An internet genealogical contact is in the unfortunate situation of not having a male in the surname line
to take the Y-DNA test on her behalf---until a moment of serendipity occurred and such a male has already been tested and his test results are on display. Her family's coat of arms has an O'Neill crest above it and the person tested has the Niall of the Nine Hostages haplotype.
I had been trying to find some McCowns scattered about an FTDNA project and that surname was there.
This contact has done a lot of diligent research both here and in Ulster and has access to some records that most of the rest of us don't. Still, after giving up hope for help via DNA, it was found by chance.
She has been a great help to me providing information and advice that may ultimately unlock the Ulster
history of my McCown line. I will take serendipity over hard work any old time.
Friday, April 1, 2011
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Quest for a Small Group
The latest word from FTDNA regarding SNP P66+ and marker DYF399X is that although Jim McKown and I, both being P66+ could be tested for marker DYF399X. We have been encouraged to
put together a small group to also be tested because that will give the interpreters more sight angles at the results and could, perhaps, identify how long ago P66+ came into our family line. My hope is that it will not only do that but also show others with Maguire DNA who may be related to us.
Barry McCain, administrator of the FTDNA Ulster Heritage Group, believes that our McCown/McKown connection with the Maguire DNA came about sometime in the 1600's AD. Barry
also sent a list of five or six other men that he has identified at 67 markers to William Roulston to study and if possible, find if they, indeed, did live near to each other, were Protestant and had other relatedness among the families.
All of this may sound like we are trying to avoid FTDNA's recently developed test that has the capability to identify cousins going back five generations. That is not the case, because that test was not offered when Barry first contacted William Roulston, Jim McKown had not been tested at all, and few people other than John McEwan had even heard of P66+ or DYF399X. John had as far back as at least 2005 and has written about it.
The FTDNA test for cousins is more far reaching and costs much more than what we plan to do. What we are trying to do could be money down the drain or a spectaculor success---with a wee bit o' the luck of the Irish.
put together a small group to also be tested because that will give the interpreters more sight angles at the results and could, perhaps, identify how long ago P66+ came into our family line. My hope is that it will not only do that but also show others with Maguire DNA who may be related to us.
Barry McCain, administrator of the FTDNA Ulster Heritage Group, believes that our McCown/McKown connection with the Maguire DNA came about sometime in the 1600's AD. Barry
also sent a list of five or six other men that he has identified at 67 markers to William Roulston to study and if possible, find if they, indeed, did live near to each other, were Protestant and had other relatedness among the families.
All of this may sound like we are trying to avoid FTDNA's recently developed test that has the capability to identify cousins going back five generations. That is not the case, because that test was not offered when Barry first contacted William Roulston, Jim McKown had not been tested at all, and few people other than John McEwan had even heard of P66+ or DYF399X. John had as far back as at least 2005 and has written about it.
The FTDNA test for cousins is more far reaching and costs much more than what we plan to do. What we are trying to do could be money down the drain or a spectaculor success---with a wee bit o' the luck of the Irish.
Friday, March 4, 2011
New Haplogroup Explained
Brad McGuire and Pat Meguire both are group administrators and both replied to my emails regarding the change in haplogroup.
It is not a mistake and represents new sub branches to established trees. More to follow as the smoke clears.
It is not a mistake and represents new sub branches to established trees. More to follow as the smoke clears.
Faster Than a Speeding Bullet, Wilder than the Evening News
FTDNA has just changed the haplogroups of a whole passel of men without blinking an eye. The change involves all of the men whose haplogroups have been tested in the Ulster Heritage Group Mag Uidhir I and Mag Uidhir II. It generally changed many more men than that because R1b1b2a1b5 is one of the most common haplogroups on the west coast of Scotland, the western Isles and Northern Ireland.
It changed for all of those mentioned above from R1b1b2a1b5 to R1b1a2a1a1b4, which you will all agree is one heck of a change. Jim McKown and I have a letter c suffix following the 4. This haplogroup change may be another lab goof or a posting goof, because the underlying SNP results did not change a whit. It may be because their chief scientist at the Houston lab has left on vacation, that the people at the con have made a mistake. Whatever, I have contacted FTDNA and should receive an reply
next week. One other possibility is that FTDNA is initiating the change to the most recent NIST standards. When FTDNA replies, I will print the answer here.
It changed for all of those mentioned above from R1b1b2a1b5 to R1b1a2a1a1b4, which you will all agree is one heck of a change. Jim McKown and I have a letter c suffix following the 4. This haplogroup change may be another lab goof or a posting goof, because the underlying SNP results did not change a whit. It may be because their chief scientist at the Houston lab has left on vacation, that the people at the con have made a mistake. Whatever, I have contacted FTDNA and should receive an reply
next week. One other possibility is that FTDNA is initiating the change to the most recent NIST standards. When FTDNA replies, I will print the answer here.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Big Surprise of the Day!
Thomas Kranh of FTDNA has just replied to my email from this morning. He has retested my
P66- SNP and, begorrah!, it is now P66+ and my haplogroup, which was R1b1b2a1b5 now has a
c suffix after the 5. I hope Jim McKown enjoyed being the sole proprietor of that haplogroup
because he now has to share it with me and probably cousin Sam as well.
P66- SNP and, begorrah!, it is now P66+ and my haplogroup, which was R1b1b2a1b5 now has a
c suffix after the 5. I hope Jim McKown enjoyed being the sole proprietor of that haplogroup
because he now has to share it with me and probably cousin Sam as well.
Retest Status Revisited
Since Feb. 21st has come and gone and I have had no update from FTDNA regarding the retesting
of my P66- SNP result. I just sent an email to Thomas Krahn asking if it was safe to assume
that my test samples had been retested and no change found. I hope to receive an answer to this next week.
My FTDNA Home Page where I view my matches has been partially obscured since either last Friday or Saturday. This happens periodically for no reason that FTDNA has ever bothered to
explain. Specifically, the last match at every level from 12 markers through 67 markers on every group of which I am a member is covered with a horizontal bar that blocks the view of just who those matches are. I complained about this via "Contact Us" and as usual, have received no response, and worse yet, the problem has not been corrected.
I mention this to see if any of you have encountered this as well or if it is personal between me and FTDNA.
of my P66- SNP result. I just sent an email to Thomas Krahn asking if it was safe to assume
that my test samples had been retested and no change found. I hope to receive an answer to this next week.
My FTDNA Home Page where I view my matches has been partially obscured since either last Friday or Saturday. This happens periodically for no reason that FTDNA has ever bothered to
explain. Specifically, the last match at every level from 12 markers through 67 markers on every group of which I am a member is covered with a horizontal bar that blocks the view of just who those matches are. I complained about this via "Contact Us" and as usual, have received no response, and worse yet, the problem has not been corrected.
I mention this to see if any of you have encountered this as well or if it is personal between me and FTDNA.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Three to Five Weeks, Oh My!
FTDNA replied to my email that the retesting for P66+ and the analysis of the result
should be completed in three to five weeks from Jan. 24th. and that should put it
about Feb. 21st. We should know by then, or shortly thereafter, whether or not
Jim McKown's result on that Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP)is simply unstable
or has reverted to some previous norm. I am expecting good things, but regardless,
I am confident that we are related, although it might be back as far as the 1600's
that our Most Recent Common Ancestor(MRCA)fathered two sons and that is probably
where our lines grew a bit farther apart.
should be completed in three to five weeks from Jan. 24th. and that should put it
about Feb. 21st. We should know by then, or shortly thereafter, whether or not
Jim McKown's result on that Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP)is simply unstable
or has reverted to some previous norm. I am expecting good things, but regardless,
I am confident that we are related, although it might be back as far as the 1600's
that our Most Recent Common Ancestor(MRCA)fathered two sons and that is probably
where our lines grew a bit farther apart.
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