Research Progress January 2026

It's the second of the month and time for an update on my research questions. I wrote last month that the questions are changing a bit as we add a new mtDNA tester to the mix. Our daughter's test results will likely arrive in late February/early March. I've reduced some of the questions, postponed others to a future list, and added some new ones for Allison's side of the tree.

My Paternal Side

1 - I'm still looking for the parents of my 3rd-great-grandmother Bridget, and this question will get more attention in the second half of March, after RootsTech and my meeting in India ends.

2 - Analyzing mtDNA connections in the maternal line path of Sarah Westall and Elizabeth Thornhill Jones. Again, this is dependent on cousin Lynn.

3 - Jones YDNA. I'm hopeful I'll locate another tester to push our Jones line further back in time.

My Maternal Side

1 - Identifying the link between the Leyva mystery matches and my Mexican side of tree. Over the holiday break I've been digging into the shared matches of matches between my Mom's results and CH. I think resolving this question will also help fill in missing ancestors on my Portillo branch. I'm trying something new this Saturday with virtual guided consultation with an expert. More to follow soon. 

2 - Analyzing mtDNA matches in the maternal line path of Maria Jesus Vasquez.

3 - Resolving descendancy from the daughters of John Carter (1715-1783). For this one, I'm interested in hearing what the Carter Society may have, and collaborating with cousin Jacqi Stevens of A Family Tapestry.

4 - Campuzano YDNA. I upgraded cousin Greg's kit to Big Y, so now we're awaiting updated results that may allow us to follow the Campuzano paternal line back to Spain. As I'll be heading to Spain this summer, I'm super interested to see the results.

5 - xDNA analysis using FTDNA's tools.

Allison's Side

1 - Awaiting mtDNA results for the maternal line path to Dorothea Sophia Gagelmann.

2 - Analyzing Sophia's FamilyFinder results on FTDNA and looking into xDNA for this branch of the tree.

Let's go Hoosiers

 

IU Archives. 1 Jan 1968.

A double post to start the new year. Today we're cheering on our #1 Indiana Hoosiers football team in the College Football Playoff as they take on Alabama at the Rose Bowl (4pm Eastern on ESPN). Although IU has never won the Rose Bowl game, but they did crush UCLA at the Rose Bowl in the 2024 season. Let the miracle season continue!

Source: IU Athletics. IU v Ohio State, 2025.

Happy New Year

 

New York Times. Fireworks in Giza, Egypt. 1 Jan 2026.

Happy New Year and welcome 2026! The New York Times has a great collection of photos tonight from celebrations worldwide. We've had a fun evening at home, picking up pizza from our favorite neighborhood spot, enjoying some tasty beverages, and watching coverage from celebrations around the world while also watching the Miami v Ohio State college football playoff game.

My post from New Years Day last year is worth repeating here. I'm continuing to follow the path and maybe there will be new discoveries along the way. Here's to broadening horizons and bridges in 2026!

New York Times. Athens. 1 Jan 2026.

New York Times. Dubai. 1 Jan 2026.

New York Times. Year of the Horse in Busan, S. Korea. 1 Jan 2026.

Sláinte

 

Photo by Patrick Jones. Belfast. 27 June 2025.

Cheers to 2025, bring on 2026. Sláinte is health in Irish, used as "cheers". Many cheers for New Years Eve.

Another path on the mitotree

Some errors on my part pushed the timing on this post on Allison's maternal line for the Schwarzlose family back to 3 December 2025 instead of next week. With Sophia taking the mtDNA test before returning to campus, this result will give a maternal line path for her, Allison, Allison's Mom, and Memaw all the way back to Dorothea Sophia Gagelmann, who was born about 1807 in Saxony, Germany.

I am hoping this result will be as interesting for them as learning about some of the mtDNA results on my side of the tree has been this year. Her result will not arrive until likely Spring 2026.