I have a big problem! There are no living males left in my Mitchell surname line. All the children of male Mitchell's were adopted, due to all the male children of my grandfather having the mumps as adults, thus becoming sterile. I follow this Aberdeen list, because I've had possible connections to people in Aberdeen, altho the line I speak about here are from Midlothian. (Edinburgh). I've researched them back to 1770 from that area, where they seem to have been for many hundred years. I have acquired my uncle's watch. He passed away in 2002 and it has been sealed up in a baggie since before he died. On the watch band, there is a bit of 'gunk' and quite a bit where the watch meets the band. I have contacted a scientist in Edinburgh, he said there is no doubt some DNA there that can be extracted. I really want to get the DNA, specifically the Y, tested. Can anyone point me to an AFFORDABLE way to do this. So far I was quoted almost 1000.00 usd. I have over 192 Mitchell's in my family tree who could (well are) related to this man, from that area. I think getting this DNA tested will at least keep that door open for other people as well as myself, since there are no more males. I'd hate to see this line totally 'disappear' without this chance! Any and all tips greatly welcome, Thank you Tammy Mitchell BC Canada Ps: I have Bissett's in my tree, who are from fife area, the name was used in my tree for a few generations, but I've only found it as a middle name, not a surname, altho passed along alot. The middle name always goes with the surname Amess. I have Amess who married Sutherland. On 09/07/2010 5:46 AM, Ray Forsberg wrote: > Hi all, > > Just one more little bit of info which may be of assistance; if you > are thinking of doing Y-DNA testing, it pays to go the whole hog, > i.e., don't just do 12 or 25 or even 37 markers (although 37 is better > than 12!). At 12 markers we have over 100 exact matches all of > differing surnames; at 25 markers we are down to just 4 - just two > surnames; at 37 we are down to just one surname and very close > matches; at 67 we have just one close seven generation match and a > haplogroup which gives us the exact subclade (very small group of > people) to which we belong. It costs more to do this bit by bit, so > go for the whole test plus the deep clade test from the start if you > want some meaningful information. > > This has given us the name of our male line which has been hidden to > the family since 1857 - well worth it! > > Cheers, > > Carol > > On 9 July 2010 12:13, Venita Roylance<venitar@mac.com> wrote: > >> As for DNA testing, I was one of the first to donate my blood for it. It was so early in the testing that they took a vial of blood, not just a mouth swab. So my data is in the pot. Since I am a female it isn't used as much as some, but I feel I did my part for research. >> >> Venita >> >> >> On Jul 8, 2010, at 2:59 PM, Lorne&Judy wrote: >> >> >>> Hello, >>> If others are interested in seeing what a DNA search project is about, I >>> would suggest that you look up Dennis WEST DNA Project. It really gives a >>> good idea, and explains what this is all about. >>> Yes, this new test, is quite a bit more expensive that the Y DNA testing. >>> There were no other Male lines in my husband's family to test, and so they >>> suggested this test with an Aunt of the family. My husband was adopted, and >>> this will prove ( although we know from his birth mother that this is the >>> correct Birthfather's family), that he is connected to not only this Aunt, >>> but cousins etc. etc. of other family members also. I believe the cost >>> though, was something like $289.00 U.S. each. So, a little prohibitive with >>> some. >>> Judy Anderson nee STABLES >>> B.C. Canada >>> lorneanderson@shaw.ca >>> ----- Original Message ----- >>> From: "Joe Bissett"<jbissett@hot-peppers.com> >>> To:<aberdeen@rootsweb.com> >>> Sent: Thursday, July 08, 2010 7:14 AM >>> Subject: Re: [ABERDEEN] Lines of Ascent...... and DNA >>> >>> >>> >>>> Hi Mark, >>>> >>>> I definitely am NOT trying to be argumentative. Rather, I hope my >>>> responses are taken as an attempt by me to inform others about what I >>>> have learned. I must also state for the record that I have become a >>>> genealogy DNA evangelist. >>>> >>>> On 7/8/2010 7:56 AM, Mark Sutherland-Fisher wrote: >>>> >>>>> DNA may help break down some of these brick walls, but sadly for most of >>>>> us, all too few of them. >>>>> >>>> With all due respect, from your informative note I must disagree. It >>>> seems to me, from my experience, that you are a perfect candidate for >>>> Y-DNA 37 marker testing. Many folks have not yet learned that a non-match >>>> can be just as informative as a match. This is particularly true if the >>>> tester's results match those of someone with a different surname. Such a >>>> result can possibly lead to clues to break through the fog of what we call >>>> "Non Paternal Events" (NPE). I have such a situation in my own family, >>>> and our only hope now appears to be to wait for a future match. And that >>>> is the main problem confronting those of us having submitted tests. The >>>> databases are still relatively small. For example, my own BISSETT >>>> project. Out of the hundreds, perhaps thousands of BISSETTs who post to >>>> genealogy message boards, only eight have tested so far for our project. >>>> The more folks test, the higher the likelihood of others enjoying the >>>> success that I found. >>>> >>>>> As far as I understand it to be, only the direct male and direct female >>>>> ancestors can be linked through current DNA testing. >>>>> >>>> This is no longer the case. FTDNA is now offering a new test called >>>> "Family Finder", which matches both male and female "cousins" back 3 (90%) >>>> to 5 (10%) generations. Obviously the probability of the validity of the >>>> match decreases by generation; however, this technology is very new, and >>>> can only improve. My "guru" who administers the Rootsweb PIGGOTT list >>>> submitted his test. To his great pleasure, the test unveiled a female >>>> ancestor among the Pennsylvania Dutch; an ancestor he had suspected, but >>>> was now proven. I submitted this test as well, but my results so far are >>>> still without a tie-in. With this test in particular, the fact that it is >>>> so new limits immediate success. >>>> >>>> I now refer to DNA testing as a "post and forget" test. Every day that >>>> passes more and more people are submitting test kits. I suspect that as >>>> the months and years progress, I will receive other notifications that my >>>> results have matched with some other researcher, and my knowledge of my >>>> lines (both paternal and maternal) will be increased accordingly. >>>> Respectfully, Joe Bissett, Somerset, Texas, USA