I don't have the problem of people simply appearing in my projects because I've set the option on my GAP (Group Administrators Page) not to allow people to join without my approval. In a case such as the one you relate, when I got his request to join, we'd start having a discussion as to whether it would be appropriate or not for him to do so. You don't say what haplogroup he was, how rare his haplotype is, or how close his 35-marker matches are. These would figure into how likely it is that the resemblance really means relationship. In any case, I would have him wait until the 67 marker results come back before letting him in -- or turning him away. I would also ask him for his lineage, to see whether his family crossed paths at any point with any of the families he is matching in your project. So far, in each of the NPEs in my project, we've found a place where the families were living in the same place at the same time. Diana > -----Original Message----- > From: [email protected] On Behalf Of Sharon Bryant > Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2008 6:35 AM > To: [email protected] > Subject: [Y-DNA-projects] NPEs and other related issues > > Hello again, > > Interestingly enough in my two largest projects, I have had > very interesting requests to join. In fact just yesterday I > received notice that I had a new project member whose surname > is Mavitty. He joined the Clendenin/Glendinning project. > > When I questioned him about his lineage, I found that he > knows nothing earlier than the immigrant who arrived in > America in 1765. His reason for joining the project: the > majority of his matches are men in my project or a couple of > MacGregors. His membership came complete with 37 marker > testing accomplished and an upgrade to 67 markers in the works. > > Has this type of thing to any of you? How did you handle it? > > Thanks, > > Sharon

Early on in my experience as a genetic genealogy project manager, I had a case of misattributed parentage, MAP. I like this term better than nonparental event, NEP, but my intent is not to spark a discussion on this topic, just to explain what and why I use MAP. Anyway, someone who should have matched one of my already identified genetic pedigrees, didn't. I went over the paper pedigree, it was pristine. It turned out this individual was the first child of a second marriage. There was another son from the first marriage, who was subsequently tested and matched the expected genetic pedigree. Human nature being what it is, one could develop all kinds of explanations concerning the parents of this man, one of which may have been true. However, as a result of checking the pedigree I discovered there was a maiden aunt who was close in age to the supposed father. This birth may very well have been an undocumented, in family adoption. I found an individual on ysearch who was a 34 / 37, same haplogroup, match with my project participant. I gave them the information and I do not know if they made contact with the individual or not. Needless to say the man who was tested, his wife and I were stunned by the test results. That is in spite of the fact that I always warn my people that they might find out something about their ancestors they did not want to know. Marleen Van Horne

This is a warning I make in big, bright bold letters when father/son duo's or first cousins get tested. A 200-hundred year old skeleton in the closet is one thing but when the people involved are still around it is all different matter isn't. This is one of the ethical considerations I didn't truely appreciate as a traditional genealogist. I think it is a big reason why so many people won't go anywhere near DNA testing. Some find it better to stick with a well researched paper trail then have decades of work blown away with a single test. David Weston. -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Marleen Van Horne Sent: July 24, 2008 12:30 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [Y-DNA-projects] NPEs and other related issues <snip> Needless to say the man who was tested, his wife and I were stunned by the test results. That is in spite of the fact that I always warn my people that they might find out something about their ancestors they did not want to know. Marleen Van Horne ------------------------------- The topic of this list is Y-DNA *surname* projects. Discussion of geographic, haplogroup, or mtDNA projects is off topic for this list. ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message

Throwing away thirty years of research happened in the Oden project, but it was not the result of a MAP, as far as we know. The problem is that two men, Solomon Oden and Thomas Oden lived in the same county at approximately the same time. Descendants of Solomon spent 30 years trying to connect Solomon to Thomas's family. Genetic testing showed there was no biological connection between the two families. Solomon is in the I1 haplogroup and Thomas is R1b1b2. Oden is a common surname in the Scandinavian countries which would go along with the I1 haplogroup. The other Oden family has English, and possibly further back French origins, as the name may have evolved from Odeon. I am afraid I do not have much sympathy with people who cling to pedigrees that do not contain their ancestors. What is the point? Marleen Van Horne