Amen John,
Bob Carpenter of Lompoc, CA had a paper lineage suggested that he was
related to the family of Zimmermans of North Carolina. He even had a father
and mother. When he took the DNA test, it confirmed his paper suggestion.
If he had never had the DNA test, he would have still wondered about the
paper trail. So both can work together!
Robert Carpenter
----- Original Message -----
From: "John R. Carpenter" <jrcrin001(a)cox.net>
To: "Carpenter Rootsweb" <CARPENTER(a)rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thursday, July 28, 2011 2:03 PM
Subject: Re: [CARPENTER] Family Finder at FTDNA
Hello,
The following is comments about Family Finder at FTDNA.
Without going into the technicality of percentages of values or terms
indicating relationships; when you receive a match you still need that
paper trail to confirm any connection.
If you are looking for lost cousins with different surnames, then this may
be of value. You get a match, compare genealogies and then determine your
relationship based on the relationship value given by Family Finder. And
if the paper trail matches up with the mathematical relationship ... You
have just confirmed that relationship already done by your paper trail
genealogy research.
In one case, a relationship was found that was caused by a cheating
grandfather who had just passed on and was eulogized very nicely. Someone
was looking for a possible father or grandfather (I forgot which one) and
found a genetic match! Adoptees may find this test helpful.
If you are looking to confirm or dis-confirm some type of genetic
relationships with your cousins, parents, grandparents or great
grandparents, then this test could be helpful. Don’t forget to get all of
those people to take or pay for the Family Finder test otherwise your test
is nearly useless. Until a match is found.
As more and more people partake of the Family finder tests, genetic
relationships will be found. But, remember it is up to you and the person
matching to work together to find a paper trail match.
Unfortunately many will not find that paper trail match. These may be for
many reasons such as loss or modifications of records due to court
actions, adoptions and informal changes of identify.
Like all DNA testing for genealogical purposes (I am deliberately ignoring
the medical issue here), you need to be aware of the limitations and
possible consequences of the DNA tests. When in doubt ask questions.
Remember: Not all DNA testing companies are as responsive and helpful as
FTDNA.
For a non-FTDNA review of Family Finder, please see:
http://www.yourgeneticgenealogist.com/2011/05/ftdnas-family-finder-my-new...
For a FAQ on FTDNA’s Family Finder, see:
http://www.familytreedna.com/faq/answers/default.aspx?faqid=17
I hope this helps.
John R. Carpenter
La Mesa, CA
Carpenter Cousins Y-DNA Project
http://members.cox.net/johnrcarpenter/index.htm
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