Your reply: Sally: If your grandson is a direct male Hamilton descendant, i.e., if his father, grandfather, great grandfather, etc., are all Hamilton's, then yes, he could supply the sample for testing. Gordon Hamilton Gordon, my grandson is a an Hamilton descendant of my side, female. I am a direct descendant but don't understand it all. Is this gene only passed on to males. His father is not a Hamilton.\ So I guess not. Thank you for taking the time to answer. Sally Hamilton-Gooslin

After visiting the Family Tree DNA site I had most of my questions answered. I would suggest everyone interested in DNA tests visit the Family Tree DNA site. It covers both male and female tests and explains each.

I am looking for a John W. Hamilton b.Nov.5 1855 in VA d.Nov.25 1912 in Knox Co. TN. He was married to Rebecca Cornelia Bain Young probably in Hawkins Co. TN. They had three children,Ross L., Vollie Eldridge, and Effie D. They lived in Knoxville, TN where he was foreman of a sand and lime company. In the 1860 census for Washington Co. VA , Forks Post Office, family no.922 and dwelling 885 is a John Hamilton age 68 ,Martha Hamilton age 30,and John Hamilton age 5. Family lore says that John moved to Hawkins Co. TN with his uncle Sam Turner and married sisters. Does anyone know about this family in Washington Co. VA? Clayton McNew

Jane: I know of no plans for a mtDNA study at this time. Sorry. One of the difficulties with such studies is that such lines do not follow surnames so various surname societies or groups do not have a stake in them. Gordon Hamilton >Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 21:27:33 -0800 (PST) >From: OneRemly@webtv.net >To: HAMILTON-L@rootsweb.com >Message-ID: <4795-3E3614C5-1725@storefull-2154.public.lawson.webtv.net> >Subject: Re: [HAM] Hamilton DNA Project >Content-Disposition: Inline >Content-Type: Text/Plain; Charset=US-ASCII >Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7Bit > >Gordon; >Any chance that the Hamilton DNA will also be done on the Female, mtDNA >? >I am a direct descendant using the female line, >Mother to Daughter. I wonder if this will be done later ? >I do not have a living male direct line; that I can find. >Jane

Pat: I hesitate to give prices since some list owners feel that is too commercial. However, I have no monetary interest in Family Tree DNA. The prices are given on the HNGS web site (http://www.hamiltongensociety.org/dnaproject.htm). If the list owner does not object the total price for the 12 marker test is $101.00 ($99.00 for the test and $2.00 postage and handling) and for the 25 marker test the total is $171.00 ($169.00 for the test and $2.00 postage and handling). I strongly recommend getting the 25 marker test done because the 12 marker test is not as definitive, so frequently one ends up getting the 25 marker test done later anyway. Gordon Hamilton >Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 20:14:11 -0500 >From: <pkcb113@bellsouth.net> >To: HAMILTON-L@rootsweb.com >Message-Id: <20030128011411.JPW12894.imf34bis.bellsouth.net@localhost> >Subject: Re: RE: [HAM] Hamilton DNA Project >Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 >Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > >I would like to know the price, since I will have to pay a male Hamilton >to do I need to convince him. One site I'm on the price is 99.00 and >another is 150.00-up. > >Pat

Sally: If your grandson is a direct male Hamilton descendant, i.e., if his father, grandfather, great grandfather, etc., are all Hamiltons, then yes, he could supply the sample for testing. Gordon Hamilton >Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 18:50:02 -0500 >From: "gooslis" <gooslis@mail.resa.net> >To: HAMILTON-L@rootsweb.com >Message-ID: <018701c2c65e$d018b1e0$f2e127cc@compaq> >Subject: Re: [HAM] Hamilton DNA Project >Content-Type: text/plain; > charset="iso-8859-1" >Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > >Since I am female, could a grandson of mine be tested? >Sally Hamilton

Diane: You can still obtain meaningful data about your Hamilton line from this DNA study but you would need to locate some living cousin (willing to provide a sample for testing) who is a direct male descendant of your line. It would not matter if he was a 3rd, 4th, 5th, or more cousin of yours since the DNA changes very little over many generations. Consequently, any living direct male descendant of your Hamilton line would essentially have the DNA markers characteristic of that Hamilton line. Gordon Hamilton >Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 16:55:30 -0500 >From: "Diane Renfrow" <dhrenfrow@cox.net> >To: HAMILTON-L@rootsweb.com >Message-ID: <001c01c2c64e$cfde5b40$4a160a44@hr.cox.net> >Subject: Re: [HAM] Hamilton DNA Project >Content-Type: text/plain; > charset="iso-8859-1" >Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > >Dear Gordon Hamilton, > >Am I understanding correctly that only males may be considered for this DNA >project? The surname has not been used in our family since my great >grandmother,Henrietta Hamilton,of Wake County NC,born ca 1866,died 1950. >Thanking you for your patience, >Diane Renfrow

Charlie: I'm not sure I can answer all aspects of your question but I can perhaps clarify a few. Ultimately you, the person who supplied the sample to be tested, have control over the results that are obtained and how they will, or will not, be publicized. When you receive your test kit from Family Tree DNA it is accompanied by a waiver form which you must sign if you wish to have your results compared with others. If you do not sign the waiver all you will get are your own results and no-one else will have access to them. I think this makes your results effectively worthless to both yourself and the community because the power of the method is in comparing the results obtained from many different donors. For this reason, many surname DNA studies, including our study, require participants to essentially sign the waiver as a condition of participation. As part of our participation agreement (http://www.hamiltongensociety.org/documents/hngs_dna_app.pdf) you sign that you agree to the following: "I agree to release my project code number, ancestor's name, ancestor's chronology, ancestor's location, and DNA markers for publication on the HAMILTON/HAMBLETON DNA Project web pages." We will not associate your results with you as a person unless you give explicit permission for us to do so. What we will do, and by signing the above you agree to, is associate your results with your earliest known ancestor that you supplied on your pedigree chart. These are the procedures that many surname DNA studies are now applying (see, for example, http://www.blairgenealogy.com/dna/) and for genealogy purposes this makes sense. It makes the DNA marker results available to the public but it associates them with an ancestor long dead and not with any living person. Coming back to Family Tree DNA, if you sign their waiver you will be able to search their own database and some other published databases that they have to see if your marker values match any others. If there are matches in their own database you will be able to send an email to the contact person for the match. However, Family Tree DNA will not directly share your results with other groups without your explicit permission. They are in the business of analyzing DNA; what is done with the results is up to you the donor and the group you are associated with. Consequently, I do not think there is any direct interchange of information between Family Tree DNA and other DNA labs. Having said that, however, there are many avenues where the results are becoming available to the community. As indicated above many results are published on the surname web pages. Also, several web sites are being set up as repositories of DNA data. Of particular interest to those of us of Scottish descent is a repository of Scot DNA data that John Hansen (jahansen@qwest.net) has organized. I imagine that eventually our Hamilton data will be linked to his site. To make a long story short: you are in charge of what is done with your results not the labs doing the analysis; how they are publicized is up to you and your group; most of the results in one form or another are becoming available for analysis and comparison. Gordon Hamilton >Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2003 11:42:58 -0500 >From: "Charlie Hamilton" <chamilton6@triad.rr.com> >To: HAMILTON-L@rootsweb.com >Message-ID: <002b01c2c623$263137f0$3412a318@charlie> >Subject: RE: [HAM] Hamilton DNA Project >Content-Type: text/plain; > charset="us-ascii" >Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit > >Gordon, >Question: since there are several DNA labs, is there an interchange of >information between them? Or, how would one DNA sample be known among others >who were tested? Or, how would one compare his DBA results with results from >other labs/ >Thanx, Charlie Hamilton

Wilma I think I wrote you before about James Hamilton of McMinn Tn. Do you know anything about him. I can't find him there at all. Sally Hamilton

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Classification: Query Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/xFh.2ACEB/3430 Message Board Post: Looking for siblings and parents of Aaron Alexander HAMILTON b. Oct. 15, 1825 in Ohio, d. 1918 in Coffey Co., KS. Possibly in Delaware Co., OH in 1850 but other information has him marrying Julia Ann Webster Kelley (b. Delaware Co., OH) in Bronson, Bourbon Co, KS before 1844. I have no further information on Julia either. Aaron's father was b. in PA and his mother in OH, according to census records. Aaron and Julia had 12 children; apparently she died before 1880, as she is not on that census with Aaron and three of their children. Help appreciated, always glad to share what I have!

The marriage between Nancy F. Hamilton, parents unknown, and John Woodside (of the Samuel Cunningham Woodside brood) was in Livingston Co., Ky on Spet. 7, 1813. The bondsman was John Hamilton. Now what I need to know is was John the dad, brother or uncle?? Is this Hamilton related to my Anthony L. Hamilton who may also be related to Woods M. Hamilton? I'm thinking (not assuming.. :-) that Anthony L and Woods M might just be brothers as Anthony's son is named Woods L. Would like to know what the "L" is for since it's prevalent in at least 3 of their names.

Ann, You know or suspect your William married a Pendleton or Pickens county girl? You've got him married to Rachel Hunter in 1808. Was she the Carolina girl or the VA girl? Sandy in SC

I have read this email. If it is not addressed to me, I apologize. It caught my eye because my name is ANN, and my sister's name is NANCY. For that reason I looked up the names at one point. Both are forms of the name HANNAH, which in Hebrew means "...full of grace, mercy, and prayer. " Another form is Nan. I and my sister were not named names that mean the same. In a baby book I found this definition of the name Ann. The names, ANN & NANCY are both from the name HANNAH. alwaysann@argontech.net ----- Original Message ----- From: "G. Lane" <gblane@aristotle.net> To: <HAMILTON-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Monday, January 27, 2003 11:26 AM Subject: Re: [HAM] Nancy = Ann > Even odder, POLLY is a diminuative or nickname for MARY - too me a while to > figure that one out! And it was commonly used in the 19th century. > > Gloria > > > At 10:42 AM 1/27/2003 -0600, you wrote: > >I have seen the NANCY name come through several times -- many people do not > >know that Nancy is a nickname for Ann, so you might find your gal listed > >that way. I think that a couple of generations ago, this was more > >commonly known. > >Nancy (I know cause I are one!) > > > > > >==== HAMILTON Mailing List ==== > >Visit http://www.hamiltongensociety.org/ > >New home page of the Hamilton National Genealogical Society, Inc. > >and > >Clan Hamilton Society > >web site: www.clanhamilton.org **NEW** > > > >============================== > >To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, > >go to: > >http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 > > > ==== HAMILTON Mailing List ==== > Great search engine > http://www.familytreemagazine.com/search/ > > ============================== > To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237

Gordon; Any chance that the Hamilton DNA will also be done on the Female, mtDNA ? I am a direct descendant using the female line, Mother to Daughter. I wonder if this will be done later ? I do not have a living male direct line; that I can find. Jane

I have a Hamilton website that is for research as well as sharing your family with the Hamiltons of Coosa, Shelby and Talladega Counties of Alabama. I would like to invite you to join this site and anyone else who has Hamilton relatives in these counties. It is free. By posting your lines or questions someone may connect with you and they would contact you either direct or on the website. Pat Killian > > From: jbradk@hotmail.com > Date: 2003/01/21 Tue PM 03:05:01 EST > To: HAMILTON-L@rootsweb.com > Subject: [HAM] John Hamilton and Delilah Blackwell of Alabama > > This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. > > Classification: Query > > Message Board URL: > > http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/xFh.2ACEB/3425 > > Message Board Post: > > John Hamilton and Delilah Blackwell had a daughter by the name of Annie Gertrude Hamilton who married Nathan Lawson Payton. John Hamilton and Delilah Blackwell would be my great great grandparents. They lived in the Coosa, Chilton County areas, I believe. I'm looking for any information on them. If you know anything or have a connection, please email me. Thanks > > > ==== HAMILTON Mailing List ==== > Need some help getting started with irc (INTERNET RELAY CHAT)? > Try: http://home.flash.net/~gen4m/ > > ============================== > To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 > >

I would like to know the price, since I will have to pay a male Hamilton to do I need to convince him. One site I'm on the price is 99.00 and another is 150.00-up. Pat > > From: "Charlie Hamilton" <chamilton6@triad.rr.com> > Date: 2003/01/27 Mon AM 11:42:58 EST > To: HAMILTON-L@rootsweb.com > Subject: RE: [HAM] Hamilton DNA Project > > Gordon, > Question: since there are several DNA labs, is there an interchange of > information between them? Or, how would one DNA sample be known among others > who were tested? Or, how would one compare his DBA results with results from > other labs/ > Thanx, Charlie Hamilton > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Gordon Hamilton [mailto:gah4@psu.edu] > Sent: Sunday, January 26, 2003 5:43 AM > To: HAMILTON-L@rootsweb.com > Subject: [HAM] Hamilton DNA Project > > As announced on this list last October, the Hamilton National Genealogical > Society has initiated a Hamilton surname DNA project for which I am the > contact person and coordinator. At this point we have already collected > several samples and sent them off to Family Tree DNA, the company that is > doing the analyses for this study. Currently we are awaiting the initial > results from the study. > > The purpose of the present note is to attempt to articulate why each of you > should consider having a DNA analysis done for your Hamilton line and how > the results could assist you in tracing your family history. This note is > necessarily rather lengthy but I hope you will bear with me. First a little > background will be given on the analysis that is being done in the Hamilton > DNA project. > > In this study either 12 or 25 markers (the results will be more definitive > with the 25 marker test) in the DNA of the Y-chromosome of each sample are > examined. The Y-chromosome is unique in human DNA in that it is only found > in males and is passed down from father to son virtually unchanged. The > term 'virtually' is used because there is a small probability (less than 1 > %) that a mutation will occur in the markers each generation. The net > result then is that the markers being examined will have essentially the > same (or very similar) values for you, your father, grandfather, great > grandfather, etc., back many generations (10 to 50 or more). Obviously one > cannot directly analyze such DNA back more than 2 or 3 generations because > earlier ancestors have passed on. However, the power of the technique is > that one does not have to analyze the DNA of ancestors; one can obtain > meaningful genealogical information by comparing the results from your DNA > analysis with the results from others. Consider, for example, that your > direct male ancestor of say 10 generations ago had 2 sons, one of whom you > are descended from, and the other who is the ancestor of another group of > Hamiltons. The Y-chromosomal DNA from a living direct male descendant of > the second son should be identical or very similar to your Y-chromosomal > DNA. The corollary of course is that, if neither you nor the other Hamilton > knew your lines back that far, finding your DNAs to be so closely matched > would indicate that you have a common ancestor. That could open up new > avenues for both of you to explore. Of course, if you find that your > Y-chromosomal DNA does not match that of another Hamilton one could > conclude that you are not closely related (at least through the Hamilton > male line). > > It should be emphasized that the analyses for this study can only be done > on samples collected from males since they are the only ones with the > Y-chromosome. Furthermore, because the Y-chromosome is passed from father > to son the study can only find relationships that occur through direct male > lines. Since surnames usually follow direct male lines, our study has the > potential to find many relationships among various Hamiltons. Those of you > who are females with Hamilton ancestors can still participate in the study > if you find a male relative (father, brother, uncle, male cousin, etc.) who > is willing to supply a sample for analysis. By the way, sample collection > is painless; it involves merely rubbing the inside of the cheek with a > brush collector. > > One should point out that there are several situations where the DNA > analysis might give an unexpected result. These are sometimes referred to > euphemistically as 'non-parental' events. Some examples of such situations > are: an unknown adoption in your line, an illegitimate birth or conception > out of wedlock, some ancestor taking the surname of a stepfather, etc. Of > course, if you have suspicions that one of these might have occurred in > your line, obtaining a DNA analysis and comparing the results to those of > presumed relatives where it is unlikely such an event happened could > provide evidence whether such an event has occurred in your line. > > Many of us have been able to determine our Hamilton lines back to the 18th > or 19th century (4 to 8 generations or so) but have been stymied in trying > to trace our lines back further. Using DNA analyses one has the potential > to be able to obtain information about earlier generations. For example, > suppose you have a well documented Hamilton line back to about 1830 in > Tennessee. You suspect that your earliest known Hamilton ancestor migrated > to Tennessee from either Virginia or North Carolina but have not been able > to make the connection. You know that there are several known Hamilton > lines in Virginia and North Carolina so it seems a reasonable possibility. > By having the DNA from one of your Tennessee Hamiltons analyzed and > comparing the results to those obtained from the various Virginia and North > Carolina Hamilton lines, one would obtain evidence which one is the most > likely to be related to your line, and thus you would know where to focus > further traditional genealogical research. > > One of the general questions the Hamilton DNA study will also be able to > address is whether virtually all Hamiltons come from a common ancestor (say > 500 to 1500 years ago) or whether there were several different initiating > ancestors. It is believed that most Hamiltons originated in Scotland, > although, prior to emigrating to the new world, many had previously > migrated to England or been transplanted from Scotland to Ireland, > especially in the 17th century. In early Scotland there is a very well > documented Hamilton lineage starting with Walter Fitzgilbert in the late > 13th century. This line led to many Dukes, Earls, Barons, etc. and for that > reason is well documented. Undoubtedly many other Hamiltons, including many > who ultimately emigrated to the new world, are unknowingly derived from > this line. By comparing the Y-chromosomal DNA of such individuals with the > DNA from well documented descendants of the ducal line one could conclude > with a high degree of certainty whether they come from the same line or > not. Personally I think that there are too many people with the Hamilton > surname in the world for us all to be derived from the Walter Fitzgilbert > line. Walter Fitzgilbert's main seat of power was in an area near Glasgow, > Scotland and surnames did not come into common use in that area of Scotland > until the 14th or 15th century. About that time the descendants of Walter > Fitzgilbert came to be known as Hamiltons and the town (now a city) that > grew up around their castle (or palace) was given the name of Hamilton. I > suspect that when surnames came into common use some of the retainers or > servants who lived in Hamilton and worked for the ducal Hamilton line just > took the surname Hamilton. If that is the case then there will be several > initiating ancestors who gave rise to the various current Hamilton lines. > In any event, the DNA study will be able to clarify that point if various > Hamilton lines have the same or similar DNA markers within their line but > the markers are different from line to line. > > In order to answer the question whether there is mainly one, or there are > many initiating Hamilton ancestors, one will need broad participation by > many Hamilton lines. For this reason alone, I would like to encourage as > many of you as possible to participate in this study. However, a potential > added benefit from participation is that some more immediate questions may > be resolved in your line (see earlier discussion) and that you may find > totally unexpected relationships with other Hamilton lines. > > Some further information about the Hamilton DNA project can be found at the > web site of the Hamilton National Genealogical Society at > http://www.hamiltongensociety.org/dnaproject.htm > > To participate in the study you need to fill out an application form that > can be downloaded from that site (or I can mail you a copy). The completed > application along with a pedigree chart giving your earliest known Hamilton > ancestor should then be sent to me at: > > Gordon Hamilton > 806 McCormick Ave > State College, PA 16801-6527 > Telephone: 814-238-5695 > Email: gah4@psu.edu > > For those of you who would like to obtain more information on DNA surname > studies in general, the following are a few web sites that contain > additional information. > > http://www.familytreedna.com/; this is the company we are using for the > Hamilton surname study > http://www.duerinck.com/project.html; a specific project with links to many > others > http://www.blairgenealogy.com/dna/; another specific project whose > procedures we will follow closely in our study > > > ==== HAMILTON Mailing List ==== > To unsubscribe write an email with just the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the text > Hamilton-L-Request@RootsWeb.com for mail mode in plain text > Hamilton-D-Request@RootsWeb.com for digest mode in plain text > > ============================== > To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go > to: > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 > > > > > > ==== HAMILTON Mailing List ==== > To unsubscribe write an email with just the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the text > Hamilton-L-Request@RootsWeb.com for mail mode in plain text > Hamilton-D-Request@RootsWeb.com for digest mode in plain text > > ============================== > To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 > >

Since I am female, could a grandson of mine be tested? Sally Hamilton

Dave how do you know the number of people that was here on that date. I have been able to trace my Hamilton's back to 1747 and possibly a little further. But none of this is for sure. They only go by what is given to them. Let me know if there is somewhere I can go to get better results. Sally Hamilton

Charlie, The DNA project is a good idea. I guess you can say I am lucky because both my father and brother are being tested but not for the Hamilton line. Take the story of the "John Randolph of Virginia" and the Edward Fitz Randolph of New Jersey, the lines have married into one another, dropped the "Fitz" from the name, and in general confused genealogist for years ! With the help of DNA we have begun to help each other find the correct line. When President George Washington authorized the first official United States Census in 1790 there were 477 Hamilton families listed, with 113 of them living in the State of Pennsylvania, of which one of them was my Hamilton's, John Hamilton ESQ b 1741 in New Comnock, Argyll, Scotland who's roots we have been able to trace and document back to Archibald Hamilton b 1625 Dunfermine, Fife, Scotland. So, I look forward to everyone's results, Dave

Dear Gordon Hamilton, Am I understanding correctly that only males may be considered for this DNA project? The surname has not been used in our family since my great grandmother,Henrietta Hamilton,of Wake County NC,born ca 1866,died 1950. Thanking you for your patience, Diane Renfrow ----- Original Message ----- From: "Gordon Hamilton" <gah4@psu.edu> To: <HAMILTON-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Sunday, January 26, 2003 5:42 AM Subject: [HAM] Hamilton DNA Project > As announced on this list last October, the Hamilton National Genealogical > Society has initiated a Hamilton surname DNA project for which I am the > contact person and coordinator. At this point we have already collected > several samples and sent them off to Family Tree DNA, the company that is > doing the analyses for this study. Currently we are awaiting the initial > results from the study. > > The purpose of the present note is to attempt to articulate why each of you > should consider having a DNA analysis done for your Hamilton line and how > the results could assist you in tracing your family history. This note is > necessarily rather lengthy but I hope you will bear with me. First a little > background will be given on the analysis that is being done in the Hamilton > DNA project. > > In this study either 12 or 25 markers (the results will be more definitive > with the 25 marker test) in the DNA of the Y-chromosome of each sample are > examined. The Y-chromosome is unique in human DNA in that it is only found > in males and is passed down from father to son virtually unchanged. The > term 'virtually' is used because there is a small probability (less than 1 > %) that a mutation will occur in the markers each generation. The net > result then is that the markers being examined will have essentially the > same (or very similar) values for you, your father, grandfather, great > grandfather, etc., back many generations (10 to 50 or more). Obviously one > cannot directly analyze such DNA back more than 2 or 3 generations because > earlier ancestors have passed on. However, the power of the technique is > that one does not have to analyze the DNA of ancestors; one can obtain > meaningful genealogical information by comparing the results from your DNA > analysis with the results from others. Consider, for example, that your > direct male ancestor of say 10 generations ago had 2 sons, one of whom you > are descended from, and the other who is the ancestor of another group of > Hamiltons. The Y-chromosomal DNA from a living direct male descendant of > the second son should be identical or very similar to your Y-chromosomal > DNA. The corollary of course is that, if neither you nor the other Hamilton > knew your lines back that far, finding your DNAs to be so closely matched > would indicate that you have a common ancestor. That could open up new > avenues for both of you to explore. Of course, if you find that your > Y-chromosomal DNA does not match that of another Hamilton one could > conclude that you are not closely related (at least through the Hamilton > male line). > > It should be emphasized that the analyses for this study can only be done > on samples collected from males since they are the only ones with the > Y-chromosome. Furthermore, because the Y-chromosome is passed from father > to son the study can only find relationships that occur through direct male > lines. Since surnames usually follow direct male lines, our study has the > potential to find many relationships among various Hamiltons. Those of you > who are females with Hamilton ancestors can still participate in the study > if you find a male relative (father, brother, uncle, male cousin, etc.) who > is willing to supply a sample for analysis. By the way, sample collection > is painless; it involves merely rubbing the inside of the cheek with a > brush collector. > > One should point out that there are several situations where the DNA > analysis might give an unexpected result. These are sometimes referred to > euphemistically as 'non-parental' events. Some examples of such situations > are: an unknown adoption in your line, an illegitimate birth or conception > out of wedlock, some ancestor taking the surname of a stepfather, etc. Of > course, if you have suspicions that one of these might have occurred in > your line, obtaining a DNA analysis and comparing the results to those of > presumed relatives where it is unlikely such an event happened could > provide evidence whether such an event has occurred in your line. > > Many of us have been able to determine our Hamilton lines back to the 18th > or 19th century (4 to 8 generations or so) but have been stymied in trying > to trace our lines back further. Using DNA analyses one has the potential > to be able to obtain information about earlier generations. For example, > suppose you have a well documented Hamilton line back to about 1830 in > Tennessee. You suspect that your earliest known Hamilton ancestor migrated > to Tennessee from either Virginia or North Carolina but have not been able > to make the connection. You know that there are several known Hamilton > lines in Virginia and North Carolina so it seems a reasonable possibility. > By having the DNA from one of your Tennessee Hamiltons analyzed and > comparing the results to those obtained from the various Virginia and North > Carolina Hamilton lines, one would obtain evidence which one is the most > likely to be related to your line, and thus you would know where to focus > further traditional genealogical research. > > One of the general questions the Hamilton DNA study will also be able to > address is whether virtually all Hamiltons come from a common ancestor (say > 500 to 1500 years ago) or whether there were several different initiating > ancestors. It is believed that most Hamiltons originated in Scotland, > although, prior to emigrating to the new world, many had previously > migrated to England or been transplanted from Scotland to Ireland, > especially in the 17th century. In early Scotland there is a very well > documented Hamilton lineage starting with Walter Fitzgilbert in the late > 13th century. This line led to many Dukes, Earls, Barons, etc. and for that > reason is well documented. Undoubtedly many other Hamiltons, including many > who ultimately emigrated to the new world, are unknowingly derived from > this line. By comparing the Y-chromosomal DNA of such individuals with the > DNA from well documented descendants of the ducal line one could conclude > with a high degree of certainty whether they come from the same line or > not. Personally I think that there are too many people with the Hamilton > surname in the world for us all to be derived from the Walter Fitzgilbert > line. Walter Fitzgilbert's main seat of power was in an area near Glasgow, > Scotland and surnames did not come into common use in that area of Scotland > until the 14th or 15th century. About that time the descendants of Walter > Fitzgilbert came to be known as Hamiltons and the town (now a city) that > grew up around their castle (or palace) was given the name of Hamilton. I > suspect that when surnames came into common use some of the retainers or > servants who lived in Hamilton and worked for the ducal Hamilton line just > took the surname Hamilton. If that is the case then there will be several > initiating ancestors who gave rise to the various current Hamilton lines. > In any event, the DNA study will be able to clarify that point if various > Hamilton lines have the same or similar DNA markers within their line but > the markers are different from line to line. > > In order to answer the question whether there is mainly one, or there are > many initiating Hamilton ancestors, one will need broad participation by > many Hamilton lines. For this reason alone, I would like to encourage as > many of you as possible to participate in this study. However, a potential > added benefit from participation is that some more immediate questions may > be resolved in your line (see earlier discussion) and that you may find > totally unexpected relationships with other Hamilton lines. > > Some further information about the Hamilton DNA project can be found at the > web site of the Hamilton National Genealogical Society at > http://www.hamiltongensociety.org/dnaproject.htm > > To participate in the study you need to fill out an application form that > can be downloaded from that site (or I can mail you a copy). The completed > application along with a pedigree chart giving your earliest known Hamilton > ancestor should then be sent to me at: > > Gordon Hamilton > 806 McCormick Ave > State College, PA 16801-6527 > Telephone: 814-238-5695 > Email: gah4@psu.edu > > For those of you who would like to obtain more information on DNA surname > studies in general, the following are a few web sites that contain > additional information. > > http://www.familytreedna.com/; this is the company we are using for the > Hamilton surname study > http://www.duerinck.com/project.html; a specific project with links to many > others > http://www.blairgenealogy.com/dna/; another specific project whose > procedures we will follow closely in our study > > > ==== HAMILTON Mailing List ==== > To unsubscribe write an email with just the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the text > Hamilton-L-Request@RootsWeb.com for mail mode in plain text > Hamilton-D-Request@RootsWeb.com for digest mode in plain text > > ============================== > To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 >