Hi, was wondering if anyone has started a DNA project on the MASSEY line? If not, is anyone interested in doing so? We would need at least 6 male Massey descendants to get a discount at the place that does it, the price, I was told for the 25 marker DNA is $165.00 per person. Please post to the list if you are interested or know if such a project is already underway;thanks,Eleonore below is what I saw on another surname list, and thought it might be helpful here: "No it is NOT a scam. The projects themselves are run by volunteers and do not make a dime from them. They are folks like you and I that give freely of their time, efforts and talents. They are not commercial entities, nor do they handle money. All fees are paid directly to DNA testing service providers. The DNA testing service provider you mentioned in the link http://www.ftdna.com is an extremely reputable, informative and honestly run company. They have an excellent FAQ page http://www.familytreedna.com/faq.html Pay special attention to the section on Privacy, if that may be an issue for you. STRs are used, not anything on the DNA chain that can tell so much as your eye color, propensity to drink, or liklihood of getting a disease. So... employers, insurance companies and law enforcement or government will find nothing of use in your test results. No blood is involved in the testing. As simple as swabbing the inside of your cheek, stuffing a Q-Tip type of thing in a bottle, repeating the process hours later and sending it off to the lab. Nothing to get squeemish over. Kevin Duerinck's site lists some 626 surnames that are being tested as well as other DNA projects. I note that he lists Murphy as having a project at FTDNA, however, I did not see it listed on their list of surname projects. They may not have sufficient numbers of male participants to have it register on the list yet. Or there may not be a Project Manager that has come forward to take this on. http://www.duerinck.com/surname.html Does it cost to be tested? Yes. However, when one uses other resources to research their genealogy, it also costs.... trips to Salt Lake City to the Library are not free, nor are copies of records, etc. Participating in the Surname DNA studies may actually save money for folks that are facing brick walls or perhaps tracing multiple lines as they are unsure which ancestors are theirs! It can keep researchers from barking up the wrong tree and wasting valuable research time and money by eliminating, if not confirming, their relationship to another with proven connections to a particular line. I manage 4 DNA lists at Rootsweb: [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] and subscribe to a 5th: [email protected] This is the granddaddy of all DNA lists here at Rootsweb. I recommend it. But ONLY in digest form as it is a very busy list. :) I just wrote an article on Genetic Genealogy that was targeted for and published in the Clan Stewart Society in America, Inc. quarterly newsletter, "The Fesse Chequy." Remember that surnames follow the males -- and they have Y-DNA, so it would be an all male project comprised of only males born to males bearing the surname. Ladies, you will have to ask your surnamed brothers, fathers, uncles or cousins to participate http://www.familytreedna.com/products.html will give you an idea of cost. However, bear in mind that any that participate via a Project, will receive a discount that is not given to individuals. Just looking at the site, I can say that, at this moment, the 25 marker test is considerably less -- almost a 30% difference. I would recommend beginning with 25 markers instead of 12, as there is greater probability of acsertaining the Most Recent Common Ancestor (MCRA) generation in genealogicaly useful time. It is possible to have a 12/12 match and find that the next 13 allelles are too far mutated to have a meaningful relationship in genealogic time. One will be seeking to connect with others that have 25/25 or 24/25 matches. There is a good site that explains much in simple terms: http://blairgenealogy.com/dna/dna101.html I had the good fortune of meeting Doug Mumma when his project was newly established. He is one of the true Pioneers of this new aspect to genealogical research. His excellent web site will be found at: http://www.mumma.org/DNA.htm I hope this has been responsive to some of your questions and I also hope it serves to overcome some skepticism. The use of DNA in combination with sound science and well documented genealogy is a most powerful tool."