA." DNA has helped countless people make discoveries in their family history – some good and some not. Has DNA helped you solve a genealogical question? (To protect the identities of living people I have keep their identities hidden or used abbreviations). See all 2025 prompts here.

I have used DNA to help solve the mystery of my maternal grandfather, which I have wrote about in the past. This time I am going to talk about the ANCESTRYDNA ProTool of Shared Matches.

I have a group of unknown matches that seem to be related to the famous Daniel Boone. It appears I match through one of Daniel’s other siblings, possibly a sister. Anyway, as I come across these matches, I have been placing them into a color group that I labelled “Possible Boone Connection”. The only thing I have confirmed besides that they are from Daniel Boone’s family tree, they are on my maternal line. Most likely my maternal grandmother’s line.

Today, I decided to bring up my color group and I selected one of my closet matches in this group, a Mr. RW who has a public linked tree of 50 people.

Once I select the SharedMatches, I changed the view listing sort to RW’s close to distant matches. I was able to see his close matches and it was a pleasant surprise. His first match was MW – his daughter, then RW his son, CW another daughter and NW his mother. Then TWW his sister, RS his uncle, EJ his aunt and DS another uncle. Thus, I now know that we are related through his mother’s side.

His next matches are a little more distant. I look at ON his 1C2X and her brother, LS has the same surname as his mother’s maiden name. I now see a common ancestor among these matches of George Alfred Slaugh 1868-1945 and Rachel Maria Goodrich 1872-1921.

Next, I decided to select a different match of mine in this Boone Group a GP who has no tree. Looking at his closest matches, his son, MP has a tree. But I also see GP has a half-brother or nephew and his tree goes out farther than MP’s tree. I find a common couple among this subgroup of John Benjmain Roberts 1889-1956 and Ida M Akin 1890-1969.

Did a descendant of Roberts-Akin marry a Slaugh-Goodrich descendant?

Even through I have not solved my genealogical question of “Am I related to Squire Boone, Daniel Boone’s father?” I now have a starting point to try to discover how this group fits together.

My next step will be to create trees for this group. Many of these people have trees, or their close relatives have trees. AncestryDNA ProTool of Shared Matches is making it easier for me to create these trees. Being able to sort my match’s matches by closet to my match, makes the task a little less daunting.

My next step will also mean I have to do genealogy. To be able to accurately place them into the proper place of this new sub tree.

Remember to have fun and Just Do Genealogy!

Week 2: Origins (52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks – 2024 Version)

The theme for Week 2 is "Origins." Genealogists often get the question, "Where is your family from?" With this week's theme, you could explore an immigrant ancestor, but you could also think about the origin of other aspects of your family. Who was the first person in your family to settle in a particular town? If you have a long line of people with the same occupation, talent, etc, who was the first person you know who did it? Check out all of the 2024 prompts here.

I know most of my family origins in general terms, such as Irish, English, German. However, I have actually been to the origins of my 2nd great grandfather, James Crinion. James was born on Feb 2, 1832 in Louth, Ireland. 

Many years ago, I started corresponding to a fellow Crinion, (lets call her M) actually she married a Crinion and she lives in Ireland. Anyway, she was working on the family and since this name is not common at all, we believe it was the same Crinion Clan. 

My father, two sisters and I took a trip to Ireland as part of a tour group. We decided to stay a few days later and meet up with M who lives on the original Crinion homestead with her husband and sons. Her brother-in-law actually lived in the big, original home, since he was the eldest and inherited it from his father. This land has been handed down in the family for generations. James’ father, Patrick and their direct ancestor were most likely brothers. Patrick being the 12th or 13th child and their direct ancestor being the eldest brother. Thus, we most likely share 4th great grandparents. 

We arranged to meet M at her home. Then she took us to a local hotel, named the Crinion Hotel. The current owner wasn’t a Crinion nor a descendant, however he claimed he had lots of documents on the Crinion Clan. He didn’t have them on him and sadly, I never did see anything. M then showed us where she thought Patrick, his wife and their children had lived. It was a small building, currently being used as a pole shed. It was hard to think, that Patrick, his wife and the four children I have found were living in this small building.

Lore has it that Patrick and his adult children left Ireland after Patrick’s wife, Ann died. I have never found any trace of Patrick in the United States. However, it appeared that the clan was a tight knit family. They first came to New York State, settling a short while in the Utica area, where many Irish Americans came. James younger sister, Margaret married her husband, Daniel Sullivan about 1861 somewhere in Livingston County, New York. Their first three children were born in Caledonia, Livingston, New York. By 1869, they moved to the Doylestown, Columbia County, Wisconsin area and had 6 more children.

James older sister, Mary, married Hugh Peter McMahon on Sep 2, 1855 at St Patrick’s Church, in Doylestown, Columbia County, Wisconsin. They had 6 children, all born in Columbia County.

James married Mary Ann McMahon, younger sister of his brother-in-law, Hugh Peter McMahon on Jan 7, 1857, most likely in Columbia County, Wisconsin. They had 10 children. Their first three had all died by 1864. 

James’ other younger sister, Anne married his other brother-in-law, Philip H McMahon about 1858, most likely in Columbia County, Wisconsin. Sadly, Anne died during child birth, having a daughter in Feb of 1860. The child survived and had six children of her own.

All these siblings and their spouses except Anne are buried in the St Patrick’s Catholic Cemetery in Dolylestown, Columbia County, Wisconsin.  Anne along with James and Mary’s three oldest children are buried in the Saint Columbkille Catholic Cemetery located in Elba, Dodge County, Wisconsin.  The St Patrick’s Catholic Cemetery was created later after a parishioner donated land next to the church for the cemetery. Thus, earlier burials occurred at the Saint Columbkille Catholic Cemetery.

M's husband and my father, both took the Y-DNA test through FamilyTreeDNA and they do show as relatives, and they have the same Y Haplogroup of G-M201. Thus, I am more confident than ever, that I did walk the land that my ancestors walked.

Remember to have fun and Just Do Genealogy! 

Week 43: Dig a Little Deeper (52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks – 2023 Version)

The theme for Week 43 is "Dig a Little Deeper." Answers don't always come easily in genealogy. This week, what is something you had to dig a little deeper than usual to find? Click here to check out all of the themes for 2023.

When incorporating DNA into my genealogical research, I often find myself delving deeper to uncover the elusive clues I'm searching for. DNA serves as a valuable tool that can both open doors and validate existing research. I initially turned to DNA analysis to unravel the identity of my biological maternal grandfather. Yet, diving headfirst into the world of genetic genealogy left me more bewildered than enlightened. I soon realized the importance of educating myself about DNA methods and strategies, such as the Leeds Method, which are instrumental in organizing and interpreting DNA matches. My quest for knowledge also involved watching informative shows that demonstrated how DNA can be employed to reunite adoptees with their long-lost family members.

Embracing the Leeds Method, I focused my attention on a cluster of "unknown" DNA matches, aiming to unearth a shared ancestral connection among them. After scrutinizing the family trees of matches with more extensive genealogical records, I finally discerned what seemed to be a common ancestor within the realm of second to third cousins. It's worth noting that this involved an extensive review of numerous family trees, and it took weeks of dedicated research to pinpoint this shared lineage. Informed by their age, I hypothesized that these individuals were likely the great-grandparents of my maternal grandfather. This couple had only six offspring, I attempted to trace their descendants. I identify the specific branches leading to my DNA Matches and my focus fell on their male great-grandchildren, as I believed one could potentially be my grandfather. I diligently examined the life histories of each candidate, seeking anyone who might have resided in the right place at the right time for my mother's conception.

This exploration led me to a family of brothers, but it appeared that only one of them had lived in Wisconsin; the rest had resided in Iowa. My research efforts centered on this individual, and I uncovered details about his children. Regrettably, I reached a point where I couldn't definitively confirm any further connections along this branch due to the absence of close DNA matches.

Then, one fateful day, a known maternal cousin from my maternal grandmother’s side emerged as a DNA match, specifically at the second cousin level. On that very day, another "unknown" individual also appeared as a second cousin level match also on my maternal side. Intriguingly, these two individuals did not share any DNA connections with each other. As per my research, second cousins should always be connected through shared DNA, implying that if one match is related to my maternal grandmother's side, the other must be tied to my maternal grandfather's side.

Upon scrutinizing the match who had a family tree with only seven individuals (six of whom were still living and marked as "private"), I identified a key piece of information. Among those seven individuals, one was marked as deceased, and I could discern her name. Remarkably, this person was one of the children of the man who had resided in Wisconsin and was a likely candidate to be my maternal grandfather. Further examination of our shared matches confirmed a substantial overlap with this man and his ancestors on both sides of his family tree.

By persistently digging deeper into my DNA matches and untangling the web of connections, I was able to confidently declare that this man was indeed my long-lost grandfather. This conviction was ultimately solidified a few years later when his sole surviving child underwent DNA testing, revealing her as my half-aunt. The joy of unraveling this longstanding mystery was indescribable. Without the aid of DNA analysis, I doubt I would have ever succeeded in solving this intricate puzzle.

Remember to have fun and Just Do Genealogy!

 

Week 34: Newest Discovery (52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks – 2023 Version)

The theme for Week 34 is "Newest Disovery." What is the newest discovery you've made in your family history? Click here to check out all of the themes for 2023.

Engaging in daily genealogy research constantly reveals new and exciting insights. Recently, I stumbled upon an innovative approach to genealogy called the AncestryDNA Dot System, devised by Diahan Southard.

During a recent live webinar, which a similar one is  accessible on YouTube through the above provided link, Diahan Southard made a compelling statement: we should embrace the idea of erasing our prior dots without fear. This notion had always been daunting to me. Yet, during the live session, numerous participants inquired about the process of dot removal. I discovered that the procedure is quite straightforward.

Upon opening the DNA Matches list, a plethora of "Filter By" options come into view. Selecting the "Groups" option opens the door to crafting custom groups and subsequently reviewing them. While deletion is impossible from this interface, a simple route exists. 

Navigating to the first match, one can click on "Add/Edit Groups." Adjacent to the existing groups, a pencil icon is situated. 

Upon selecting this icon, the option to delete a group surfaces. 

Executing this process across all groups effectively eradicates the dots. Following this, the canvas is clear to adopt the new dot system outlined in Diahan's tutorial.

Diahan Southard emphasized in the live webinar that she frequently adds and removes groups according to her current genealogical focus. A crucial tool that shouldn't be overlooked is the note field, where annotations and comments can be added. Upon establishing the Most Recent Common Ancestor(s), I compose a note such as "MRCA James Crinion and Mary Ann McMahon; 2C2x," a concise way to denote a second cousin, twice removed.

Ancestry offers an array of 24 color dots. I prefer reserving the initial two yellow dots for flagging important entries. A vibrant yellow hue signifies "Need to enter – Research." Occasionally, while watching TV, I review matches on my phone, or tablet. I leave myself a brief note and the match flagged with this hue indicate a promising connection to explore later on my desktop computer. The subsequent yellow dot I've labeled as "Confirmed DNA Match – enter into FTM." This serves as a reminder that not only have I verified the match, but it's also entered into my Family Tree Maker tree. My Starred Matches are those I am unsure of our relationship because I don't have enough to figure out the relationship. I replace the star with the confirmed DNA Match dot after resolving these matters. Your use of stars and dots can be tailored to your personal preferences.

Essentially, my journey with the Leeds Method of Clustering DNA Matches by Dana Leeds prompted me to seek a more in-depth approach. The Dot System emerged as a valuable asset in this endeavor. I envision my DNA Matches as gateways to potential breakthroughs in my genealogical exploration. They could unveil unknown branches or offspring of my ancestors. Likewise, they might facilitate progress in traversing another generation back to unveil the parents and siblings of my known ancestor.

To me, genealogy means that I will never stop learning new skills to help me discover new things about my family.. 

Remember to have fun and Just Do Genealogy!

June’s Theme and Week 23: So Many Descendants (52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks – 2023 Version)

The theme for Week 23 is "So Many Descendants." Sometimes when we're researching, we'll come across a set of ancestors who seem to have a gazillion descendants. Who is that in your family tree? Click here to check out all of the themes for 2023.

What I love the best about the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks, is the fact it makes me look at my family tree with a new set of eyes. 

I decided to look at my DNA matches and which ancestor(s) seem to have the most descendants who have tested. I decided to look at AncestryDNA and use ThruLines. Now with my disclaimer: You get ThruLines when ancestors from your tree are also in a match’s tree. However, Ancestry will look at other peoples’ trees and build out your matches tree to find common ancestors. Therefore, your match must have a tree attached to their DNA results. Then common ancestors need to match, you might not get a match because they have a different birth, death, or marriage date for an ancestor. Perhaps you use the birth name of an ancestor and your DNA match uses a nickname. Thus, ThruLines are just hints, and I have found lots correct and a few incorrect things. However, the better your tree is built out, the better the ThruLines matches become.

I have a couple, my 4th great-grandparents through my maternal grandmother’s line, Lorentz Hilts (1782-1850) and Margaretha Wartenbach (1785-1850) which have 60 DNA matches. The Hilts/Hiltz line is quite huge. The immigrant ancestor, my 7th great-grandparents Christofel HÜLS and Eva Catherine Engel came to America in 1710. They have at least 10 children. They were the second group of Germans that England invited to populate the new World. However, the lineage between Lorentz and Christofel is not totally proven. It was given to me by a relative, however, I can’t absolutely prove each generation. At least to my satisfaction. 

ThruLines shows 6 descendants for the couple, I only have four of the 6 children. My ancestor has 20 matches, the next child has one that I need to evaluate, the third child has 17, the fourth has 15, the fifth has 5 and the last child has one that I need to evaluate. This branch of the family has a lot of descendants and with repeat names, children sometimes get attached to the wrong parents. This is why I need to evaluate James and Elizabeth. Also, even though it states that Susan needs to be evaluated, I already have Susan in my tree, so perhaps there is more to evaluate. 

I have a custom fact in my Family Tree Maker program for tracking my DNA matches. I noticed I only have 8 DNA matches documented. These are people that I can prove their line down from Lorentz and Margaretha. Therefore, I see another project in my future on verifying the DNA matches for this line. 

I decided to see how many descendants I have for Christofel and his wife Eva and when I export that branch of the family, I get 5362 people. This does include spouses of the descendants, still this is quite a large branch of the family.

If I check how big the export file would be if I choose Lorentz and Margaretha, I get 891 people. This is quite a drop of people. It just shows how quickly a family expands with each generation back we take our trees. 

Thus, if the set of your ancestors seem to have a gazillion descendants, is it because they are your 7th great-grandparents or more? 

Remember to have fun and Just do Genealogy!

Week 21: Brick Walls (52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - 2023 Version)

The theme for Week 21 is "Brick Wall." Do you have an ancestor (or 4) who you can't seem to make any progress on in your research? This would be a good week to write about that ancestor and really think about what you know about that ancestor, how you know it, and where you might look to fill in the gaps. Writing is part of the research process! Click here to check out all the themes for 2023.

I am no exception, I have many “Brick Walls” or “Dead Ends” where my research ends and I am unable to get further back. When I look at my tree as a Fan and it is at my 3rd great grandparents where things start to end. I have all my 2nd great grandparents figured out. YEAH! That’s half the battle. 

My 2nd great grandfather, James Crinion (1832-1922) parents might be Patrick Crinion and Ann Dillon. That’s a big might be. I obtained these names many years ago from my great-aunts. Rumor has it that Patrick came to America with four of his children, who all settled in the Columbia County, Wisconsin area. I can’t find anything about Patrick in America. However, I do match a Crinion family in Ireland and the male Crinion and my father do have the same Y-DNA. Thus, his ancestors and my ancestors are most likely the same. I really need to get some more facts from her.

My 2nd great grandfather, William Gadow, (1844-1923) parents might be Gottfried Gadow and Anna Maria Rosenow. These names are suggested names via Ancestry’s Thrulines. To be honest, I just haven’t had the time to research this yet. Having the names is exciting, it gives me something to prove or disprove.

My 2nd great grandmother, Dorothea Wolter (1836-1897) wife of William Gadow, her father might be Johann Wolter. Her father’s name was on her death certificate and supplied by her husband. He might have known him, since they were married in Germany, but I don’t know where to start looking in Germany for more clues. I have no idea who her mother is.

My 2nd great grandfather, Michael McDonald (1827-1910) father might be Edward McDonald. Michael and his wife Catherine Quinn were married in Utica, Oneida County, New York, USA. I don’t know if Edward came to the America’s, or if Michael came with any siblings. Maybe DNA will give me some clues on the subject. I have no idea who his mother is.

My 2nd great grandfather, Seymour Hiltz (1850-1880) was born in Manilius, Onondaga County, New York, USA. I know his father is Lawrence Hilts and his mother is Nancy. I don’t have a maiden name for Nancy. Speculation is that she is also a Hilts because my DNA matches on the Hilts line are very strong, stronger than the relationship should be if using Lawrence’s line. However, if Nancy is a Hilts, then it would explain why we are such a close match to some of these Hiltses.

My 2nd great grandparents Timothy Obrien (1836-1914) and his wife Mary OReilly (1839-1901) father’s might be John O’Brien and James Reilly. This information was given on their death certificates. Tim and Mary were both born in Ireland and were married in Cook County, Illinois. I found their marriage record and it listed a Bridget Reilly as a witness and this might be a sister to Mary. I don’t know enough to make worthwhile searches. However, I have some promising DNA matches to review.  I have no idea who their mothers are.

As you can see, I have lots of dead ends. I am currently working on a different line, on a known 3rd great grandparents’ line, who I don’t know who their parent’s are. I am researching all their descendants for a book I want to publish. I also want to identify which DNA matches belong to this branch of the family. 

In the past, I would bounce from one “Brick Wall” to another, never really accomplishing anything meaningful. I have switch gears this year, I am concentrating on what I can figure out and I want to start creating books for branches of my family. I am getting older, turning 60 this year and I want to start preserving my research. I also want to identify as many DNA matches to those branches. Thus, I will be left with unknown matches that might help me with these “Brick Walls”. I have decided to approach the method a little different. It makes me think of Sherlock Holmes, "When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth." Thus, I will eliminate the known Matches and whatever remains, hopefully will match the Brick Wall lines.

Remember to have fun and Just do Genealogy!