Hi ALL,
We have previously discussed the possibility of dna genealogy, referring
to, and posting articles suggesting a future capability for, dna testing to
determine family connections.
Well, it can now be argued that the future has arrived.
Ancestry.com has
now put together a dna home testing kit, at a cost of about $200, for which
a person can apparently be tested (by a cotton swab in the mouth) and by
which your dna fingerprint will be reported to you, and perhaps a bit
more, as you can see by the short blurb below:
you will also be informed of exact matches or near matches with other
samples in the database and have access to future database matches and web
features for the next 12 months.
While it isnt totally clear, I gather that dna results, in addition to
being reported to you, will also be used to compare to others. If anyone is
planning to take advantage of this service, please contact me so we can plan
to report (anonymously if you wish - I will tell no one w/o approval from
you), on the information gathered, benefits, problems, potential, etc.
Specific dna testing for Virginia Dare & Pocahontas
While this is addressed to all my hosted Lists, and to others to which I
belong, Im sure it is no secret to many of you that I host Dare-L and
Pocahontas-L. One of the possible theories that has been advanced over the
past 400+ years is that this countrys first anglo citizen Virginia Dare,
daughter of Ananias Dare md Eleanor White, d/o Expedition leader John White,
could possibly been taken and raised by a NA (Native American) tribe, and,
under unusual but possible circumstances, have been the mother of
Pocahontas.
It is relatively clear that we have a number of Dares w/quite early
ancestors that belong to our Dare-L List, and also many Poca-L members that
believe they are related to the known descendants of Poca, with strong
supporting evidence, as can be viewed in the Archives of our Lists, where
you can OneClick join and browse & search the Archives:
http://lists.rootsweb.com/index/surname/d/dare.html
http://lists.rootsweb.com/index/other/Ethnic-Native/POCAHONTAS.html
While it would be somewhat preferable to have a sample of the actual dna
of Pocahontas for testing, it is almost as, perhaps even equally as,
effective to have the samples of known descendants of her descendants. At
the level of todays science, as I understand it, if samples of dna, as
could apparently be tested by a kit such as this one, were taken from true
descendants of Va Dare & of Poca, it would be 99+% proof whether Va was (or
was not) Pocas mother (or possibly otherwise related, or not related,
depending on the results).
It is known that Poca was buried in GravesEnd church in the London area,
although there is also evidence that her and others graves were moved to
allow expansion of the church. At one point, it was reported that Wayne
Newton was negotiating/ discussing w/UK governmental officials for recovery
to the US of one of its initial heroes/heroines, although I have heard
nothing new about this - if anyone has, please advise.
There is a potential coalescing event, the Jamestown 400th anniversary,
set for big time celebration in 2007. Any good news from our efforts could
be of interest to attendees at this event, which itself could also be
beneficial to efforts to repatriate Poca.
Let us know what you think, and please let me know (private unless you
say otherwise) if you are thinking about such testing, and particularly if
you have undergone such testing).
Best,
Barry Wetherington
List Host Pocahontas-L, Dare-L, and others
La Jolla California
cbarrywether(a)hotmail.com
Ancestry.com
http://shops.ancestry.com/product.asp?productid=2637
"GenetiKit Genealogy Paternal Ancestry Signature
(Y-Chromosome haplotype)
Item #2637 Sale Price: $197.95 Retail Price:$219.95
[also avail other dna kits, useful by either sex. bw 2/9/02]
GenetiKit Genealogy Paternal Ancestry Signature
The Surname test analyzes the DNA on your Y-chromosome (only males have the
Y-chromosome) and reveals your Paternal Ancestry Signature that was
inherited from your father who inherited it from his father, etc. (your
Surname line). Your signature is formatted into 23 numbers associated with
the 23 markers (the highest resolution commercial Y-chromosome test in the
world!). This test is collected by using Ancestry's GenetiKit. The GenetiKit
is a home collection kit that comes with a swab to painlessly and easily
collect a sample of cells from the inside of your cheek, which is then
returned to the laboratory where DNA testing is completed within a few
weeks.
When you receive your Paternal Ancestry Signature, you will also be informed
of exact matches or near matches with other samples in the database and have
access to future database matches and web features for the next 12 months."
D:\Data\DatFmMic\PERSONAL\GENEALGY\RESEARCH\DNA\HomeKit.wpd 2/9/02
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