In December 2008, I took the Y-DNA and mtDNA tests through Ancestry.com. I'm now awaiting the results of the latest AncestryDNA test.
The 2008 Y-DNA test traced my Jones line, and the results placed me squarely in the haplogroup R1b. This was not a surprise. I've traced the Jones line to late 1700s North Carolina, and I am very interested to know how far those Jones roots go in America.
I also know from my mtDNA test that my maternal roots showed haplogroup
A, which reflects indigenous North American ancestry. At this point I've been able to follow the women on my Mom's side, from Reid (Read), to Campuzano, Portillo, Diaz, and Quijada surnames in Sonora, Mexico. Far enough back, either through Spanish (or Basque) colonists in Northern Mexico, there
was mixing with the local native population and this is reflected in my
DNA. I am fascinated to know if the new test will help provide more clues on when my Spanish (or other European) ancestors came to Mexico, and connect me with others who share similar family lines.
I have been very lucky to be able to trace many of the lines on both my parent's sides of the family quite far, but I do have some brick walls. My 2nd-great-grandmother Mary Alice Cain Read on my Mom's Read side is probably my #1 brick wall, followed by 3rd-great-grandmother Mary Ann Hise/Haase Oyler on my Dad's side. I am hopeful that this DNA test will shed some light on these lines.
The season finale of Henry Louis Gates Jr's Finding Your Roots featured three guests with Hispanic ancestry. This interested me given the long Mexican heritage on my Granny's Campuzano, Portillo and Diaz lines. Gates ended the series with this quote, "In the end, we are all the product of this history, and we should do all we can to seek it out, and pass it down." I am certainly doing that now.
Lately, I've been interested in these tests and how to proceed, in researching our families' lines, with the best-recommended company and "product." I'm looking forward to reading your thoughts as you get this most recent set of results.
ReplyDeleteJacqi, I'll certainly follow-up with the results. This was different from the cheek-swab Y-DNA & mtDNA tests I did in 2008. It was still really easy (fill a tube with a small bit of saliva, seal it in the bag & envelope provided, activate the kit using the unique ID & send it back), and the cost was low enough that I thought why not try it & see. If it helps break down some brick walls, then it's totally worth the cost. And if it just gives me a better picture of where my people came from, that's ok too.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to seeing what you find out.
ReplyDelete