Research Progress April 2025

A new cycle of DNA Study Group starts today with Your DNA Guide. It's been a month since my last DNA research progress post. With the start of the new cycle, I'm updating my research questions. All of these are DNA-related, so it doesn't make sense to break them down by type of course.

1 - Identifying the Irish parents of Bridget, my 3rd-great-grandmother. I am hoping some fresh approaches with Study Group will shake loose new ideas for using DNA to identify mystery matches to her line.

2 - Determining the generation of connection with the Pennsylvania O'Briens. I'm going to try again with the WATO course to see if another attempt makes it easier to work with.

3 - Verify the father of Cora Belle Medcalf using DNA matches.

4 - Identify possible siblings of my 3rd-great-grandfather Gabriel Vasquez, allowing for further research in Chilean records.

5 - Identifying living descendants of Jose Jesus Amado and Gertrudis Palomino (my 5th-great-grandparents), and explore a potential connection to the Amado family of Los Angeles, founders of the Sephardic Temple Tifereth Israel.

6 - Determining the connection to the cluster of Amado matches on FamilyTreeDNA.

7 - Locating another Jones cousin for YDNA testing.

8 - Working with a Campuzano cousin to potentially take a mtDNA test, giving us a MitoTree haplogroup for some of the maternal branches on the Mexican side of the tree.

9 - Exploring the Campuzano side of the YDNA results to see if we can make a connection back to Spain.

10 - Working forward on the McIntosh line for cousins to encourage to YDNA test. I am going to Scotland in June and will be viewing records on John McIntosh at the University of Edinburgh.

11 - Identifying the connection with the mystery Guerrero-Leyva group of matches. I think the common ancestor is on the Portillo side of the tree.

12 - Working with mtDNA matches and trying to identify connections.

Again, these are DNA questions I'm using for Study Group. I am still pursuing other research, such as:

• Awaiting the copy of the marriage record and certificate for Agnes Atherton O'Brien in Indianapolis from 1881. 
• Awaiting the addition of Sonoran records to FamilySearch Labs' Full Text Search.
• Picking up the trail on the Havens family in Monmouth County, New Jersey.
• Using Ancestry's new Networks tool.
• Planning a possible RootsTech 2026 talk idea.