Good evening, I thought I would update everyone on the prospects of DNA testing to establish or disprove relationships among the early Brooks founders in New England. A previous list thread (about a year ago?) on this subject can be found in the list archive via a keyword search on "DNA." Clearly the first round of any testing ought to look at whether Henry Brooks of Woburn and Capt. Thomas Brooks of Concord were brothers, as has been suggested and for which there is circumstantial but primary evidence. A related question, which could perhaps be tested in the same round, would be whether Thomas Brooks of Haddam shares a common male ancestor with the other two. Y-chromosome testing, which requires just a cheek swab, can establish the probability that male test subjects share a common male ancestor within a number of generations. The more expensive and comprehensive the test, the closer the point in time can be established in which the common ancestor probably lived. Testing wouldn't tell us that Henry and Thomas Brooks had a shared father John. What it could tell us is that the chances of Thomas and Henry having a common ancestor within 10 or 15 generations are 95%, or 50%, or even zero. To proceed we need males surnamed Brooks with a proven direct descent from any of these three founders. At least two testees should represent each founder, ideally more. At the moment we are at least one person short for Capt. Thomas's line, and I don't have anyone at all identified for the Haddam line. There's a lot more information, including beginner tutorials, at http://www.familytreedna.com/dna101.html. If you are a direct male descendant, with the Brooks surname, of any of these three men, and would be interested in participating, please drop me a line offlist. I'm particularly interested in descendants of either of the Thomases mentioned. Chris |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Christopher Brooks BROOKS Families of New England http://www.tributaries.org ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||