I have a fair understanding of the use of yDNA in genealogy but the blurbs I've read about autosomal DNA don't give a clue to whether that test would help solve a longstanding brick wall in my maternal line, which is as follows . . . My 3rd great-grandfather was born in 1788 in a sparsely-populated region of Canada. I suspect he was the son of one of 7 brothers who settled in the area in the early 1780s. Roughly a dozen direct male descendants of those 7 brothers have done yDNA tests through FTDNA. Some have tested up to 67 markers and one has done the FTDNA Family Finder test. My own line daughtered-out with my 2nd great-grandfather and I’m unable to locate any direct male cousins for yDNA testing. Now I'm wondering whether an autosomal DNA test would tell whether I'm related to any of the fellows who have already tested, or would an autosomal test of a female descendant of one of those 7 brothers show a relationship to me? Would the $99 test from Ancestry.com do the trick, or is the $289 Family Finder test from FTDNA necessary? I realize that no testing could tell *which* of the 7 brothers was the parent of my 3rd great-grandfather; I'm simply wondering if I can narrow him down to a certain clan. Can anyone answer those questions or direct me to a site that gives a thorough explanation of what autosomal DNA testing will do?

My results are due any day from FTDNA testing. I opted for the 67 markers. I'm trying to locate descendants from Ireland and my hope is that other with a Y-DNA match will have information I don't have. Irish records are really skimpy. I may be too early in the game but others will get tested as it becomes more publicized. At some point in time we will be in a database where we can readily communicate with cousins everywhere. My 2nd great grandfather was born in Ireland in 1803 and married in Alabama in 1832. He had brothers who also came to Alabama but I have no idea yet if they came together or later. My gg grandfather was the oldest. I also don't know if he had other siblings who stayed in Ireland or perhaps went to another continent. So if I can't pinpoint him in Ireland I also can't identify his parents or relatives. I have no idea what autosomal DNA is. I think I qualified for a discount at FTDNA because there is a Gorman surname project in place and that is my surname. I paid $238 for the 67 marker test. Gale Gorman Houston On May 16, 2012, at 4:48 PM, Kirsten Bowman wrote: I have a fair understanding of the use of yDNA in genealogy but the blurbs I've read about autosomal DNA don't give a clue to whether that test would help solve a longstanding brick wall in my maternal line, which is as follows . . . My 3rd great-grandfather was born in 1788 in a sparsely-populated region of Canada. I suspect he was the son of one of 7 brothers who settled in the area in the early 1780s. Roughly a dozen direct male descendants of those 7 brothers have done yDNA tests through FTDNA. Some have tested up to 67 markers and one has done the FTDNA Family Finder test. My own line daughtered-out with my 2nd great-grandfather and I’m unable to locate any direct male cousins for yDNA testing. Now I'm wondering whether an autosomal DNA test would tell whether I'm related to any of the fellows who have already tested, or would an autosomal test of a female descendant of one of those 7 brothers show a relationship to me? Would the $99 test from Ancestry.com do the trick, or is the $289 Family Finder test from FTDNA necessary? I realize that no testing could tell *which* of the 7 brothers was the parent of my 3rd great-grandfather; I'm simply wondering if I can narrow him down to a certain clan. Can anyone answer those questions or direct me to a site that gives a thorough explanation of what autosomal DNA testing will do?

The area BETWEEN Y and mtDNA. That is what Dr Scott Woodward told me and others in person 4 years ago. David S. On 5/16/2012 5:21 PM, Gale Gorman wrote: > I have no idea what autosomal DNA is.

Thanks to Joan, Barton, and Nelda for the informative responses. The fog is *beginning* to clear, but it's still pretty thick. I thoroughly understand the matching potential between men through yDNA testing and believe I understand mtDNA matching, but I'm really still in the dark about autosomal testing. If I do share a common ancestor with the men who have posted y-results it would be back about 7 generations (counting me), so that makes a match rather iffy right out of the gate. But then is it necessary for these men to also have mtDNA or autosomal tests and, if so, which? Or is it possible to find a match between an mtDNA or autosomal test from me and a yDNA test from one of these possible cousins? Kirsten -----Original Message----- From: Kirsten Bowman Sent: Wednesday, May 16, 2012 2:48 PM To: Roots-L Subject: [ROOTS-L] Autosomal DNA? I have a fair understanding of the use of yDNA in genealogy but the blurbs I've read about autosomal DNA don't give a clue to whether that test would help solve a longstanding brick wall in my maternal line, which is as follows . . . My 3rd great-grandfather was born in 1788 in a sparsely-populated region of Canada. I suspect he was the son of one of 7 brothers who settled in the area in the early 1780s. Roughly a dozen direct male descendants of those 7 brothers have done yDNA tests through FTDNA. Some have tested up to 67 markers and one has done the FTDNA Family Finder test. My own line daughtered-out with my 2nd great-grandfather and I’m unable to locate any direct male cousins for yDNA testing. Now I'm wondering whether an autosomal DNA test would tell whether I'm related to any of the fellows who have already tested, or would an autosomal test of a female descendant of one of those 7 brothers show a relationship to me? Would the $99 test from Ancestry.com do the trick, or is the $289 Family Finder test from FTDNA necessary? I realize that no testing could tell *which* of the 7 brothers was the parent of my 3rd great-grandfather; I'm simply wondering if I can narrow him down to a certain clan. Can anyone answer those questions or direct me to a site that gives a thorough explanation of what autosomal DNA testing will do? ===== If you would prefer digest mode to mail mode, drop a note to roots-admin@rootsweb.com and ask for the digest... ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to ROOTS-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message